Why Is Wedding Photography So Expensive?

Consider this my “standing on a soapbox and shouting to the masses” announcement:

Wedding Photography is Expensive.

(But, newsflash: It’s always been expensive.)

For some reason, while the prices of everything else have gone up over the last 3 years, people seem to expect wedding photography rates to remain the same.
(I was talking to Derrick last week and he referenced the price of a food item – and I literally laughed out loud at him. I told him: “The best rule of thumb is: if you think you know how much something costs – DOUBLE it, because that will put you closer to the actual 2024 price.”)

Inflation has taken everything by storm over the last few years and if a wedding photographer is a good businessman (or woman) they will have raised their rates accordingly. All of my business expenses have gone up: my business insurance, the hosting on my website, the gas I put into my car to drive to my sessions – it’s all shot through the roof and so I must raise my rates to cover my expenses.

You might see photographers offer other types of photography at a lower rate than they offer wedding photography – and this can definitely be confusing. After all: aren’t they doing the “same” work? Don’t photographers just show up on a wedding day with a camera and snap photos?

Sometimes, I think people picture wedding photographers are these miserly, greedy, old, trolls, who simply see the opportunity to “make a lot of money” (which is precisely what a DJ I was talking to, a few weeks ago, implied). Sure, there are a few of those out there, but for the most part, wedding photographers are artists who care deeply – not just for their craft – but for the people they are photographing.

The average price of wedding photographer in the Pittsburgh, PA market is $4,000 – $5,000.
(That’s average price for an average wedding day with average deliverables. That doesn’t include extra travel fees, additional photographers, or wedding albums.)

So WHY is wedding photography so expensive?!

The Liability is ENORMOUS

And when I say “liability”, I’m not just talking about the liability insurance I carry on my business.
I mean my own personal liability as a creative, an artist, a businesswoman, and as a wedding photographer.

I know that I have an awesome and very high-stakes job. To say that there is a lot riding on my shoulders would be an understatement.

We are Capturing ONCE in a LIFETIME Moments

Wedding days are red-letter days.
Family and friends gather together to celebrate and the likelihood of you ever having that exact crowd of people, all together, in one place ever again is almost impossible.
Everyone gets dressed up. Everyone is on their best behavior (usually). Everyone is excited to celebrate and have a great time.

You Cannot Re-Create the Day

When I take family or senior portraits, I always know, in the back of my head, that if something happens – I can always re-take those photos. Obviously – that would be my absolute last resort (and I’d be devastated), but if something drastic happened (let’s say: my first memory card corrupted, and after loading the photos from my second memory card onto my computer, my house burned down, and then my cloud storage and all of their backup copies melted in a volcanic eruption) – I can always go back and re-take those photos.

On a wedding day: there are NO second chances.

Sure, I could ask the bride to walk down the aisle again – but you know it wouldn’t be the same.
(Story Time: when I was first learning the ropes of wedding photography, I shadowed an older photographer and he actually missed the photos of the bride walking down the aisle due to a guest stepping directly in front of him. So, after the ceremony was over, he asked the bride and her Dad to walk back down the aisle again. She was so upset that she cried the entire walk – it was awful.)

Wedding photographers do not get do-overs. You either get the shot, or you don’t.

Wedding Photographers Operate Under a Tremendous Amount of Stress

If you ever have the chance to see a seasoned wedding photographer in the 24-hours before a wedding day, you’d probably wonder how they are functioning. They are charging batteries, cleaning and checking equipment, counting memory cards, double- and triple-checking everything. (Only to double- and triple-check everything again the morning of the wedding.) We have checklists for our checklists and leaving something behind that we need is literally the stuff our nightmares are made of.

Not to mention that once we actually arrive on the wedding day – so many logistics hinge upon us. If we are late getting details photographed, the First Look will be late, which will throw off the rest of the portraits.

And let’s not even talk about how it’s up to US to make-up time if anyone else runs late (if the ceremony runs long, we have to cut our portrait time short in order to still get to dinner on time). Trust me, if dinner is served late, the first person everyone looks to to pin blame on is the photographer (even if it’s obviously not their fault).

Hiring Someone with Experience is EVERYTHING

Wedding photography is a high-stakes game – so hiring a photographer with a solid amount of experience puts your risk at a lower amount than hiring someone with less experience. (It doesn’t take the risk away completely – even experienced photographers have situations arise out of their control!)

However: more experience comes with a higher price tag.

Seasoned wedding photographer veterans charge more – because they have the experience, equipment, and know-how to back up their price tag. They know what to expect on wedding days, they know proper wedding etiquette, and they know precisely what moments are most important. They know how to manage a (rowdy) crowd, they know how to look for beautiful light, and they know how to pose people to get the most out of their time.

Trust me, there are plenty of couples out there who simply refuse to gamble with their wedding photography and they will cut corners in other areas of their wedding day in order to have peace of mind that their photographer is not only going to show up, but will do an incredible job with their precious, once-in-a-lifetime, memories.