photography and videography business plan pdf

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LUMAGRAFX PHOTO STUDIO BUSINESS PLAN "We lead, they follow"

2020, LUMAGRAFX PHOTO STUDIO BUSINESS PLAN "We lead, they follow"

LUMAGRAFX is derived from LUNDA, MATTHEWS and GRAPHICS as in GRAFX. Matthews has worked as a photographer and freelance portrait photographer in Mufulira and Kitwe for six years. He has found that personal customer relationships are the key to repeat business and will open Lumagrafx Photo Studio in Chililabombwe.

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Photography Business Plan

photography and videography business plan pdf

Things to Consider Before Writing a Photography Business Plan

You’ll need to focus on both the artistic and business sides of your trade.

Though having an excellent eye for proportion, dimensions, and light is great it isn’t enough to have a profitable business. You bring your skills to the table, but you’ll have to work as hard as any other business owner on your marketing, finance, and operations to have a profitable business.

And though it might seem intimidating, with the right amount of planning and strategizing you can do it smoothly.

Get the Pricing Right

It is important to study every aspect of the market and select the pricing strategy that suits your business the best. Your pricing as a photography business would depend a lot upon the niche you choose, your location, and the quality of your skills.

Develop Your Soft Skills

Good photography isn’t just about your skills with the camera, especially if you are dealing with people. You’ll need to make your customers feel at ease and have a friendly way of communicating.

This helps you become the person’s go-to photographer. As pictures aren’t just products you pay for, but memories that are cherished for years.

But at the same time, if communication isn’t your thing you don’t need to worry. As there are several other niches in photography that you can pick from.

Get the Right Equipment, but Don’t Go Overboard

The right camera, technical equipment, etc, are important to help you work effectively. But it doesn’t do to go over budget for it. Especially, if you are just starting out.

Pick the right equipment, but not the one that weighs down on your finances at the early stages of your business.

Why Do You Need a Photography Business Plan?

As you are ready to enter the industry, it brings us to the above question, why does one need a photography business plan?

Aren’t you just supposed to dive right in if you are passionate enough?

The answer is, NO.

Though diving headfirst might sound appealing, it can lead to a series of roadblocks in the future. Also, a business plan isn’t as time-consuming as it may seem to you.

It increases the efficiency of your business and acts as a guide on your road to success. Moreover, writing a business plan helps you get a clear idea of your goals and the opportunities and threats that stand in your way of achieving them.

Also, a well-researched and innovative plan can help you get funded. An investor’s confidence in you is directly proportional to the clarity of your business idea. A business plan can help you achieve just that.

How to Write a Photography Business Plan?

Writing a business plan is not as intimidating as it seems. A well-rounded business plan requires thorough research of the industry, a clear set of goals, well-observed and carefully designed strategies to achieve them, and a clear list of milestones and timelines for all the departments of the business.

A business plan should include strategies for all departments from marketing to finance. There are several resources like online software, business consultants, and predesigned templates that can help you in writing the perfect business plan .

Writing a business plan has become a cakewalk through online business planning tools which can craft an ideal business plan for you at the snap of your fingers.

Chalking out Your Business Plan

Though anyone can click pictures with devices as simple as a smartphone, it takes skills, a sense of proportion, and creativity to make people stop scrolling.

In today’s world of photo-sharing apps where people grapple for attention, the demand for excellent photographers continues to rise.

Hence, with the advent of Instagram, the photography industry is growing leaps and bounds.

Photography Business Plan Outline

This is a standard photography business plan outline that will cover all important sections that you should include in your business plan.

Introduction
Products and Services
Financial Path To Success
Keys to Success
Company History
Market Segmentation
Target Market Segment Strategy
Competition and Buying Patterns
Web Plan Summary
Website Marketing Strategy
Development Requirements
SWOT Analysis
Competitive Edge
Marketing Strategy
Sales Forecast
Year 1 – Digital Media Production
Year 2 – Digital Media Production
Year 3 – Digital Media Production
Important Assumptions
Projected Profit and Loss
Projected Cash Flow
Projected Balance Sheet
Ratio Analysis

As you sit down to write your business plan, it brings us to the question, what all things you will need to include in your business plan? Read on to find out.

1. Write an Executive Summary

The executive summary section of a business plan works as an overview of your business and acts as a highlight of its aims and goals. It should be brief and precise and sum up everything your business stands for.

It serves as a pitch of your business ideas to potential investors and should have the following points.

The kind of services your business offers (Eg. Commercial Photography, Travel Photography, etc.)
Your target audience (Eg. Models, travel bloggers, influencers, etc.)
Your strengths and past experiences
Your goals for the company.

2. Business Overview

In the business overview section, you’ll jot down all of the business ideas you have and analyze how to bring them to life.

This section would consist of an overview of the functioning of your business. as well as your mission statement.

While writing this section it is important to be as precise as possible It helps the stakeholders of your business to know it better.

3. Describe the Services You’ll Offer

In this section of your business plan, you have to list the services you are going to offer. This helps you get a clearer idea of how to advertise your services and how to reach out to your target audiences.

For example, if you are a landscape photographer all of your marketing strategy and the list of resources and services you’ll need will be built around that.

Also, your target audience would be travel websites and tourism companies. And the ways of reaching out to them would be different than reaching out to influencers or celebrities.

4. Market Analysis

The market analysis section is a crucial part of your business plan.

In this section, you’ll write down everything you can find about the photography market as well as resources that can help you stay updated about the recent trends in the market.

For example, as a photographer, it is essential to know the trending photography techniques.

You can also include the size of the market, your competitors, areas that have the highest growth potential, etc Know the right market value of services and identify the existing market gaps that you can fill.

Let’s consider there is no food photographer in your locality and the restaurants around you need one, you can specialize in food photography to capture that market.

5. Create a Website Strategy

The Internet is the first place where people look for any product or service, hence your business must have a website to be discovered by clients.

A well-optimized website can help you in meeting a lot of potential customers.

Including a website strategy in your business plan is crucial.

6. Plan Your Finances

Your financial planning is one of the major deciding factors of whether your business will stay afloat or not.

In this section keep track of your company’s finances, jot down ways of making it more cost-effective. List down resources that can help you understand and manage your finances better.

Download a sample photography business plan

Need help getting started writing a business plan? Here you go; download our free photography business plan pdf to start.

It’s a modern business plan template designed for your photography center. Refer to the example business plan and follow step-by-step instructions to start writing your plan.

The Quickest Way to turn a Business Idea into a Business Plan

Fill-in-the-blanks and automatic financials make it easy.

Write your business plan with Upmetrics

A business planning tool like Upmetrics is the best way to draft your business plan. This incredible tool comes with step-by-step instructions, customizable templates, AI assistance, and business plan examples to help you get started.

You may also explore our library of Entertainment and media business plan examples before you start writing your plan.

So, whether you are starting a photography business or planning to grow an existing one, Upmetrics is the tool you need to create a business plan.

So, what are you waiting for? Start planning now!

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10 Key Components of Business Plan

Frequently asked questions, what are some common mistakes to avoid when drafting a photography business plan.

Following are some of the common mistakes to avoid when writing a photography business plan:

Inadequate and inaccurate financial projections.
Poor market research and ignoring industry trends.
Undefined goals and lack of details.
Not proofreading the document for typos and grammatical errors.
Including outdated and irrelevant information.
Not regularly updating your business plan.

What are some key financial metrics to include in a photography business plan?

Following are some of the key financial metrics to include in your photography business plan:

Balance sheet
Cash flow statement
Income statement
Break-even statement
Projected business ratios
Sales and revenue projections
Projected expenses

How can a photography business plan help in securing funding or investment?

A well-crafted photography business plan will help your investors better understand your business domain, market trends, strategies, business financials, and growth potential—helping you secure investment.

Where to find business plan writers for your photography business?

There are many business plan writers available, but no one knows your business and ideas better than you, so we recommend you write your photography business plan and outline your vision as you have in mind.

About the Author

Upmetrics Team

Upmetrics is the #1 business planning software that helps entrepreneurs and business owners create investment-ready business plans using AI. We regularly share business planning insights on our blog. Check out the Upmetrics blog for such interesting reads. Read more

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Photography Business Plan Template

Written by Dave Lavinsky

Photography Business Plan Outline

Photography Business Plan Home
1. Executive Summary
2. Company Overview
3. Industry Analysis
4. Customer Analysis
5. Competitive Analysis
6. Marketing Plan
7. Operations Plan
8. Management Team
9. Financial Plan

Start Your Photography Plan Here

Photography Business Plan

You’ve come to the right place to create your Photography business plan.

We have helped over 1,000 entrepreneurs and business owners create business plans and many have used them to start or grow their Photography business.

