How Much Do Wedding Photographers Make? A Salary Guide

Updated 30 September 2022

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Wedding photographers are professionals specialising in taking pictures of various wedding ceremonies and rituals. Wedding photography is an in-demand career for aspiring photographers as it can provide lucrative work opportunities, open up avenues for professional growth and provide recognition. If you want to be a wedding photographer, it is important to know more about the salary potential of this job role. In this article, we examine how wedding photographers determine their fee, explain how they pick equipment and assemble the team they require and explore the different types of wedding photography jobs.

How much do wedding photographers make?

If you want to know the answer to the question 'How much do wedding photographers make?', it is important to understand the different components of their expenses in completing a project and their work schedules. The average base salary of a photographer is ₹35,416 per month. However, wedding photographer may not have work throughout the year and may only take up one assignment at a time. Their fee may compensate for the seasonal nature of their work. The primary components of a wedding photographer's fee account for:

amount of preparation in terms of hours
number of hours of the actual shoot
salaries of team members
cost of editing, printing and packaging photo albums
unique photography style
type of equipment they use
cost of photo editing software and licensing
client's special requests for photography
pre-wedding or post-wedding requests
cost of special effects
cost of props and decor

Wedding photographers pay vendors who supply the lighting and props for a shoot. They pay for transportation of equipment to and from the venue, salaries for their team members and rental charges for equipment.

What are the popular styles of wedding photography?

Wedding photographers are in-demand as they capture important life events of a bride, groom and their families. Clients may choose wedding photographers based on their preference for specific themes and styles. Some popular types of wedding photography include:

Classic wedding photography: Classic photography aims to capture the essentials of a wedding, focusing on the bride, groom, their families and important moments of different rituals and ceremonies. This style of photography is basic, popular and less expensive than other styles.
Artistic photography: Photographers use artistic elements around a wedding ceremony and special effects and backgrounds to create engaging photographs. Many clients prefer a combination of classic and artistic photography to record a wedding.
Candid photography: Candid photography focuses on capturing the essence of a wedding ceremony as it happens, naturally, without resorting to props, poses or staged image-making. It is best suited for clients who prefer relatively natural-looking photographs without resorting to staging and choreography.
Dramatic photography: This is an expensive style of photography that transforms wedding photographs using elaborate lighting and expensive decor. Many clients use these ideas for their pre-wedding and post-wedding shoots.
Documentary photography: This is best-suited for couples who want destination weddings or want to capture minute and important details of their wedding. Photographers use equipment that captures real-life imagery without enhancing the image in a studio, to create a story based on the wedding ceremony.

What is the equipment that a wedding photographer requires?

A wedding photographer requires some essential equipment to complete an assignment seamlessly. A wedding photographer may specialise in one or more photography styles or may adapt their style to match a client's specific expectations. While most photographers buy the cameras and lenses, they may rent expensive cameras or specific accessories to reduce their capital expenses. If you want to be a wedding photographer, you can consider investing in the following essential equipment:

Primary camera and a backup: Photographers typically carry a backup camera to a wedding. If anything goes wrong with their main camera, they cannot afford to miss out on crucial moments of the wedding ceremony and may switch to the backup camera immediately.
Lenses: A medium zoom lens to capture details, a telephoto lens to shoot from a distance and a wide-angle lens to capture a large number of guests or the architecture are essential requirements for a wedding photographer. Prime lenses are useful for capturing ceremonies that happen at night.
Lens cleaning kits: A dirty or smudged lens can damage a photograph and reduce the quality of the output. A lens cleaning kit helps a photographer to deliver high-quality photographs.
Speedlights: Since many ceremonies at weddings happen at night, speed lights are essential for wedding photographers. The photographs could look too grainy without speed lights and may require extensive post-processing workflows.
Batteries and memory cards: Since wedding ceremonies may last from a few hours to a few days, the huge volume of raw photographs requires additional storage and the camera requires battery backup. It is important that a wedding photographer invest in additional memory cards and batteries.
Accessories: Wedding photographers also require umbrellas, tripods, light stands and flash diffusers. They require these accessories for every type of wedding photography and investing in them can be more advantageous than renting them every time.

Who are the members of a wedding photographer's team?

A wedding photographer may require assistance to complete an assignment seamlessly without missing crucial moments. Their focus remains on capturing the wedding, while their team helps set up the cameras, lighting and props, help with lifting heavy equipment and carry speed lights. The following are essential members of a wedding photographer's team:

Secondary photographer: Secondary photographers can help cover details of a ceremony comprehensively, which the main photographer may miss. Wedding photographers hire interns or students to be second shooters who can take pictures and assist with lighting, props and group shots.
Assistants: A wedding photographer may require one or more assistants during the shoot depending on the size of the venue, type of photography the client wants and the equipment and props they use. They can also help set up appointments, understand client requirements, prepare bills and invoices and process photographs after the shoot.
Post-processing technicians: A wedding photographer may be an expert at post-processing but may require an exclusive photo retoucher if they take large assignments. Photo retouchers are experts in editing images quickly and can help you deliver the photographs to a client on time.

Tips to fix the cost of a wedding photography assignment

Wedding photography is one of the fastest-growing businesses as more clients are willing to spend money on securing a professional photographer's services. Pricing is one of the factors that they keep in mind while choosing a photographer. It is important for photographers to understand the latest trends and set the right pricing for their services to attract a steady stream of clients and gain a competitive advantage over competitors. Here are some tips that can help you set the pricing for your services:

1. Identify what you want to do after an honest assessment

Evaluate your photography skills and understand the strong points of your skill set. Simultaneously evaluate your business skills in marketing, identifying the target market and how much you are invested in satisfying a client. Decide if you want to specialise in one niche area or work with multiple wedding photography styles. Each style has different requirements and you can fix your pricing accordingly.

2. Market yourself

It is important to create an online presence as most clients may first look for a wedding photographer on the internet. Create a business card, a portfolio with attractive pictures, a website and a logo to create visibility and reach more potential clients. These features can also help sell your services at a higher price point. Get reviews and testimonials from your clients to add credibility to your profile.

3. Fix business goals

Fix your prices as per your business goals. If you are new and have done only a few weddings, starting at a lower price is natural. Once you have more experience and good reviews from your existing clients, you can increase prices to meet business goals. Do not undercut your prices often to get more business, as it can slow down your professional growth. Do not charge too high as clients may be talking to multiple photographers and you may lose a lucrative assignment to a competitor.

4. Talk to a client multiple times before giving a quote

The couple and families are likely to modify their expectations too often or come up with new demands at every stage of communication. Share samples of your previous work, explain the costs and take a clear request of how many days of service and what kind of photography they require. Identify travel requirements, the cost of transporting equipment safely, processing costs and printing costs before submitting a quote. Your pricing can cover all your costs and also generate profit. Submit an estimate initially and sign a contract only after you fully understand the full extent of a client's requirements.

Salary figures reflect data listed on Indeed Salaries at time of writing. Salaries may vary depending on the hiring organisation and a candidate's experience, academic background and location.