Have to leave our photog??

[TulipsAndSunscreen]

Had a question for the pros on here who have been in business. We love our photographer here who has done all our family pics since we moved to NC. Unfortunately, she just emailed that she's changed her pricing.

Her previous work was pretty expensive (several hundred dollars for a session of about an hour) and included the digital images (10-25 images depending on the session price). She is on the higher end of the pricing scale for around here but her work is really great. It was definitely a financial stretch for us to use her but we'd ask for it for holiday/birthday presents.

She's now changed her pricing to be ALL products and if you want digital files its $500 for 5 and $1000 for up to 25. We don't have much wall space for art (which is all very pricey compared to what you can order yourself) and no one in our family is going to want anything but prints so we need the digitals.

I'm so so bummed but there is NO WAY I am going to pay $1,000 for 25 images, that's just not in the realm of possibility. Is this the direction pro photography is going? I know they all offer art products but by forcing me to buy products that I don't want and making the digitals unaffordable, I'm going to have to find someone new.

Is it worth saying anything to her? If that's what her time is worth, I totally respect that but I also don't want to just take my business elsewhere without saying anything (I know she'll see it on Facebook for example).

[Sheherezade]

She doesn't sell prints at all? I'm confused.


Angie

[TulipsAndSunscreen]

She does but they're $75 for a 4x6 and up which is insane.

[diggitydot]

Have to leave our photog??

Weird. Our photographer just changed her pricing structure, too. She now charges a flat rate for her sessions and all the prints are al a carte, which dropped her pricing substantially.

[Deebs]

This would be my husband's suggestion - for that price, you can go to Disneyworld for a couple of days, pay for the photo service, and have as many pictures taken as you'd like!

Honestly, I love pictures, but have gotten to a point where we have tons of candids from daily life and I splurge (like $200-$300) every few years. I can't imagine spending $1000. It's just too much.

[SuzySunshine]

That is how our photographer basically she is - she makes all of her money off of the prints, wall collections, etc and she doesn't even sell the digitals. When my kids were infants it was worth every penny IMO because I knew what I was getting and I now have a beautiful wall of matching photos/frames/etc for each kid at 6 months, 1 year, all the way up to R's recent 4's. Now that she is leaving we will probably still do a full family session with her every other year or so but I'm not sure what we'll do otherwise. The kids' school brings in a great photographer for candids each fall, her pricing is also high but we may just do those and their school photos now that they are older.

I think what she is doing is where most photographers that are well established make their money.

[Ladybug]

I would just email her and share your feedback. You love her work, but can't afford the new prices. Keep it sweet and let her know you'd be interested in the old pricing structure if she ever decided to return to it.

That's so much money. I guess it's a big part of the reason I started learning more about photography. I want the photos but I could never pay that much. Sadly, I've never done a family photo shoot. I wish I could find someone to trade family shoots with.

[SoonerTexan]

Yes, I have seen that trend. And honestly, if she knows her business, she knows that she can still make X amount of money with less work. If she doesn't book enough, she'll probably run specials or change it back. My guess is she is getting enough business that she knows she can charge it, so I cant really blame her for wanting to.

I agree. It is a lot. And way way more than I would consider paying. I'd just look elsewhere. She'll understand. If she asks, simply say it is out of your price range and she should understand too.

ETA: That is some of the highest I've seen..ever. I'd still go with someone else. You're paying for her reputation at this point, which isn't a bad thing, but obviously not worth it for your situation.

[niener]

With that big of a jump in pricing, if she has the slightest clue what she's doing then she knows she's going to loose some clients. That is definitely a trend, once photographers become more well-established they start targeting clients with more disposable income. And often those with more disposable income have larger homes and more wall space and thus more room for lots of prints, canvas, etc. I wouldn't worry about her seeing your photos from another photographer on Facebook, she'll understand why. As much as you love her work, she's simply not a good fit for you anymore. If you feel you've developed something of a relationship with her over the past year or two and just want to send a sort of "wishing you the best/take care" message as a gentle farewell I think that's perfectly fine.

ETA: I'm sorry you've lost your photographer that sucks

[ladymoreta]

I agree, she probably won't (or at least shouldn't) have her feelings hurt over you hiring another photographer. She probably raised prices because she had too many clients, and that's a way to reduce the workload. That's far more than I'd consider paying, too.

[WolfpackWife]

I don't know what to say about pricing jump or whether or not to say anything, but I've got plenty of friends in the area who have used various photogs if you'd be interested in some recs. including the couple who did our engagement and wedding photography.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[TulipsAndSunscreen]

Yeah, I figured she knew what she was doing but still wondered if I should say something just to give her feedback.

I know a lot of people sell products as well as digitals and I know that's the way to make money. I was willing to pay for the digitals even if it was a splurge but the prices have gotten insane. There is no way I can pay $500 for 5 photos - especially with two kids. How can i only buy 5 photos and get enough shots! And I know she has to edit them, etc but honestly, she's a good photographer she shouldn't be doing 3 hours of editing per photo. I'm sure she has lots of pre edits in her workflow, etc. I'm not a pro but I actually do know a bit about photography and I know it shouldn't be taking her that long on any one photo.

[SoonerTexan]

It's because handing over the digitals means losing print sales, not so much about editing time. I agree it's crazy, but if she can get people to pay it and work less, more power to her.

Want me to ask around about photogs in your area too?

[niener]

Thing is you're paying for her name, brand and reputation now, that (again, assuming she knows what she's doing here) she's spent a lot of time building. Take Williams-Sonoma for example. Of course it doesn't cost $6 to manufacture and sell four marshmallows in the shape of snowflakes, but people buy them anyway because it's Williams-Sonoma. Pricing on digital negatives can get a bit tricky too because you're not just paying for her time to edit those particular photos, you're paying for loss of potential future sales. If you own the digital negatives, odds are you'll never buy a print from her so she has to consider that when she prices them.

She's definitely on the high side, I agree with you there. That's among the highest I've seen for a family portrait photographer. She must feel pretty good about her brand.

[TulipsAndSunscreen]

She does feel pretty good about her brand and she should, her work is really good. she's speaking at the clickin moms conference coming up so she's clearly got some cred.

She's also opening a new studio and I wonder if she's raising prices to justify that.

I'll take any and all recs. I like natural light, outdoors, and candid type feel that aren't over-edited. I googled some tonight where for example the editing on the eyes in certain portfolios was ridiculous. We all want bright eyes in photos but some of them looked like aliens!! And someone who can work with kids obviously.