There are a lot of details that go into planning a wedding.
One of those details is choosing a photographer to handle wedding photos.
Because wedding photos are important, it’s equally important to hire the right photographer.
However, you’ll quickly find that wedding photographers have expensive services.
You may wonder what it is about wedding photography, specifically, that makes it so expensive.
Why Is Wedding Photography So Expensive? (10 Reasons)
Wedding photographers tend to cost around $1,000 to $4,000.
However, some photographers may even charge as high as $10,000 or more for their services.
Certain factors like expensive equipment and the amount of time spent working outside of the wedding make wedding photography expensive.
Let’s look at these factors in more detail.
1. Experience Level
Perhaps one of the main factors that make wedding photography expensive is the experience level of the photographer.
As in every other industry that provides a service, you have a mixed bag of brand-new photographers and photographers who have been providing the service for many years.
Some people might think there’s not much of a difference between new photographers and experienced photographers, but that isn’t the case.
Experienced photographers have had more time to develop their artistic eyes.
They’re better at framing photos and finding unique moments to capture on film.
That’s simply because they’ve spent more time doing it.
They’ve trained themselves to look for those moments and frames with the years they’ve spent performing the service.
They also tend to have more experience editing photos later.
Not only does this mean they’re sometimes able to get photos out faster, but it usually means their edited photos come out looking remarkable.
New photographers aren’t necessarily bad or poor quality.
They just haven’t had the time yet to develop their skills.
As such, you’ll often find that new photographers will offer slightly lower prices than experienced photographers.
They’re trying to develop their skills and reputation as high-quality photographers.
Experienced photographers have already done that.
You can count on getting high-quality service and products from them.
Wedding photography is expensive when you hire an experienced photographer.
2. Editing Time
Another major reason wedding photography is expensive is the length of time it takes to edit photos.
It may seem like photographers just take photos at a wedding, then they’re done with their job.
That’s far from the case.
The wedding is only the midpoint of the job.
Photographers usually spend a good amount of time getting to know the engaged couple before the wedding.
They might come to the dress rehearsal or other events to learn about what the couple is hoping for in their photos.
They’ll also be contacting them via email or text.
They need to know the particular style of the couple to ensure that their photos are unique to them.
When the wedding day arrives, they spend that time taking photos throughout the event.
There are also the official wedding photos that they take.
The next big phase is the editing phase.
A photographer might spend hours poring over hundreds of photos to find the few that are perfect.
Then they’ll start working on them with their preferred editing software.
This is where the real magic happens.
They’ll try different cropping ratios, apply different filters, and correct certain flaws.
The end result is a stunning selection of photos that end up being timeless.
Most photographers don’t charge by the hour.
They charge you a flat fee instead.
That fee covers everything from email exchanges to taking photos at the wedding to editing them all.
As such, a photographer might only end up making minimum wage, if that, depending on how long they spend editing your photos.
As such, to make it worth their while, photographers charge high fees.
It covers all the time, or at least most of the time they spend on your particular service.
3. Expensive Equipment
Another big factor that makes wedding photography expensive is the photographer’s equipment.
Professional photographers tend to use very expensive equipment.
Since they’re performing photography professionally, they need the best equipment.
In the world of photography, some equipment simply provides better pictures than others.
Each photographer tends to gravitate towards a certain brand or type of camera.
It usually goes well with the sort of photography that they perform.
For example, someone who does underwater photography is going to need different equipment than someone who does wedding photography.
The problem with photography equipment is that it can become quite expensive.
When they’re just starting out, most photographers should expect to spend at least $1,000 on equipment alone.
That’s on the lower end, too.
Some high-quality cameras sell for $1,000 alone.
The problem with photography is that it can be difficult to do it without some pieces of equipment.
For one, you can’t exactly have high-quality photos without a camera.
A lot of photographers will also use tripods.
Those cameras can be pretty heavy, and lugging one around all day can be exhausting.
A tripod ensures that the photographer gets the right angle without exhausting themselves or taking crooked photos.
Another major piece of equipment that many photographers end up buying is high-powered lights.
Lighting in photography is crucial.
Bad lighting can completely ruin a photo while great lighting can transform it.
At a wedding, it’s not uncommon for photographers to bring in lights for the official wedding photos.
That kind of equipment costs money, too.
Since photographers end up spending a lot of money, they need to make up for those costs.
That’s especially true since their equipment needs regular maintenance to keep on working.
They also have to update their equipment as newer, better pieces of technology are released on the market.
These costs add up, and wedding photographers have to high prices to cover them.
4. Printed And Online Photos
Wedding photography is also expensive due to providing printed and digital photos.
Back in the day, wedding photographers only had to worry about providing printed photos.
They’d print the photos on high-quality paper, then deliver them to their clients.
These days, photographers usually provide both printed and digital photos.
It’s not uncommon for them to have a few different packages.
The more expensive package comes with both printed and digital photos.
You also tend to get more photos in larger packages.
Some photographers have completely done away with printed photos and deal only with digital photos.
