Product photography prices??

[Freedbaby]

I shoot all the Jewelry pictures for the stuff we manufacture just for fun....Allows me to bring my hobby to work.

I was approached by someone here in Houston who was told by I don't know who that I took good Jewelry pictures and now he wants to hire me.

I will take the pictures and just turn over the files to him...he is a bit afraid of someone seeing his designs and steeling them. There might be some light cropping/editing involved.

How much should I charge him? There are 200 pieces and I think that it may take me about 2-3 hours to shoot and then maybe 2 hours to process. I really don't have the extra time so I guess I would have to make it worth my while.

Any help is appreciated.

Freedbaby

[CaptainTom]

I applaud your being able to shoot this number of pieces in only two hours, plus post processing in two hours. I'd probably double that estimate.

One idea would be to establish a day rate for your services. I can't tell you what that rate should be, but the lowest day rate in my area is $1500 and ranges up to 3-5K. There are others who get much more.

You can also charge a per piece (photo) price and bill according to the usage.
You can look at the industry rates on the internet. Prices might range around $150/per shot.

If this jewelry maker is not savvy about the industry, my guess is he/she will tell you that they have nowhere near this kind of budget.

Whatever you decide, keep in mind that if you go low, you will not be able to move your prices higher if they want more work later on.

It also sounds like you may not really want to take on this project, so set your prices high enough to really make it worth while.

Good luck.

[Freedbaby]

About 3hours to shoot and a couple hours to process. 5 hours turn around you think is a low number??

He and his wife will be helping me....handing me the next piece and grabbing the one finished with.

If I charged per piece, how much do you think?

[toverman]

Another question is, how good are your jewelry photos?

Realistically, each shot has the potential to require some kind of lighting adjustment or how the jewelry lays. If there are reflective surfaces, especially.

[CaptainTom]

Perhaps a link to some of your jewelry photos would help.
I'm just thinking that really top level jewelry photography is not just tossing a bracelet into a light box and tripping the shutter. I'm not saying this is what you do, but just think that a proper shooting of 200 items should take quite a bit more time than three hours. That's about one minute per item.

[Freedbaby]

I am by no means a top jewelry photographer. In fact I am trying to better them every day, but the fellow has already seen the work and is happy with it.

They are better than the average jewelry photographs that I see. They are NOT what you would see in a magazine by any stretch of the imagination. The guy just wants to use them for his inventory system, but have the ability to email a good picture to a customer.

Here are a couple that are not processed yet.







Thanks for the input

Freedbaby

[rockin-photos]

IMO (and I know nothing about jewelry photography), I'd shoot those pieces on a black background.

[HotHolly]

Most commercial jewelry shoots are shot on a black background and the rings are held up towards the light source with a holder or a dab of hot glue (under the band so you cant see it). I see why it would take you 2 hours if you shoot them laying down. It sounds more like a shoot for the insurance company rather than the consumer.

With a mom and pop operation, you are usually better offering a per image quote - its sounds less scary to say $20 per ring + $45 for the file (or what ever you are charging). Make sure you specify what rights you are releasing with the file and use a contract.

[Freedbaby]

I would definitely put them on wax so they are not laying down nor would you be able to see a stand.....I just wanted you all to see the quality of the pictures, good bad or indifferent.

Considering that I am not a professional and they are just hobbyist photos I quoted the guy $4.50 per piece which would come to about $900 and he told me that a company in NY City will do it for $600 or $3 per piece. I told him that I would think about it.

I called this morning and left a message letting him know that I would pass....just not enough to make it worth it. Would have been nice to offset the cost of that new 24-70F2.8 L series I just bought Saturday but....Oh Well.

Thanks for all the replies folks. Any other tips would also be appreciated.

Freedbaby

[CaptainTom]

So this guy is going to risk sending his jewelry to someone in NYC so he can save a few bucks ? Probably a good idea to pass. Those kind of customers are usually high maintenance and not worth the effort unless you are charging a pretty decent higher rate.

Good call.

bye the way, if you changed out to black velvet and elevated the product as mentioned, you would have a first class illustration.

[trahanw]

Agree, Background of black would definitely make the rings pop. They seem to blend in the photo. There also seems to be a White balance issue here or maybe it's just my monitor new CPU. But your white background appears to have a grayish tint. Please let me know if it's my monitor. Good luck..Good selling point tom with the shipping and insurance. I see this jeweler saving money in the long run. Not to mention a turnaround time on the product. Practice a bit and have the confidence to stick to your price with sales tips mentioned. Features you can provide and how this will benefit your customer.

[trahanw]

Note: Another selling point. He mentioned security of his product, not wanting a competitor to see. I see a new lens coming your way....Good Luck

[Freedbaby]

It is not your monitor....it has been a problem that I have never been able to fix. Dont know why but it seems that unless I buy some off camera strobes of some sort, white isnt going to happen. I have tried it all, custom white balance, different colors of white as a backround..etc

I feel like I have bored everyone with the topic so I have given up for now. Seems there has to be a way that I am missing, but I am just not gettin it.

Jay

[Bruce M. Morris]

Originally Posted by Freedbaby

It is not your monitor....it has been a problem that I have never been able to fix. Dont know why but it seems that unless I buy some off camera strobes of some sort, white isnt going to happen. I have tried it all, custom white balance, different colors of white as a backround..etc

have you tried shooting manual and just opening up one stop(say from f11 to f8)? Sounds to me like your gray background is just the meter doing what it is supposed to, measuring the image at 18% gray.

[Freedbaby]

I am not sure I understand. They are all shot in manual at F16-usually, 60th shutter speed and custom white balance.