Philippine Photography Rate Guide Initiative

TOWARDS A RATE GUIDE FOR THE PHILIPPINE PHOTOGRAPHY INDUSTRY

The absence of a standard rate guide for photography services has been a constant dilemma for Philippine photographers. In recent years, as camera manufacturers have been making professional level digital cameras more and more affordable, the number of people entering professional photography has also been on the increase. As a result, with new photographers lacking any reference point for pricing, industry prices have been spiraling downward to the detriment of all who make their living from photography.

Even many established photographers sometimes find themselves at a loss when determining how much to charge for a particular job. Fearing that we are charging way too low, or that we are charging too high that we might lose the project, sometimes causes us stress and leads us to seek advice from fellow photographers. Unfortunately, many of those we seek advice from are also quite uncertain if their own pricing scheme is right. Confusion is even heightened when we seek advice from two or more photographers and discover that all have pricing schemes so different from one another.

Imagine then the situation of new photographers eager to enter the industry. With no reference to look to for pricing, they resort to pricing themselves so low. This causes a devastating effect on the photography industry in general as it increasingly erodes the market value of our services and, with it, the respect for the profession as well. To a large extent, these new photographers can’t be blamed because there is no existing guide to base their prices on.

Let me point out a few real life examples. February 2005, a client was asking for a quotation for a catalogue shoot for 200 products. All shots were to be done on simple white background and were estimated to be completed within 3 days. Due to the volume of work, quotes were entering in the range of P500-P1500 per product. Lowest quote totaled P100,000.00. Client was trying to negotiate as it was only willing to pay P70,000 for the whole project. All of a sudden, a new photographer won the bid as he charged an unbelievable P2,000 per pay. Imagine, the client who was willing to pay P70,000 got away with paying only P6,000 for the whole project. If only that photographer knew better. As a result, in the eyes of that client, P2,000 a day is what photography is worth!

Summer 2004, a particular publication had a special project. Portraits of 20 people needed to be done within two days in the same location. The publication pegged the rate at P2,500 per layout which amounted to P50,000 for the whole project – a huge amount by local standards for editorial photography. Two days before the project, I was informed that I was being replaced as a new photographer offered to do the project at a rate of P1,250 only. I figured that at P25,000 for the project, it would still be a good rate based on our low editorial rates. Unfortunately, I found out that the photographer did not charge P1,250 per layout but charged P1,250 per day! The publication got their requirement done at ten percent the amount they were willing to pay. Horrified at this I talked to the photographer and found out that he had no idea how much to charge nor how much the magazine was willing to pay. He had recently quit his P400 a day job and decided to do photography professionally. At P1,250 a day doing photography, he thought he was doing well.

The stories of woe from photographers are plentiful nowadays. Competition has been getting more numerous with prices getting lower. It is high time that a rate guide for the Philippine photography industry be developed to safeguard photography as a viable profession.

PROPOSAL

A Philippine Photographer’s Rate Guide could be a solution to help standardize and control the industry rates for professional photography services. Such a Rate Guide could be made universally accessible via a web page on the internet and would serve as a reference point not only for photographers but even for all clients when there is a need to determine pricing for professional photography requirements.

Objectives

* Protect the photography industry by providing a reference guide for photographers with regards to pricing for various photographic services.
* Protects the photography industry by informing photographers of their rights and other industry practices.
* Protects the photography industry by providing information regarding industry rates, practices, and photographer’s rights to clients in need of various photography requirements.

Form

Imagine a website housing the Philippine Photographer’s Rate Guide. When a photographer has a particular assignment and is uncertain on how to price it, he can visit the site and search the category of the type of photography service he is to render. He can then find ranges of prices he can charge depending on the type of photography and its intended usage. So if he is doing product photography for press release purposes, he can find the suggested industry prices for such a service. If he is doing food photography to be used for a billboard, he will likewise find a specific pricing for this service.

Since experience and specialization play a big factor in determining pricing, we will set price ranges in 3 tiers – low, medium, and high. It will be up to each photographer to determine what price range he fits in based on his expertise and experience. For example, a new photographer would most likely base his prices on the ‘low’ ranges as he still gains experience and develops his skills. A veteran fashion photographer might peg his rates at the ‘high’ range but might opt to peg his price at the ‘middle’ range if asked to do food photography which he is not as adept at.

Since various ways of pricing such as per layout/set-up, per hour, and per day are schemes often used, we hope to come up with a rate guide addressing all these categories.

On the same site, we hope to have information regarding photographer’s rights, ways to protect and enforce these rights, and other information on industry practices. Hopefully, other guides or tips which can help photographer’s professionalize their craft would also be on the site.

Method

How to come up with the proposed rate guides is the big question. Some form of survey among the practicing professional photographers will be necessary to come up with generally acceptable categories and rates. Definitely a monumental task, but it is one that is necessary. We are definitely open for suggestions and open for membership for a working committee to put this to task.

Frequently Asked Questions:

* Is the rate guide supposed to be a rule that should be followed by all photographers? – No, it is meant to be a guide based on present industry conditions. With the absence of a truly industry wide association, and with the constant influx of new photographers, there is no mechanism to make it a mandatory rule to be followed. The best it can be is a reference for photographers to base their pricing on that they may achieve fair compensation for their work and at the same time protect the industry.

* How will this stop photographers from under pricing? – It won’t, but it can at least discourage and limit it. Reality is that some photographers are put into situations wherein they sometimes have to under price for economic reasons. The rate guide gives not only a standard reference but also an aspiration that many photographers may wish to target. Thus, if a photographer chooses to under price, the rate guide will encourage him to not stray too far from the standards. For example: if a photographer is quoting for a particular job and he discovers that the minimum industry rate is P10,000, if he does choose to under price, he might opt to quote P8,000 instead. Without a rate guide, he might have quoted a low P2,000. Knowing that the going rate is P10,000, most people would aspire to come as close to that as possible and may even feel cheated if they went too much lower. Photographers may be emboldened thinking if other photographers get paid at those rates, why does he deserve any less?

* How can this help photographers convince their clients that the prices they quote are reasonable? – So often, many photographers hear from clients that the prices they quoted are way too expensive, yet the photographer has already bent over backwards giving them really low rates. Aside from wanting to get the lowest rate possible, there are two basic reasons that this happens: because clients have no idea of what photography industry rates are and because they have encountered other photographers that have charged lower rates. The rate guide, being accessible on the internet becomes an excellent information dissemination tool which photographers can point out to clients. For example: a client tells a photographer that his rate of P10,000 for a particular project is way too high. The photographer checked that industry rates range from P10,000-20,000 for that particular job and he has already opted to charge the lowest rate. He can now argue with confidence that he is giving the client the lowest rate possible. He can further punctuate his stand by having the client check the industry price range at the rate guide web site. This then serves to inform the client of present industry rates and could help condition him to accept the fair rate. The presence of this guide may also be helpful in another way. Let’s say the client still wants to get a lower rate and tries contacting another photographer. Chances are, this other photographer will refer to the same rate guide and quote within the same range. This will aid to further convince the client to accept the proposed rates.

* How will this prevent new photographers from pricing too low? – Many new photographers are faced with the dilemma of not knowing how much the value of photography services are. By making the rate guide web site an industry wide standard, we hope that all new photographers will look to it as a reference for pricing. Most of these new photographers will aspire for the high rates and will most likely try to quote within the price range or as close to it as possible. One main benefit of the rate guide is to arm photographers with the confidence to quote the rates they deserve.

* How about dealing with clients that are economically challenged? – We will sometimes come across clients that cannot afford the standard rates. There might be non-profit organizations, very small businesses, or other individuals or establishments that we know may not be able to afford standard rates. The rate guide still serves its purpose as a peg for photographers to base their prices on. Hopefully, one of the low ranges of one of the schemes (per hour, per day, per layout, etc) will be acceptable. If the photographer finds out that even these rates are too high for that particular client, he can give concessions out of his own generosity but should emphasize the going industry rate that he should have charged. That way, we can still promote the industry rates and maintain the respect for photography as a service of value.

* Why do we need to have different price ranges? – Not all photographers are of equal experience and expertise. Not all clients have the same requirements in terms of quality and budget. Some clients may need very high quality images made with proficient technical skill and superb creative execution. Many others have very basic photography requirements that even new professional photographers can easily handle. It becomes essential to have a wide range of price schemes and ranges to meet the various needs of the market.

* How do I determine which price range I would fall under? – There will be 3 basic price ranges: low, middle, and high. Only the photographer himself can determine which price range he can charge depending on his level of experience and expertise. The photographer must be sensitive in the general client reaction to his practice. If he finds that he is more and more sought after for the quality of his work or his particular expertise, then this can be an indication that he could opt for a higher price range. A photographer may also vary his price range depending on his particular expertise. For example: a renowned portrait photographer, who might be able to fetch the highest prices for portrait jobs, might opt to take a low or medium price range if pricing for a jewelry photography job that he is not as experienced or adept in.