How much do family portrait photos cost?
How much do family portrait photos cost?
The average cost for a portrait photographer is $150 per hour. Hiring a portrait photographer to take family photos, you will likely spend between $100 and $400 per hour. The price of a portrait photographer can vary greatly by region (and even by zip code).
$100 - $400 average cost per hour
The average cost for a portrait photographer is $150 per hour. Hiring a portrait photographer to take family photos, you will likely spend between $100 and $400 per hour. The price of a portrait photographer can vary greatly by region (and even by zip code).
Family portrait photos cost
When choosing a family portrait photographer, know before you start your search what you’d like to receive at the end—do you want prints, an album, all the images as a digital download?
Most parents want to send the photos to relatives or blow up one image to frame and hang over the fireplace. Let your photographer know that goal up front so you can all be delighted with the result.
Average Cost of Portrait Photography
Whether your portrait photographer charges by the hour, session, or package deal; the price will include the location of the shoot, the knowledge and experience of the photographer, studio costs (if applicable), post-production costs, and travel fees.
What is also factored into the price is the number of people in the shoot and how many outfit changes you want.
Expect to pay about $150/hour of shoot time for family, senior pictures, or baby photography and then more for prints, extra images, and other products with images, like albums.
Some sample prices are: Christina Houser Photography in Bristol, CT, charges a flat fee of $175 for her one-hour family sessions, $225 for her two-hour senior portraits, and $250 for her 2-3-hour shoots for newborns.
Bob Photo Town in Niles, IL, starts his pricing at $150/hour for a family portrait photoshoot.
Nancy-Jo Photography in Wake Forest, NC, charges $100 per hourly session.
Sarah J Photography in Weymouth, MA, starts pricing her family portrait packages at $350.
James Corwin in St. Petersburg, FL, charges a flat rate of $100/hour for everything he does.
Packages: A 10-30% discount
A package deal is usually the best option for your family shots because they include everything you want and give you a discount at the same time. As mentioned earlier, know what you want to receive from the shoot, because that list of wants will give you the best quote from competitive photographers.
Sometimes what looks like the best deal will only give you one print or three digital images, and then you are charged $100 or more for any other print you want after that. Ask about discounts for students, first responders, and military families too.
Sweet Plum Photography in Tampa, FL, begins pricing at $150 for a session, and package deals start at $600, but she says that overall, clients spend a total of about $1,200 to get everything they want. Jessica Crawford Photography in Raleigh, NC, offers her family portrait package for $350, which includes all back and forth communication, two hours of shooting in two locations, unlimited wardrobe changes, all post-production costs, and 20–25 images, as well as unedited images.
Outdoor vs. Studio Photography
Most family shoots will take place outdoors, so they cost less, but if you do a studio shoot, expect to pay more because of the extra costs for setup and teardown for the photographer. Remember to choose indoor options for your shoot as a backup plan in case of rain.
Photo Delivery
Your final images—the number of retouched images included in your package deal—will be retouched by the photographer to fix skin tone, lighting issues, etc., and the time taken could be anywhere from a few days to a few weeks.
Your photographer should let you choose your top images either in person or online, and then he or she will deliver them in the form of a digital download, on a USB/thumb drive, prints, or in an album.