Photographer package prices and what's included?

Knottie1432708529 · November 2013

Hi, I'm so lost on what is the norm in terms of wedding photography. I was hoping you all could post how much you paid for x amount of hrs and if your package includes prints and/or albums or what else. Do most photographers include prints, albums, just the disk with pics, canvas prints. Thank you for any info.

emmyg65 · November 2013

It really varies. My photographer had several packages: the cheapest was five hours of wedding photography and a CD with 150 edited images. We got the package with full-day wedding coverage and a DVD of all images (it ended up being 800+ photos), a second shooter, a photo booth and an engagement session.

We wanted to have all our photos with a personal use release so we can make as many prints and albums as we want. I'm not really a fan of most of the album options photographers offer, so I made my own. Along with the personal use release, our priorities were at least 8 hours of coverage and a second shooter.

ShirlPearlOKC · November 2013

Emmy is right, it does vary.

My photographer was having a 50% Off Black Friday Sale during Thanksgiving week when we booked him last year. We went with the full day package and our package included...

12-Hours Full Day of Wedding Coverage
Unlimited Photos Taken
ProFoto Lighting System
Wedding Video Clips
20x30 Wedding Print
12x12, 20pg Luxi Wedding Album
Bridal Fashion Shoot
Engagement Story Shoot
(1) 20x30 Gallery Print for each shoot
Copyright Print CD of all Images

His packages with Mark down by 50% for three days during the week of Thanksgiving last year so, we jumped right on it! lol. For us, it was everything we wanted- especially the PRINT CD too. Hope this helps. His site is www.LensOutLoud.com and I'd check to see if he has another black friday special going on.

*Update*- I just check the link from last year that I saved and it redirects me to the new page for his 2013 Black Friday sale:

http://lensoutloud.com/black-friday-wedding-photography-sale-2013/

Hope this helps!

Knottie1432708529 · November 2013

Thank you Emmy and Shirl for the package info!! Can anyone put that together with a price they paid? That's that info I really want to get a ballpark figure of what people are paying for what their package includes? Obviously there is variance depending on location, experience and what not, but just package and prices paid would help

Thank you:)

rklinge0 · December 2013

I got my photographer for around a grand. I absolutely loved her! We got a disc and all rights to print our pictures. She took over 3000 pics and gave us around 750 pics. We also had a day after shoot because it rained the day of my wedding. Just make sure you see the work and don't settle on someone due to price. My Fiance, now husband had found someone he liked because they were cheap but when I met with them I literally cried and vetoed his decision to find a photographer with my vision. (The guy was awful and looked like portrait studio work.) In Kentucky the average prices vary from a 1,000 to 3,000. Just remember you get what you pay for.

uszakk · December 2013

I agree, it varies a lot based on the photographer, package and location/time of year. We worked with a husband/wife team just starting out, so they were competitively priced and we got two of them all day (a HUGE bargain). We paid $1800 for all day coverage and 2 parent albums. They put the proofs online and we order prints directly from the site (printed on professional paper). This is how they keep their costs down since they don't deal in the printing directly. It's also nice because we can choose exactly the prints we want for ourselves and family and we weren't tied to a set package.

Take the time to meet with lots of people. I think photos are crucial and its important you get someone you are comfortable with and a package you want!

laureneliz87_23318347 · December 2013

From the photographers I've researched, it seems pretty common for the starting/basic package to no longer include an album or prints - just high-resolution images on a DVD or online gallery. But it will differ depending on the photographer, so the best thing to do is seek out those whose work you like, and e-mail them for more info.

We are paying $4200 for our photographer because we love his work, he's experienced, and we mesh well with him on a personal level. Our package includes high-res images, engagement session, 8 hours of coverage, second photographer, an online gallery, and a custom 20-page wedding album. He has a more basic package for $2800 but it doesn't include the album. Hope that helps.

JoanE2012 · December 2013

Try posting this on your local board. Amounts can vary wildly across the country, so in order to get a better idea of cost, you would need to ask people in the same area as you.