Jim, thank you!
Often when I go to foster homes I'm asked to take photos of the family dog with or without family members, and I do this as a courtesy. I'm there anyway, and I appreciate anybody who is willing to open their homes to help save a life.
But recently I've had a couple of indirect requests from people that have seen my photos at rescue events regarding how much I would charge for a photo shoot.
I'm unsure about that. When I do it for free there's no pressure to deliver. I guess I lack confidence in the ability to satisfy a paying customer. I'm not always satisfied with the results I get. Sometimes it's too bright, too cloudy, dog is not cooperative, etc.
I sure would love to do it though If I did, what would you think is reasonable for an amateur to charge? Kind of an odd situation. I have been going to foster homes and photographing dogs for about 4 years, and of course thousands of photos of my own dogs but I'm still an amateur.
I was thinking if I didn't get $50.00 per hour it wouldn't be worth it. I still would have to travel and do some post processing. I usually end up with about 50-75 keepers in a 45 min to 1 hr shoot. It takes awhile to warm up, get to know the dog a little, and for the dog to get comfortable with me. So I guess I average about 1.5 hours.


Loueen