Below are links to each section of a sample photography business plan. It can be used to create a wedding photography business plan, a commercial photography business plan, a portrait photography studio business plan or any other type of photography business plan.

1. Executive Summary 2. Company Overview 3. Industry Analysis 4. Customer Analysis 5. Competitive Analysis 6. Marketing Plan 7. Operations Plan 8. Management Team 9. Financial Plan

Next Section: Executive Summary >

Photography Business Plan FAQs

What is a photography business plan.

A photography business plan is a plan to start and/or grow your photography business. Among other things, it outlines your business concept, identifies your target customers, presents your marketing plan and details your financial projections.

You can easily complete your photography business plan using our Photography Business Plan Template here .

What Are the Main Types of Photography Businesses?

There are many types of photography businesses depending on the style of photography and target market. The most common and profitable type is event photography. Other types are stock photography, family/baby photography, travel, school, photojournalism and social media photography.

No matter what type of photography business you plan to start, you need a solid photography business plan. You can quickly complete your photography business plan using our Photography Business Plan Template here .

What Are the Main Sources of Revenues and Expenses for a Photography Business?

The primary source of revenue for photography businesses are service fees for photoshoots and video, licensing fees and photo editing. Other revenues are also generated from product sales like prints, albums, cards, wall prints and canvas.

The key expenses for photography businesses are equipment expense, advertising, transportation, and labor or professional fees.

How Do You Get Funding for Your Photography Studio Business Plan?

Photography businesses are typically funded through small business loans, personal savings and credit card financing.

This is true for a wedding photographer, pet photography business, commercial photography business, a portrait photography business or any other type of photography services.

Download your plan in word or PDF to share with investors.

What are the Steps To Start a Photography Business?

Starting a photography business can be an exciting endeavor. Having a clear roadmap of the steps to start a business will help you stay focused on your goals and get started faster.

1. Develop A Photography Business Plan - The first step in starting a business is to create a detailed business plan for a photography business that outlines all aspects of the venture. This should include potential market size and target customers, data on the photography industry, the services or products you will offer, pricing strategies and a detailed financial forecast. You can quickly complete your photography business plan using our Photography Business Plan Template here .

2. Choose Your Legal Structure - It's important to select an appropriate legal entity for your photography business. This could be a limited liability company (LLC), corporation, partnership, or sole proprietorship. Each type has its own benefits and drawbacks so it’s important to do research and choose wisely so that your photography business is in compliance with local laws.

3. Register Your Photography Business - Once you have chosen a legal structure, the next step is to register your photography business with the government or state where you’re operating from. This includes obtaining licenses and permits as required by federal, state, and local laws.

4. Identify Financing Options - It’s likely that you’ll need some capital to start your photography business, so take some time to identify what financing options are available such as bank loans, investor funding, grants, or crowdfunding platforms.

5. Choose a Location - Whether you plan on operating out of a physical location or not, you should always have an idea of where you’ll be based should it become necessary in the future as well as what kind of space would be suitable for your operations.

6. Hire Employees - There are several ways to find qualified employees including job boards like LinkedIn or Indeed as well as hiring agencies if needed – depending on what type of employees you need it might also be more effective to reach out directly through networking events.

7. Acquire Necessary Photography Equipment & Supplies - In order to start your photography business, you'll need to purchase all of the necessary equipment and supplies to run a successful operation.

8. Market & Promote Your Business - Once you have all the necessary pieces in place, it’s time to start promoting and marketing your photography business. This includes creating a website, utilizing social media platforms like Facebook or Twitter, and having an effective Search Engine Optimization (SEO) strategy. You should also consider traditional marketing techniques such as radio or print advertising.

Learn more about how to start a successful photography business and photography business planning:

How to Start a Photography Business

Where Can I Get a Photography Business Plan PDF?

You can download our free photography business plan template PDF here . This is a sample photography business plan template you can use in PDF format.

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Home » Blog » How to write a successful photography business plan.

Photography Business Tips

How to write a successful photography business plan.

Whether you want to know how to start a photography business or take your existing one to the next level, the best place to start is with a plan. A photography business plan is a document that outlines what you hope to accomplish with your business.

As your business comes to life or goes through change, you can use a business plan to measure your progress and re-calibrate your professional goals. In addition, if you are planning to pitch your business to potential investors for brand partnership opportunities, a business plan is one of the documents you can use to help bring credibility to your business.

