While every photographer has their own circumstances that contribute to how they price their products and services there are some universal considerations. First let's talk about equipment. Most professionals have a wide variety of gear including; cameras, lenses, flashes, memory cards, radio triggers, camera bags, tripods, lighting equipment, and a myriad of other accessories. To start equipment causes high start up cost. As with any technology, photographic equipment is constantly evolving. This along with the occasional repair bill makes the equipment side of photography expensive. In my gear I have two camera bodies (just in case one fails), five lenses, a flash, two radio triggers, CF cards, a bag, two tripods, and some lighting equipment. This means that on any given shoot I'm bringing close to $15,000 in gear (it could easily be much more if I were using the new D4 which retails at about $6,000 for body only). Depending on the camera and other gear you are carrying it is very easy to carry the equivalent of a nice vehicle in camera gear.
Adding to equipment is insurance. Unfortunately today's society is very litigious. With that in mind many photographers carry liability insurance. Unlike many larger companies, getting sued could very easily put a photographer out of business. The equipment we use must also be insured in case of damage or theft.
Time is another huge consideration that must be included in pricing. For any shoot there is a certain amount of time spent in preparation. The preparation time includes cleaning equipment, charging batteries and formatting memory cards. In addition to that is time spent planning the shoot itself. Another factor of time is travel to and from the location. The last component of time is post production. Depending on the length of the shoot there can be anywhere from a few hours to a few weeks worth of hours spent prepping pictures for viewing.
Most photographers are continuously spending time in books, classes, online programs to help make them better at what they do. It takes many years of work to develop a personal artistic style. There are many college programs, seminars and workshops focuses on different aspects of photography. For the most part all of the education and continuing education is all out of pocket.
Depending on the individual photographer there are other items for consideration. If there is a studio then there is overhead for operating that space. Most photographers have a website which also has fees associated with it. Any advertising also plays a part. Aside from the actual camera gear is computer and software. To be able to use powerful professional editing software you have to have a top of the line computer. Keeping the computer and software up to date is expensive as well. Take Photoshop for example. Currently if you buy CS5 it will cost you $700.00. When they update the software it usually runs between $200-300.
All of these components together along with the photographer's individual family circumstances determine what they have to charge to be able to pay the bills and still bring home money for the family. I hope that this helps create a better understanding as to why hiring a professional costs the amount it does. We don't just pick a number out of the air hoping that people will pay it. We don't set out to take as much money from clients as possible. Instead our pricing is carefully thought out and designed to cover the cost of being self employed as well as providing money for our family.
Now something fun to look at. This is the ceiling of the Temple of Heaven in Epcot. To get this shot had to lie on the ground in the middle of the room. Thankfully Rach was the only one there to make fun of me.
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