This article is something that ties well with the previous one - How to charge for your photography.

As I said before in how to charge for your photography formula, you will keep this in mind when determining your hourly earnings for your service and where you live will need to reflect your prices. Basically, a studio apartment on Manhattan will cost you almost the same as a huge house somewhere else. Here are two graphs I borrowed. If you wish to read more about them, use the links in the refferences.

Don’t take this too literally… You won’t be charging $26.94 (February 2022 average) an hour, but you want to get to know the economy around you and what people around you can afford. When you do that, you will have a minimum package deal for the majority of average people who can afford you and then add at least two more packages with more value.

Hourly earnings – don’t undervalue yourself

Again… You’re not charging $26.94 an hour, many people are inventing their hourly earnings, so some are getting $20, some charge $1500 for their services. Don’t undervalue yourself. With the current average, for ten hours of work (including post-production) you are getting $269.40, excluding all the other stuff you are charging for. So, feel free to value your hourly earnings more. 

Some things that will increase your hourly earnings, because you can’t charge sometimes for half-day sessions when you’re working only 1 hour or close to it, are the customer experience you provide and the amount and quality of services. If you offer an exclusive service the price will be exclusive too. If you offer follow-up gifts and thank you cards… well, you’re not charging for them or they wouldn’t be gifts, but those are the experiences and services, among others, that will raise you above the rest. And once you get to a certain point people will stop comparing you only to other photographers, but will start doing so for all the other businesses too. Once you’re there, you’re the king of the hill.