# How to price prints?



## sdreitlein

Hi everyone,

I am a hobbyist when it comes to photography.  That said, I do invest a great deal of time and money into this hobby and if I could figure out how to make "my kind" of photography (landscapes/travel) into an actual career I would in a heartbeat.

In recent years I have been making calendars as gifts and am finding several people inquiring about purchasing prints.  Its not just my friends, but people they now as well, businesses such as health care offices included.  I am very interested in dealing with these contacts though I am unsure how to charge fairly- where I am not overcharging, but still getting a fair price for my work.  

Any advice will be greatly appreciated.  A sampling of my images can be found at https://picasaweb.google.com/104418897088623569371/Sampling#


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## Rocan

you have some STUNNING images. definitely professional worthy content. 

make your first prints on a per print basis. you can either choose to standardize your printing price, or charge more for the prints of your better work. 

Id do a run of one size like 20x16 and sell those. if theres enough interest in other sizes, then sell those as well. 

Personally if someone asks me for a print I'll consider how much it costs me to print the image (lets say 25 bucks for the 20x16) and then double or tripple the amount. 75-125 dollars really isnt all that much to pay for a top quality image. once you make a proper name for yourself, you can sell them for more. also try and grab a spot at an art exhibit; you can sell many prints from attending even one.


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## Big Mike

I think you need to sit down a figure out a few thing before deciding on your prices.  
For example, do you want this to be a sustainable business?  In other words, if this was your only source of income, could you stay afloat?  If so, then you would need to charge enough to cover the cost of your equipment (including processing equipment (computer etc.)) (spread over the expected lifetime of the equipment), you would need to cover the expenses you incur in making/getting the images (travel etc.)  Then there are business expenses, and make no mistake, if you are charging for these, it is a business and you should be paying income tax and you may need a business license/registration etc.  And of course, you need to get paid etc.  
Now, you may not be making your living selling these, but that doesn't mean you need to charge less because of that.  

Remember that this is art, and as such...it's value is usually determined by what someone is willing to pay for it.  If you charge $4 for it, then that's it's value...if you can get someone to pay $400 for it, then that's its value.  So the key is getting other people to believe it has value (that they would be willing pay for).  Part of that, is not pricing it too low.  For example, if you change someone $10 for an 8x10, then they assume that you only think it has a $10 value...and they may think less of it.  But if you change $100 for it, they might think "Wow, they really value that artwork".  
And of course, there are ways to show this.  For example, do just sell simple prints.  If you sell an art piece, have it mounted and ready for framing.  Include a matte and maybe framing as well.  These things add to your cost, but they should also increase the price you charge for it....and increase the value to the customer.  

With all that said, some people might offer advice like...add up your costs and double it to get your price.  (or triple it...or quadruple it).  That's not necessarily bad advice, it can be great advice...but when you can get a good 8x10 print for $2.50...charging only $10 seems pretty low for a nice piece of art.


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## imagemaker46

Pricing has always been one of those difficult areas to put together. If you go though professional sites you'll find prices all over the map, as you may well already have.  I have never really had a set price list, there have been times in the past when I would put one together and then change it based on clients.  I look at other photographers sites that work in the same field as I do and see what kind of prices they charge, I also shake my head at how high some of them charge and wonder if they even sell any.  This won't really apply to selling "art type" printed photos. When I shoot events all the images go online, people can download personal use hi res copies of the images, I started selling the images at $40 and sold none, I worked my way down until I hit $15 and the purchases increased to a constant point, along with people downloading several images at a time.  The point is, $15 is very low for a hi res download, but I would rather be selling 10-15 images a day at $15, than selling nothing at $40.  It came down to what people were willing to pay and not what I believed was the value of my work, it can be frustrating, if I held out for what I believed was the true value, I'd never sell anything.


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## Big Mike

Great point & example imagemaker46.  For good sales, long term, you need to find prices that work best.  The Law of Diminishing Returns, supply and demand etc.  

Although, I've heard many stories that go something like....'Had a product priced at $10, didn't sell any.  Upped the price to $50 and sold plenty'.  or 'House didn't sell at $390,000...upped it to $501,000 and it sold in a week'.  
Some people actually want to spend more...maybe because it makes them feel better about their purchase or maybe it's something they can brag about to their friends.  If you wanted to put a photo up as a show piece in your living room, wouldn't you feel better about seeing a $700 piece of art vs a $35 piece of art?  (actually paying for it aside).  
Either way, when this type of person has the money to spend, they make for great customers.


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## KmH

You are venturing into the business of photography, and business acumen becomes important - business knowledge like marketing/promotion/advertising/salesmanship.

The x2 or x3 factor doesn't work very well, because your costs are likely well more than that. You can get a pro lab printed 8x10 for $1.99. Selling it for $6 won't cover all your costs, but if you consider an 8x10 is 80 square inches and you charge $0.40 a square inch, $32 may well cover your costs and provide some income. The $0.40 I chose was arbitrary. The number you use would be based on your CODB/COGS (cost of doing business/cost of goods sold). If you don't know what your CODB/COGS is, you have no way of knowing if you are making money, or not.

