I need some money advice from the pros, please.

[Blue_In_AK]

When we were out in Nome for the end of the Iditarod we met this very nice lady from North Carolina with whom we hung out quite a bit. She was taking lots of pictures, too, but she wasn't as determined as I was, being out at 3:00 a.m. in the subzero wind, etc., and she didn't have the equipment that I lugged around.

So today I got an e-mail from her saying that she had been invited to speak about her Iditarod experience to three classes of sixth graders who had followed the race, each one of them following their own particular musher. Since I have pictures of everybody, both at the start and the finish, she wondered if I would make her a DVD of my Iditarod Smugmug galleries so she could supplement her own shots with some of mine when she's talking with the kids. Her exact words were: "I'll pay whatever you want for it." And "I'd not give your photos to anyone,only use them for this talk, and give you credit for taking them while promoting your website if any student wanted a particular photo."


I certainly don't want to charge her a lot, but since she wants to pay me "whatever I want for it," I should probably let her pay me something. Any clues on what would be a fair sum for this?

[Dyedinthewoolliberal]

1. Have you sold your pictures before?

If yes, what did people pay? If no, price these high enough so you can establish a reasonable value for your work but not so high that she feels your took advantage of her offer.
If you watermark the photos or turn them into PDF's, you might be safe from someone downloading and printing for free. But there are people who can figure a way around any type of safeguard you put into place.
How many 6th graders are going to want to buy a picture?

[Blue_In_AK]

2. Exactly.

I doubt the little ones will be buying photos, although the kids really do get involved with the race. There are always a lot of teachers who volunteer along the Iditarod Trail and the kids can follow along at the website with GPS. :)

Yes, I've sold some photos before, but I've given away more. I've sold a few to mushers or their families, but I just don't have the heart to charge them most of the time, especially the teams at the back of the pack. I really liked the woman making this request; she was very genuine and a solid Democrat. I may just send her the photos for a nominal fee (for IRS purposes, so I can show a little income) and trust her not to use them for anything else.

You can tell I'm more into the creative side of photography than I am the commercial. I have no concept of how to value my work, I guess because it's so much fun I feel like I shouldn't get paid for it. :rofl:

[ManiacJoe]

3. Does the teacher need hi-res copies?

You could easily toss the low-res copies on a DVD for $100.

[Blue_In_AK]

4. That's probably a good idea.

I hadn't thought about low resolution. I'll check with her.

[CC]

5. Go with the low res

only. She is showing a DVD or slide show so does not need high res. photos. You could charge a set amount per low res photo, let her download the low res. straight from Smugmug and pay through them. Then she can burn those onto the DVD herself. You can set a high res. one use only download price through the Smugmug site too. You have the site, you pay for the site, you should send EVERYONE that wants a photo to the site to buy it there. If you feel bad tell them that is the easiest and best way to get a copy for themselves.
Set your price for a low res. download in Smugmug, direct her to them. Then price it something like a dollar or 2 per photo download for personal use (including talk to the kids.) She can then decide how much she really wants to spend and she can make her DVD the way she wants. That way Smugmug can do the collecting for you and should you get audited it would make writing off the Smugmug site look more legit. Plus you might sell some to other people like the mushers and still not feel like you are taking advantage.

Don't devalue your work (time, talent, transportation etc. all cost you.) You really do take great photos that deserve to be valued at a fair (to you too) price.



Ignore typos please, tired and can't type decent even when not tired. :)and not a pro but going to add my say anyway.

[Dyedinthewoolliberal]

6. I hear ya!

Making art is so much more fun than selling it! :toast: