How I Price My Work (And What I Undercharged For Years)

For a long time, I thought I was being fair — just counting the shooting time, maybe an hour or two, and calling that the job. It felt simple. Honest. Until I finally sat down and listed out everything that goes into each project. That moment changed everything for me.

Let’s be real. Most of us don’t charge for the hours we spend behind the scenes. And when we don’t track it, we don’t value it. But that work? That’s the reason we can deliver something great in the first place.

 

One day I saw a time breakdown shared online. It divided a single job into 8 equal parts — each 12.5% of the total time. Communication, planning, prep, travel, shooting, sorting, editing, delivery, posting. That’s how it really looks. And when I added up those tasks for my own work, I realized one thing: a single client often takes 7 to 12 hours of my time.And that’s not counting emotional labor. Or the years of learning. Or the cost of gear.

 

What We Forget to Charge For:

If you’re a concert photographer, you probably relate to this. Shooting is just one part of the job. We also:

  • Communication (12.5%): 30 minutes to 2 hours messaging, emailing, voice notes, confirming details.
  • Preparation (12.5%): Around 1 hour for creating moodboards, gear checks, consulting with the band or crew.
  • Travel (12.5%): 1 to 2 hours to and from the venue, sometimes way more for festivals or international work. Booking flights, trains, hotels, if your TM doesn’t do it for you.
  • Shooting (12.5%): 30-100 minutes (plus decompression time and any prep before and after).
  • Culling and Sorting (12.5%): About 1 hour going through files, uploading, renaming, backing up. Creating catalogs and folders in Lightroom in advance.
  • Editing (12.5%): 1 to 2 hours adjusting exposure, colors, fixing details, setting the mood.
  • Delivery (12.5%): Another hour to export, upload, rename, write messages, and send files.
  • Posting on Socials (12.5%): 1 to 2 hours creating reels, selecting images, writing captions, and tagging.

It adds up. Even without including:

  • Sleepless nights trying to deliver quickly
  • The emotional pressure to “overdeliver”
  • The fact that many photographers do all this after a full-time day job

This cycle of undercharging doesn’t just hurt your bank account — it makes it nearly impossible to ever quit your day job. It keeps people stuck. And burned out.

 

The moment I tracked my time for just one shoot, I realized I was working for free most of the time. The shooting itself was maybe 10% of the effort. But it was the only part I was charging for.

 

If You’re Still Undercharging you’re not alone. And you’re not greedy for wanting to be paid fairly.

Try this: after your next shoot, write down everything you did from start to finish. Count the hours. See it in front of you. I promise it will shift something.

Then ask yourself: would you expect someone else to do all that for the rate you’re charging?

If the answer is no, it’s time to raise your prices.

Yes, you might lose a client or two at first. That’s okay. You will attract new ones who actually respect your time, your energy, and your work. The clients who value what you bring will stay. And the ones who only came for a bargain will move on — and honestly, that’s a good thing.

 

It’s not just about money. It’s about respect — for yourself, for your craft, for the life you’re building.

So if you’re tired of feeling overworked and underpaid, know this: you are not the problem. Your prices might be. And you have every right to change them.

You don’t need to earn your worth by being burned out. You already earned it by showing up, learning, growing, and doing the work.

Let your pricing reflect that.

 

And if you’re a client reading this — thank you for caring about the people behind the photos. It means more than you know.


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