Using that method the wall sized print at 20x16 would be $128. Don't forget to consider offering matted and framed prints.

Pricing for retail customers is usually different from the pricing for commercial customers like the health care business. 

It is said that if 1/3 of your customers complain that your price is to high, your price is probably exactly right.

Overcharging only happens when you price to high for the demographic you market to.


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## LarissaPhotography

Determining pricing for a single print is a difficult excercise.  Do you plan on selling only a single print in an order?  If you plan on selling multiple prints, it's easier to calculate your numbers based on the total order instead of just a part of the order.


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## FavillePhoto

As a print shop owner, I am asked this question numerous times PER DAY.  All of my clients who intend to resell the prints are always curious what to charge for them.  My answer is actually quite simple, and it has yielded very happy customers that always tend to report back to me how they do.  For smaller photo paper prints, or other fine art prints, we recommend that our clients TRIPLE what they pay us.  For larger fine art prints, or any gallery wrapped stretched canvas prints, we recommend they DOUBLE what they pay us.  Now, obviously, this advice works for us, and for our clients, based on our prices.  If your local printer has different prices, it may not necessarily work out as simple as this.  Alot of our clients have come back to us and told us that taking our simple advice on pricing, has yielded them plenty of profit after their CODB (Let's face it, for a photographer, the CODB is less than alot of other businesses, so you don't need to charge a fortune to make a decent profit per print).  Prices also depend on your local market, as well.  Here in Mesa, AZ, this pricing method seems to work perfectly.  In your neck of the woods, check out what other comparable photographers are charging for their stuff, and price your stuff accordingly.  You probably want to offer your prints at a price that makes you more expensive than about 25% of your competition, but cheaper than about 75% of the competition.  Noone wants to buy stuff from the absolute cheapest place - they assume they're cheap for a reason, but, ESPECIALLY in this economy, everyone is looking for a good deal right now.  So, you're not the cheapest place (the low priced outcast), but you're a bargain compared to most of your local market.

I hope this helps the OP, as well as anyone else who may have been curious about price points.  If anyone has any more in-depth questions about pricing, starting up a photography business, or print sales business, please don't hesitate to contact me by phone or e-mail, and we can discuss particular things a little further.  Our specialty at "Faville Photo" is actually assisting start-up artists and photographers answer all of these types of questions, and get their business up and running.  We can suggest places to sell your work, how to price your work, how to market your work, and most importantly, we can help your create your work in the first place - whether we do the printing, or we help you locate a source that is right for you and your particular needs.

Good luck in your search for the "perfect price" - it's quite an elusive creature!


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## KmH

So a $4 8x10 should sell for $16?


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## RaynaMcGinnis

For setting prices, you should look around and see what your competitors are offering it for similar work. Pricing depends on the market and what clients are willing to pay. My prints vary based on assignment, though my basic sized prints (8 x 10 and smaller) stay the same. 

That said, as a portrait photographer, I kind of feel like my clients are paying for my time and expertise and the prints are extra. I've seen some photographers that charge and arm and a leg for basic prints. I personally charge more for my services and less for prints. I know plenty of photographers that would rather do it just the opposite. I guess it all depends on your own perspective.


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## KmH

RaynaMcGinnis said:


> For setting prices, you should look around and see what your competitors are offering it for similar work. Pricing depends on the market and what clients are willing to pay.......


But, it also depends on your cost-of-doing-business and your cost-of-goods-sold. Your competitors likely have overall costs different than yours, so be very careful blindly using someone else's pricing.

The price clients are willing to pay is a function of how much value they perceive for a product. A good photographer that also has good business/marketing/salesmanship skills can usually demand a premium for their work/service.


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## RaynaMcGinnis

KmH said:


> RaynaMcGinnis said:
> 
> 
> 
> For setting prices, you should look around and see what your competitors are offering it for similar work. Pricing depends on the market and what clients are willing to pay.......
> 
> 
> 
> But, it also depends on your cost-of-doing-business and your cost-of-goods-sold. Your competitors likely have overall costs different than yours, so be very careful blindly using someone else's pricing.
> 
> The price clients are willing to pay is a function of how much value they perceive for a product. A good photographer that also has good business/marketing/salesmanship skills can usually demand a premium for their work/service.
Click to expand...

 
You're correct. I wouldn't suggest using someone else's pricing list, but I would suggest seeing who you're competitors are and what they're selling their goods for. If you can objectively look at your work and honestly say it's better than your competitors, price up. If you're about the same, you need to either put in the effort to get better, then price, or price reasonably until you can say you're better.


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## c.cloudwalker

KmH said:


> Your competitors likely have overall costs different than yours


 
Why?  Although they are not going to be exactly the same, they shouldn't be all that different. Rent may be higher in the uppity part of town but if you are setting shop in the not-so-uppity part of town the guys in the high rent district are not your competitors.


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