Pizza Logic: The $300 Shoot That Pays You $20 an Hour
A $300 portrait session looks like $150 an hour. Count the emails, editing, taxes and gear, and you end up nearer $20. Here is the math, one slice at a time.
Don't just set your speed. Know your worth.
Know your worth. Shoot for value.
Stop undercharging. Free tools and guides for photographers turning their passion into a profitable business.
Why ShutterValue
Your price should come from your numbers, not your competitors.
- 01
Start with the life you want
Begin with the salary you need to take home, then work backwards to a rate that pays for it.
- 02
Count what clients never see
Taxes, gear, software, insurance and the hours spent editing and emailing all belong in your price.
- 03
Quote with confidence
When you know your floor, you can say no to bad deals and yes to the right clients.
Free tools
Run the numbers
Photography Hourly Rate Calculator
Work backwards from the salary you want to the hourly and day rate you need to charge, after tax and expenses.
More tools on the way
New calculators for the business side of photography are in the works. Free to use, like everything here.
From the blog
All postsLatest posts
Stop Drowning in Photos: Let AI Audit Your Lightroom Keywords
Export your Lightroom Classic keyword list, hand it to ChatGPT, Gemini or Claude, and get a clear to-do list for fixing years of messy tags.