How Much Does Hotel Photography Cost?
Understanding the costs associated with professional hotel photography is essential for making informed decisions. The price of this service can vary significantly, and there are several factors that influence the final cost. Here’s a comprehensive guide to help you navigate hotel photography pricing.
What Affects Hotel Photography Pricing?
Production Expenses There’s no need to compromise by trying to find local photographers, as only a few in the industry have the experience and knowledge to execute large-scale projects. Hotel photographers like Allure Captures travel worldwide for their clients at minimal to no additional costs.
Travel Costs
Travel expenses are only charged if the location of your hotel or resort is outside major cities. Our partners travel to major European cities like Munich, Hamburg, Frankfurt, Copenhagen, Helsinki, and Stockholm on a monthly basis. Similarly, our US partners travel coast to coast regularly. Travel expenses typically apply if there’s a full production team involved (models, actors, makeup and hair, styling, project managers). In such cases, minimal travel expenses may be incurred if your location is remote or outside a city.
Accommodation
Usually, accommodation is not required for daytime photoshoots. However, accommodating the team can offer more flexibility in production time. For remote locations, many hotels accommodate their photographer and production teams. If accommodation is not possible due to high capacity or construction, the direct cost of the closest available accommodation is charged.
Equipment
Most professionals, including us, incorporate the gear and equipment price into the daily or project cost, rather than listing separate line items. It’s often included in the overall quote to help clients understand that all necessary gear is part of the service.
Experience and Expertise
Not every hotel photographer has international experience with major brands. The price reflects the value, solutions, and results derived from our experience. Our expertise helps tackle specific challenges, overcome them, and create compelling visuals that sell your property.
Basic Terminology for Licensing
- Usage (duration/time): How long will you use the images? Common durations are 1/3/5/7 years.
- Usage (location): Will the images be used locally, nationally, or internationally?
- Licensing: Will the client use the images for their needs, or will they buy out the rights for other uses?
Pricing Structure
The most common ways to price hotel photography are based on time, photo, or project.
- Per Time: Daily pricing based on time, typically 7 hours of work.
- Pros: Offers flexibility
- Cons: Limited time frame
- Per Image: This structure is common when time requirements are challenging, and you need a specific number of pictures.
- Pros: Guaranteed number of images regardless of time
- Cons: Some images may take longer to create, but it balances time between client and professional
- Per Project: Used for multi-day or multi-week projects with significant production needs.
- Pros: One comprehensive price for the entire project
- Cons: Requires committing to the project in advance at a reduced rate
Simplifying the Process As part of our agency values, we offer streamlined, transparent, and easy-to-understand contracts. All contracts include unlimited time and usage for our clients without transferring rights to third parties. No complex or dual-meaning terminology.
Hotel Photography Licensing
Licensing determines how many third parties will use the photos, for how long, and where.
- Time: Typically 3 years, but can be extended to 5/7/10 or unlimited. We recommend a minimum of 5 years. At Allure Captures, we provide unlimited time usage for all our projects.
- Usage: The pricing changes with international or national advertising campaign usage. Clarify the intent—offline, online, billboards, paid ads, etc. Allure Captures allows unlimited usage with most contracts.
- Who Will Use the Images: Usually, only the client can use the final product unless otherwise requested. Other vendors can purchase a license directly from the photographer, saving additional costs.
Buy-out refers to the client buying the intellectual property of the images, allowing unlimited use and transfer of rights. This adds about 50%-100% to the project costs, as it prevents us from licensing to third parties. Ensure you pay only for elements you need.
Pricing & Cost
Pricing depends on the size of the project, licensing, number of pictures, days, and production needs (excluding talent sourcing and management). Expected ranges:
- Per Day: €4,000 – €8,000 / USD
- Per Photo: €700 – €1,500 / USD
This may include time, travel, photography, equipment, and post-production. Additional licensing (buy-out) and retouching requirements may incur extra costs.
Production Pricing & Cost
Production prices vary based on the project size, final image count, different sets, and the number of models and actors involved. This may or may not include makeup, hair, and styling.
- Half Day Production with 4 talents / 1-3 sets: €12,000 – €18,000 / USD
- Day Production with 4 talents / 3-5 sets: €18,000 – €28,000 / USD
- National and International Licensing (models & actors): Additional 25%-50%
- National and International Licensing Paid Ads/Billboards (models & actors): Additional 50%-100%
Note: Creative talent (models and actors) charge additional compensation when their images are used for large-scale commercial production, including paid ads and billboards in national and international campaigns. The pricing reflects industry standards, not necessarily our pricing structure. It is meant to provide a range based on our experience.