$895.00 is just way too much

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$895.00 is just way too much

marti.g3
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p.1 #1 · $895.00 is just way too much

I was contacted today by a bride getting married next March. Church wedding locally, reception at the Hilton Doubletre Ontario, not cheap by any means.

The coordinator there told her to call me. She did, I spoke with her, all the usual yada yada.

"Oh xxxx told me you had some great pricing".........." Do I get a big discount, two photographers"..............."

?"..........my mental state at the time........

I emailed her my pricing, contacted her later for verification and her reply was " Oh im sorry but your pricing was just way out of our budget for photography"...........WTF

? Really ? How much was in your budget for photos

??

It never ceases to amaze me how brides will spend tons of money on their reception, all the showy stuff, but then want their photography for peanuts. I know how much it costs to use the Hilton Doubletree. I've been on their vendor list for over ten years. I photographed the wedding coordinators there and we have a great relationship.

$895.00 is too much ? OMG........the world is going to end.

Oct 03, 2012 at 02:01 AM

Jamesbjenkins
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p.1 #2 · $895.00 is just way too much

It's all about priorities, man. Some people are dumb, and think that flowers and alcohol are more important than remembering their big day.

If somebody asked me during our very first conversation "Do I get a big discount?" I'd do my best to quickly and politely end that inquiry call muy pronto.

Oct 03, 2012 at 02:05 AM

sivrajbm
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p.1 #3 · $895.00 is just way too much

Don't you just love it...

Oct 03, 2012 at 02:05 AM

andrewho
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p.1 #4 · $895.00 is just way too much

my cousins wedding was at hilton double tree and that place is a pure dump.

Oct 03, 2012 at 02:09 AM

marti.g3
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p.1 #5 · $895.00 is just way too much

andrewho wrote:
my cousins wedding was at hilton double tree and that place is a pure dump.

In Ontario California ?

Oct 03, 2012 at 02:10 AM

marti.g3
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p.1 #6 · $895.00 is just way too much

Jamesbjenkins wrote:
It's all about priorities, man. Some people are dumb, and think that flowers and alcohol are more important than remembering their big day.

If somebody asked me during our very first conversation "Do I get a big discount?" I'd do my best to quickly and politely end that inquiry call muy pronto.

Yeah as soon as she said that my entire enthusiasm just shut down and I went into "end this convo" mode quickly.

Oct 03, 2012 at 02:11 AM

Sergio Mottola
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p.1 #7 · $895.00 is just way too much

pretty normal when you start at $895. bump to $3895 and you won't be dealing with these kind of folks

Oct 03, 2012 at 02:11 AM

marti.g3
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p.1 #8 · $895.00 is just way too much

Sergio Mottola wrote:
pretty normal when you start at $895. bump to $3895 and you won't be dealing with these kind of folks

At that price I'll be terminating my county business license and signing up for county assistance.

Oct 03, 2012 at 02:13 AM

Jamesbjenkins
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p.1 #9 · $895.00 is just way too much

In related news, what the heck are you doing charging $895 for a wedding? Your images are WAY better than $895.

Oct 03, 2012 at 02:15 AM

GraemePitman
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p.1 #10 · $895.00 is just way too much

"At that price I'll be terminating my county business license and signing up for county assistance."

Interesting philosophy.

Oct 03, 2012 at 02:16 AM

marti.g3
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p.1 #11 · $895.00 is just way too much

Jamesbjenkins wrote:
In related news, what the heck are you doing charging $895 for a wedding? Your images are WAY better than $895.

Thats my entry point pricing for a 4 hour shoot and burn. Believe me, I hate it.....but I do this full time and frankly, Im not as good as most of the photographers here. I get what I get. The area is really depressed, San Bernardino County, one of the highest unemployment rates in the area, highest home repo percentage, so i don't know. Last year I did 61 events...wedding/quinces.......this year so far....31........probably end up with 40.......i thought this year would be a good one based on last years totals..........that's why I ended up closing my studio and moving home............the weddings never materialized.....so many unprofessional low ballers just giving way the farm to make some pocket change.......brides are expecting the same............IF I have to stoop that low just to book jobs, then I'll just close up shop and collect welfare, food stamps, rob a bank or two, take down a courier....whatever to make it work.

Many factors contribute to this situation..........maybe they're just in my mind, but I tend to think otherwise.......it is what it is...FTW......

Oct 03, 2012 at 02:24 AM

spink
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p.1 #12 · $895.00 is just way too much

marti.g3 wrote:
Jamesbjenkins wrote:
In related news, what the heck are you doing charging $895 for a wedding? Your images are WAY better than $895.

maybe they're just in my mind

It is.

Oct 03, 2012 at 02:31 AM

Marcus Watts
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p.1 #13 · $895.00 is just way too much

Sergio Mottola wrote:
pretty normal when you start at $895. bump to $3895 and you won't be dealing with these kind of folks

Very true. Clients like that are kind of like karma for lowballers.

I'm teasing a little but seriously put your prices up.

Oct 03, 2012 at 02:33 AM

Sergio Mottola
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p.1 #14 · $895.00 is just way too much

you're the unprofessional lowballer. hate to break it to ya!

Oct 03, 2012 at 02:43 AM

marti.g3
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p.1 #15 · $895.00 is just way too much

Here's another example....my wife's department supervisor at her work, makes probably about 80K a year.......school district.......her daughter is getting married.......she requested my wedding price list....gave it to her.......never heard anything from her.........her daughter hired some Groupon photog offering some el cheapo "engagement" offering.............well they ended up hiring her to shoot their wedding this month............my wifes' supervisor told my wife " your husband was too expensive".............

So some people just don't value photography at all. It's just not important. I feel sorry for them. Enjoy those chair covers, that long stretch limo because when it's all over, you can also enjoy the crappy wedding snapshots you will be paying for.

Oh yeah, the supervisor has family coming from out of town, so she paid some "guy" $2000.00 to replace all of the light fixtures in her house and paid for a new $7000.00 patio cover to impress the relatives.

Yet $1200.00 dollars for wedding photography is too much.....

Oct 03, 2012 at 02:47 AM

marti.g3
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p.1 #16 · $895.00 is just way too much

Sergio Mottola wrote:
you're the unprofessional lowballer. hate to break it to ya!

Whatever Sergio.....another 2 seconds of wisdom from you as expected. Now go back
to playing with yourself moron.

You know NOTHING about my business, a business that I run legally, pay my taxes,
provide quality products in terms of albums and images, provide my clients with
an honest, ethical business experience. But as for you, from your remarks, it shows
what kind of person you aren't.

Oct 03, 2012 at 02:48 AM

ryan21
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p.1 #17 · $895.00 is just way too much

Have you tried raising your prices? What has been the consequence? What could you do in the next three months to facilitate a successful price increase? I don't want to hear anything about depressed economy.... dude the market is there even in this economy... the business is there. You need to ask yourself, what are you doing (or not doing) to get the higher paying cliental.

Oct 03, 2012 at 02:57 AM

TheGE
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p.1 #18 · $895.00 is just way too much

But look at this lead. The selling point on why she should contact you was price. "Oh xxxx told me you had some great pricing." Not a very qualified lead. Probably told to her because she may have said "I don't want to spend a lot" or "I blew my budget on the Hilton."

Or she didn't like your work (maybe she feels the same way you do about your stuff) and doesn't want to offend you (or make herself feel bad) by saying so, and so she uses price as an excuse.

Many factors contribute to this situation..........maybe they're just in my mind, but I tend to think otherwise.

What I'm going to tell you here is how our mind tricks us. When we have repeated experiences, especially bad ones, we begin to think it's always like that and that it will always be like that. And we believe it has to be real, because it happens in real life, out of real circumstances. Yet, other people in the same community living under the same circumstances have a different experience of life. How can that be? What's probably really going on is that your method of doing this results in these experiences. And then you're over-generalizing it with all-or-nothing thinking that this is the way it is, rather than change the way you're doing things.

Oct 03, 2012 at 02:59 AM

Sergio Mottola
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p.1 #19 · $895.00 is just way too much

i guess it would be pretty unethical of you to raise your prices if you're scared to. i'll invoice you for my two seconds of wisdom (expounding on things only serves your neurosis).

Oct 03, 2012 at 03:10 AM

Sergio Mottola
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p.1 #20 · $895.00 is just way too much

is this you, marti.g3? the timing is too sweet.

Oct 03, 2012 at 03:14 AM

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