Why are some photographers so secretive on pricing per hour, shoot, photo release and price per extra photo?

Question

I have noticed that a lot of photographers choose not to put their pricing and what they offer on their website and want people to contact them. Why is that?Also I have a friend who is starting to get into the photo business and wants to know pricing from different photographers like how much they charge per hour or if they charge per photo shoot type or so much for photo shoot and then extra per person and do they offer photo release and do they charge the person to purchase into some copies of the photo and what they do so she can price her self accordingly. I have a future sister-in-law who is a want to be photographer so I asked how she does it does she charge per hour or per type of photo is it extra after so many people Do you give a photo release and do you charge for additional photos? The answer I got was that was private information. Did I do anything wrong by asking my future sister-in-law what her prices were? If someone were to just randomly call up the photographer would give the information so what is any different from what I did? Is it also a red flag when someone won't share their pricing and does that mean that based on the person seeing you their prices could change or something or why would someone be so secretive about their prices?

Sumi · Answer

The reason a photographer would not post their pricing is because they fear that they would loose potential clients if they saw their pricing.  Personally, I see this as a sign of insecurity and a possible red flag for someone being somewhat unethical.

Another possibility is that the photographer will change their charges based upon the client and/or the job type.  Obviously one would charge a newlywed couple far less than a major corporation because they can't afford to pay as much.  Charge what the market will bare is something you learn in econ 101.  But personally, I think that they're just worried about loosing customers and they believe that not listing prices is a better business strategy.  Not listing prices gets them to call.

qrk · Answer

You answered your own question. It's about competition.
Plus, each shoot has different requirements which can't be easily tabulated on a printed price sheet.

John · Answer

You are asking why working pros won't let just anybody who's passing by steal their trade secrets. You might want to ponder that for a bit.

Elaine M · Answer

1. It varies per job and equipment needed.
2. Price can depend on the time needed -- a 6 hour wedding shoot won't compare to a 2 hour anniversary shoot.
3. Distance needing to be traveled. 
4. Props needed for the shoot. Background panels, chair, etc. Those all need to be transported.
5. Lighting needed to be brought plus cables and cords.
6. Permits needed. Photographing at a park, horticulture garden, etc involves fees.
Etc.

Anonymous · Answer

Not just photographers but ppl in all fields do that. They want people to contact them but they know if their prices are high then most ppl don't contact them so they don't mention prices. Once you contact them,  their talkative employees will try to make you believe how they are better than others

Satan · Answer

Probably because most of the photography is not just a quick click and shot done.
Sometimes travel has to be taken into conisderation, accomodation in some cases. Then its the time, how long are they going to be photographing for, sometimes the difficulty of the shooting arrangements.Loads of things that can have to be taken into consideration

If you don't like it, take your own photos

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Why are some photographers so secretive on pricing per hour, shoot, photo release and price per extra photo?

6 Answers