Here are some suggestions for setting prices in a profitable photography business.
They will help you create pricing that is:
- Easy for clients to understand
- Profitable for your business
- Designed to encourage more sales
Start with a Simple Approach
Pricing doesn’t need to be complicated.
A strong starting point is:
Your price = cost of the product + your profit margin
For Queensberry-fulfilled products, Workspace handles production and fulfilment, so your role is to choose the products and set the retail prices your clients will see. If you offer self-fulfilled products, your prices also need to cover the production, packaging, delivery and administration you will provide. The Gallery Price List shows the markup or profit you may make on a Queensberry-fulfilled product at a particular price after deducting its wholesale cost, both as an amount and a percentage.
Start with how you charge for the photography
Your product and download prices should reflect how the job earns its income.
- Wedding photography: Your coverage fee may already include the full set of digital files. Gallery sales can then focus on convenient small prints, enlargements, wall art and albums.
- Portrait photography: Your session fee may cover some or all of the photography, with prints, downloads and packages providing additional income.
- School photography: Print and download sales are often the main source of income from the job. Your prices therefore need to cover the photography, administration and selling costs as well as product production.
There is no single pricing structure that suits every gallery. Begin with the way the photography has already been charged, then decide what each additional product or download needs to contribute.
1. Keep Pricing and Product Choice Simple
Too many options can overwhelm clients and reduce sales.
Best practice:
- Offer 3–5 key print sizes
- Avoid unnecessary variations
- Keep pricing easy to scan
- Keep the same sizes for different products (eg prints, frames, canvases all use A sizes)
Example:
- Small print size
- Medium print
- Large print
Small prints such as 6 × 4 and 7.5 × 5 are typically volume products. They can be especially relevant in wedding and portrait galleries, where customers may want to order many photographs for themselves, family or friends. Price and present these differently from enlargements and premium products that are usually purchased in smaller quantities.
Simplicity helps clients make decisions faster.
Use volume pricing for products commonly ordered in multiples
For eligible loose prints, volume pricing can reduce the unit price when a customer orders a larger quantity of the same size and paper or finish. Different photographs can contribute to the quantity, which makes this particularly useful for small wedding, portrait, school and event prints.
Choose thresholds that suit normal buying behaviour while protecting the margin needed for the job. See How to add volume pricing to prints.
2. Use Price Anchoring
Clients often compare options before deciding.
How it works:
- Include a higher-priced option
- This makes mid-range options feel more reasonable
Example:
- Small print → $20
- Medium print → $45
- Large print → $90
The large option helps justify the medium option.
3. Focus on Your Most Popular Products
You don’t need to offer everything.
Start with:
- Prints
- Digital downloads
- One premium product (e.g. canvas or album)
You can expand later once you see what sells.
4. Use Packages to Increase Value
The idea of packages is, instead of selling individual items, to bundle them together. They are one of the easiest ways to increase sales.
Example:
- Basic Package: 5 digital images
- Standard Package (Most Popular): 10 digital images + small prints
- Premium Package: Full gallery + prints or album
Tip:
Make your middle option the most attractive.
5. Price for the way each product sells
A low price is not automatically suitable, and a high margin on every item is not always the right goal. Consider the role of each product in the gallery.
- Small prints may be priced to encourage customers to order several.
- Enlargements, frames, canvases and albums are usually lower-volume purchases and need to provide a worthwhile return.
- Digital downloads should reflect whether the photography or coverage fee has already included them.
- For jobs such as school photography, allow for the time and costs of photographing, processing, administration and customer support when product sales provide the income.
Check that your expected order mix—not only one individual item—supports a profitable job.
6. Match Pricing to Your Brand
Your pricing should reflect your positioning.
Ask yourself:
- Are you premium or budget?
- What experience are you offering?
- What are your competitors charging?
Your pricing should feel consistent with your brand.
7. Plan discounts at the right time
Discounts can support a clear sales period, but their timing should feel fair to customers who have already ordered.
Before announcing an offer, consider:
- whether customers were told about it when the gallery opened;
- whether people who recently paid full price may feel disadvantaged;
- what genuine reason or change supports the promotion; and
- whether the dates, eligibility and conditions are clear.
For example, a school gallery could open with a clearly communicated early-bird offer. Alternatively, a later promotion could begin after the free bulk-delivery period has ended, when customers are ordering under different delivery conditions. An unexpected discount introduced during the original full-price ordering period may frustrate families who ordered promptly.
Use promotions to support a planned customer journey rather than adding them simply because sales have slowed. Keep discounts occasional, transparent and consistent with the value of your work.
8. Make Pricing Easy to Understand
Confusing pricing reduces sales.
Best practice:
- Use common sizes
- Avoid technical decisions such as multiple paper types
9. Test and Adjust Over Time
You don’t need perfect pricing from the start.
Track:
- Which products sell
- Which packages perform best
- Average order value
Then adjust your pricing as needed.
10. Combine Pricing with Good Presentation
Pricing works best when paired with a strong gallery experience.
Improve results by:
- Using slideshows
- Highlighting key images
- Setting expiry dates
- Following up with clients
Pricing and presentation work together.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Offering too many products
- Pricing too low to be profitable
- Not using packages
- Making pricing confusing
- Constant discounting
Pro Tip
The goal of pricing isn’t just to sell—it’s to guide clients toward the right purchase.
Well-structured pricing:
- Makes decisions easier
- Increases average order value
- Improves your overall revenue
Where to Start
If you’re unsure, start simple:
- Choose 3–5 core products
- Set clear, easy-to-understand prices
- Create one strong package
- Test with your next gallery
