Wedding Photography Cost in Toronto

Average Cost of Wedding Pictures in Toronto

According to industry surveys, the average cost of a wedding in Toronto is around $35,000. Most wedding photographers charge 10-15% of that. As such, the average wedding photography cost in Toronto is between $3,000 and $4500. Unfortunately, photographers have to charge those prices to stay in business. As you will show, photographers incur high overhead costs and high direct costs.

Overhead Costs of a Wedding Photographer

First, we will analyze the overhead expenses of a wedding package. Those incur anyway, even if we don’t photograph any wedding. Among them we have office, marketing, equipment, professional services and labor costs.

Office Related Costs

A major cost, Rent in Toronto, is at least $500/month. Besides, photographers pay utility bills every month. Also, phone services will set back a photographer $80/month. Besides, the internet costs $80 per month while website hosting adds another $30 /month.

Marketing and Advertising Costs

Unfortunately, marketing and advertising costs are too high for many Toronto wedding photographers. With the low Canadian dollar, US advertising is now even more expensive. Also, marketing and labour account for over 70% of the wedding photography costs. They are unavoidable for a small business. As a result, photographers have to pass costs to their clients.

Google Adwords is Not a Cost Effective Channel

A major source of leads is Google Adwords, which is not cheap. For each click costs the photographer $3.95-$6.50 per click.

Facebook Advertising is Not Cheap

Facebook started as a free channel, but is becoming more expensive every day.Blogs and directories also charge to list a business in their vendor directory.

Bridal Shows are Overpriced

Although Bridal Shows a good marketing channel, they are expensive. For example, a simple booth at a Bridal Show in Toronto costs north of $2,500. When you add the cost of albums, large prints, flyers, décor, the figure comes closer to $5,000. Also, the shows occur on weekends, so as photographers we forgo any revenue that weekend. Is it worth the money? Sometimes yes, often there is no return on the money invested in a bridal show.

Print Advertising Costs an Arm and a Leg

Print is THE most expensive medium after TV (tens of thousands for the back cover). Second, it is almost impossible to calculate the ROI (return on investment), it has no SEO value and so on. More important, in this digital era, readership of magazines is low.

Professional Associations Charge Yearly Memberships

Joining professional wedding photographer’s associations has many benefits. It keeps the photographer in touch with the latest photography techniques. Also, it pushes the photographer to improve his work through periodic competitions. Finally, professional associations are strong communities. That helps if the photographer is sick and can not photograph a wedding. She can call someone who is available to photograph the wedding instead. A membership fee runs between $100 to $500 per year.

Photographic Equipment Costs a Lot

Your artist will be using equipment valued at $30,000+. That depreciates over time and she needs to amortize it at a rate of $550/month. Would you like your photographer to shoot your wedding using old equipment? NO! You definitely heard stories where cheap photographers lost a couples’ wedding photos because the cheap old camera died.

Photography Workshops are Exorbitant

Photography workshops are prohibitive. For instance, attending 2-3 workshops per year costs $4,800. Besides, photographers need to pay insurance, an accountant to do their taxes, and a lawyer who reviews the agreements.

Labour Costs

To survive in Toronto, a $50,000 gross salary is the least amount required to survive.Here is a table consolidating the above mentioned overhead expenditures.