What to charge.
WHY IT IS DIFFICULT
There is no visible market rate, and creative people routinely underprice.
WHAT DETERMINES PRICE
The value of the use to the client The scope of rights granted The time required Your experience and demand What comparable work commands
WHY RIGHTS SCOPE MATTERS MOST
The same photograph used locally for a month and used globally in perpetuity are entirely different products.
WHAT TO ESTABLISH BEFORE QUOTING
What the work will be used for Where For how long Whether exclusively
WHY ASK
The price follows from the answers.
WHAT TO PRICE SEPARATELY
Creation of the work Rights to use it Additional uses beyond the agreed scope
WHY SEPARATELY
It makes the value of the rights visible and negotiable.
WHAT TO CALCULATE
Your cost: time, equipment, materials, and overheads.
WHY
It establishes the floor, not the price.
WHAT TO AVOID
Pricing purely on hours Quoting the lowest figure you would accept Working for exposure
WHY EXPOSURE FAILS
It does not pay costs, and clients who pay nothing rarely lead to clients who pay.
WHAT TO DO IF THE BUDGET IS FIXED
Reduce the scope or the rights, not the price.
WHY
It maintains your rate and gives the client something real.
WHAT TO ESTABLISH ABOUT REVISIONS
A defined number.
WHAT TO REVIEW
Your rates, regularly.
WHY
Creative rates stagnate for years without deliberate review.