These photographers tend to be a bit cheaper since they’re cutting down on their expenses.
Photographers who deal in both print and digital tend to have higher prices.
That’s because printed photos, in particular, require them to buy high-quality inks and papers to print them.
They also usually have high-quality printers to print the photos.
Digital photos, on the other hand, will usually come on a USB drive.
While USB drives can be quite cheap, it’s still an expense that the photographer has to take on to do their job.
These additional costs to their business get covered by charging high prices for their services.
Photographers can cover their expenses and still make a profit.
5. High Demand
Another major factor that influences the price of wedding photography is whether the photographer is in high demand or not.
In most cases, wedding photographers are in high demand.
However, some photographers tend to be in more demand than others.
For example, photographers who have made a reputation for their particular skills are going to be in higher demand than those who don’t have a reputation.
That’s because couples don’t know if they can trust the quality of the work of lesser-known photographers.
As such, most couples tend to go for photographers who have a proven track record.
This makes them more expensive, however, because of the economical law of supply and demand.
A photographer can’t be in two places at once.
If one couple hires them for a particular date at a particular time, it means they’re unavailable to help anyone else.
They only have so much of their own time to offer.
That also includes editing time.
A photographer can only take on so many clients before they become overwhelmed with editing.
If they’re spending all their time at weddings and taking photos, then they’re not spending time editing.
Some professionals might hire assistants to take care of some of the editing projects for them.
However, at the end of the day, they’re still going to review each photo to ensure they’re in line with their standards.
Since they only have so much time to give, those who are able to pay the most are going to be able to buy their services.
Because a lot of people want that particular photographer’s services, they’re going to be competing with each other to get access to the photographer.
That allows the photographer to raise their prices.
Those who are the most committed will pay the price.
Besides experience, there may also be a case in which someone lives in an area where there aren’t that many wedding photographers.
They may not even have that much experience yet, but because they’re the only photographer in the area, couples don’t have much else of a choice.
This type of photographer is also able to charge higher prices for their services.
Because there aren’t many other options, desperate couples will have no choice but to pay more for their services if they want a professional wedding photographer.
Wedding photography is expensive when the photographer is in high demand.
6. Once In A Lifetime Purchase
Another reason wedding photography is expensive is that weddings are usually a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
In many cases, couples get married once and that’s the end of it.
That’s why a lot of couples choose to go all-out for their weddings.
They’re only going to get to experience the momentous occasion once.
As such, it’s a bit easier to justify major expenses like wedding photography.
They’re never going to need to pay for it again, so it’s a bit forgivable.
Couples are more willing to spend a lot of money on wedding photographers since they only need to do so once.
This also means that wedding photographers need to make as much money from the service as possible.
While photographers usually diversify their services, they look to glean as much money as they can from each service.
Family photos, Christmas photos, and other annual photos are a photographer’s bread and butter.
Wedding photos, on the other hand, are a bit rarer since they only happen once.
If the photographer works in a small area, then there’s a chance that they might go a whole year without landing a wedding job.
When they do land one, they need to make as much profit as possible.
That means they charge a high price for their service.
7. Time Spent At Your Wedding
Wedding photography is also expensive because of the time the photographer spends at your wedding.
Most photographers will have a variety of packages from which to choose.
Some of those packages might include more time spent at your wedding.
For example, it might include the ceremony, official wedding photos, and the reception.
Cheaper options might just offer official wedding photos or just coverage of the reception.
The more time that a photographer spends at your wedding, the more expensive their fee is going to be.
That’s because they’re spending time with you rather than taking care of their other clients.
Their time is worth a lot of money.
While they’re spending time at your wedding, they’re not spending time marketing themselves, editing photos, or finding other clients.
As such, they need to make the most of that time.
8. Travel Expenses
One factor that a lot of couples don’t think about is travel expenses.
A photographer might travel a great deal while taking photos of your wedding.
They’ll travel to your ceremony, then to your reception.
They might even take you to a special location for your official wedding photos.
If your wedding is occurring in a place far from them, then they need to spend a good amount of money getting there, too.
They might not list travel expenses as part of their fee, but they will factor into it.
9. Advertising Costs
Photographers also face quite a few costs that they need to cover with their services.
One of those costs is advertising.
In many cases, photographers have a lot of competition with each other.
To stand out from the rest, they have to advertise themselves.
Marketing costs money.
The more a photographer spends on marketing, the more expenses they need to cover.
Wedding photography allows them to cover their advertising costs and earn a profit.
10. Software Costs
A final factor that plays into the price of wedding photography is software costs.
High-quality photographers tend to have expensive editing software.
Some software brands require you to pay high subscription fees.
That means the photographer is spending a good amount of money on their software every month, if not every year.
To make up for those costs, they need to charge a decent fee for their services.
Conclusion
Professional photos of the bride, the groom, the wedding party, and the guests are a staple of any wedding.
Business costs, time spent outside of taking photos, and experience all make wedding photography quite expensive.
