Accidental Photography Business...Advice Needed!

[Maggie_M]

I really never had any intention of starting a photography business,I just love to take pictures and play with exposure.

Recently I have had more and more requests for prints and even an invitation to show in a gallery. I'm flattered by all the positive feedback but also a little nervous about it because I am really not at all sure of the business aspect of photography!

For instance...

I just received a request for a high resolution file of one of my images, she asked me to quote her a price. My first inclination is to NOT send her a file but offer to sell her a print (which I have no idea how to price).
when is it appropriate to sell someone a high res file and how much do you charge?
If you are just selling prints how do you dertermine the price?
I recently got an Epson R1900 printer, so I can do some of my own printing.

Any advice is appreciated!

[SusanH1970]

Have you checked the pricing of other photographers in your area? Good place to start...see what they're charging for prints and high-res files (if they're offering them).

[Dibble]

I use the general rule of thumb i learned from DPS. Charge 2X the amount you would charge for the largest print available. Say your image will only print up to 8x10 because of cropping and you sell 8x10s for $20. Then you would sell the image for $40.

[Maggie_M]

Originally Posted by Dibble

I use the general rule of thumb i learned from DPS. Charge 2X the amount you would charge for the largest print available. Say your image will only print up to 8x10 because of cropping and you sell 8x10s for $20. Then you would sell the image for $40.

Are you saying sell the high res file for $40? That seems low considering that the person buying the file can make and sell as many prints as they want and I get no compensation.

[andyw]

Originally Posted by Maggie_M

I really never had any intention of starting a photography business,I just love to take pictures and play with exposure.

Recently I have had more and more requests for prints and even an invitation to show in a gallery. I'm flattered by all the positive feedback but also a little nervous about it because I am really not at all sure of the business aspect of photography!

For instance...

I just received a request for a high resolution file of one of my images, she asked me to quote her a price. My first inclination is to NOT send her a file but offer to sell her a print (which I have no idea how to price).
when is it appropriate to sell someone a high res file and how much do you charge?
If you are just selling prints how do you dertermine the price?
I recently got an Epson R1900 printer, so I can do some of my own printing.

Any advice is appreciated!

Well done on getting the invite to show in a gallery.

As to the business aspects.
If you are only going to be selling a few prints or maybe license the odd shot now and again then there is no reason to have a "business" as such. Just make sure if you start making money that you declare it to the dreaded taxman.

As to the hi-res file.
You need to find out for what usage and license it properly or you are likely to find the image being used all over the place with no extra income for you.
The "normal" way of doing this is to get the details from the customer as to what the usage will be, in what geographical area and for how long.
You then quote a price based on that specific usage etc. and draft up a license which is then assigned to the customer.
If they then wish to use it for anything else then they come back to you and you quote another price for the extra use.

I would NOT give out a hi-res file without a proper usage license in place.

There is loads of information on the web about "rights managed" and if you want an idea of pricing the check out Getty or have a look here Stock Photo Price Calculator

As to printing your own.
The 1900 is a decent printer but again, it depends on what the prints are for.
Personally, I self-print some stuff for sale (I use the Epson r2400) but for better archival and exhibition quality I use a good pro-lab.

[andyw]

Originally Posted by Dibble

I use the general rule of thumb i learned from DPS. Charge 2X the amount you would charge for the largest print available. Say your image will only print up to 8x10 because of cropping and you sell 8x10s for $20. Then you would sell the image for $40.

You are surely joking?

[Jim Poor]

Price really depends on use and what sort of photo it is.

I use, and recommend the 2x guideline for certain types of photos and for PERSONAL USE ONLY. I use this price guideline for my dog sports photos for a full resolution file.

For portraiture, it's a whole different story. For my animal rescue fund raisers, I use the 2x guide, but for formal portraits I have a much higher price point.

After the first of the year, when all my portrait business moves to my higher end model, a single high resolution file will be $1250.00. That basically translates to "not for sale" but if a client wants to give me that much for PERSONAL USE, I'll take it.

Commercial use is a whole different ball of wax.

[Dibble]

Originally Posted by Maggie_M

Are you saying sell the high res file for $40? That seems low considering that the person buying the file can make and sell as many prints as they want and I get no compensation.

I should have mentioned PERSONAL USE ONLY.

Originally Posted by andyw

You are surely joking?

No Joke. Like alot of people on this site i am just starting my business. At least I don't do a session + high res files on CD for $100 .

Originally Posted by Jim Poor

Price really depends on use and what sort of photo it is.

I use, and recommend the 2x guideline for certain types of photos and for PERSONAL USE ONLY. I use this price guideline for my dog sports photos for a full resolution file.

For portraiture, it's a whole different story. For my animal rescue fund raisers, I use the 2x guide, but for formal portraits I have a much higher price point.

After the first of the year, when all my portrait business moves to my higher end model, a single high resolution file will be $1250.00. That basically translates to "not for sale" but if a client wants to give me that much for PERSONAL USE, I'll take it.

Commercial use is a whole different ball of wax.

Thanks for the clarification. And thanks for all the positive and helpful post.

[Maggie_M]

Thanks for all the feedback!
I just went back and read her email and it looks like she wants an unlimited license to print, she doesn't mention selling, but what else would she do with the image?
I sent her an email asking for more details so I could quote her an accurate price.
The funny thing is the image is not one of my best, it's just a picture of the full-moon in the clouds and it's slightly overexposed, but she seems to really want it...go figure!

[OsmosisStudios]

Originally Posted by Maggie_M

Thanks for all the feedback!
I just went back and read her email and it looks like she wants an unlimited license to print

Make sure to get exact details of what she's going to be printing it in, on, and for. The size of the print run, the location/size of the image within the printed document and the sphere of publication.