However, learning how to start a photography business the right way doesn’t have to be overwhelming. Taking the right steps to showcase your photography services beyond your online portfolio website can set you off on the right foot and continuously help you attract the caliber of clients you want.

Why you need to make a photography business plan.

Running a small business is hard. You may have heard the lifespan statistic that 20% of small businesses fail in their first 2 years, 30% fail in their first 3 years, and 50% fail after operating for 5 years. While this number is discouraging, the number one reason for the small business mortality rate is the lack of financial planning.

This is why using available tools is essential to your business’s long-term success and to your ability to grow your business. A business plan is critical in keeping you on track with your business goals and identifying where your business is lagging before, during, and after growth.

The main components of a photography business plan.

While you can customize the components of a photography business plan to suit your needs, the standard components are:

Executive summary
Business description
Product or service portfolio
Target market
Competitive landscape
Marketing approach
Operations & logistics

These elements work together to provide you and your possible stakeholders with a fulsome portrait of your business and its potential. We will go into further detail about these individual components in the following sections.

Write an executive summary.

The executive summary is a 50-250 word section at the start of your photography business plan that focuses on big-picture goals and outcomes of your company. This section summarizes the entirety of the document and should serve as the “elevator pitch” for your company, and its unique position to succeed. A good question to ask when compiling your executive summary is, “What are 3-5 things I want my clients to remember me by?”

Some of the elements to include in your executive summary are your experience, your specialties (ex. commercial photography , landscape , or wedding photography ), and key components of your business that contribute to your success, such as your marketing efforts or a unique angle you bring to the industry.

Explain your company in a business description.

While you may have a clear vision for your business inside your head, being able to succinctly express it to clients and stakeholders is key to your professional success. When compiling your description, it’s important to be as specific as possible.

First, learn about different organizational structures and the associated terms that come with the territory. Are you running a sole proprietorship, partnership, an incorporated company, or another type of business?

Second, your business description should also outline additional details including the history of your business. It gives possible stakeholders an idea of what your business is about and how it began.

In addition, you want to share your business’ mission statement. Because you will go into more details about the offerings and other aspects of your business, it’s best to keep your company description simple and provide only a high-level overview.

Describe your product and services.

This is the place to talk about the types of photography services and products you offer, and the ones you plan on expanding into in the near future.

As part of your product and services description, provide a comprehensive pricing model. Your pricing model should cover the types of sessions, services (shooting, editing, formatting) you offer, and their associated fees. For example, do you offer mini photography sessions or 2-hour shoots? Is there a sliding scale for editing services, color correction, or airbrushing? Do you handle the physical production of photos, or is the handoff done digitally?

A competent photography business relies on the client’s clear understanding of your “menu” of skills and services.

Lastly, detail the types of services you offer and the types of products you want to focus on that bring you the most income.

Determine your target market.

Targeting your customers is no simple task, as small business owners want to serve everyone. Nevertheless, it helps you to focus on your customers who need your products. You’ll end up wasting money marketing your product to people who don’t need it or have any interest in it.

Understanding your target audience means researching your local market to identify where demand exists. You can search forums and Facebook groups to see what kinds of photographers people are hiring and how much they’re willing to pay.

For example, a professional wedding photographer should join relevant local event planning and vendor groups on social media to build connections and promote their wedding photography services. Keep in mind that a wedding photographer often has to travel to a location to shoot the wedding, and make sure to factor it into your project estimates.

While a target audience looks different for everyone, it’s important for your photography business to have a few areas of specialty that help build up credibility and steadily bring in clients.

Conduct a competitive analysis.

As you conduct research on your local market, you will start to discover there are a number of different photographers that offer similar services as you. To create a thorough competitive analysis, take the list of competitors, and evaluate them in different areas. Conducting this analysis will help you determine what sets yours apart.

When looking at your competitors, consider the following questions:

Are my product offering and pricing model as straightforward as theirs?
What is their tone of voice (ex. humorous/expert/familial)?
Who is their target audience?
What do they bring to the table that I do not, and vice versa?
How can I differentiate myself from them?

To help you understand how your business is perceived, you can seek the help of a brand marketing professional. To take a more DIY approach, you can send your portfolio website to a roundtable of friends and colleagues and ask them how they would describe your business. Collecting these adjectives and looking for common threads can help you understand how your business is perceived and use these findings to your advantage in your marketing efforts.

Conducting a thorough competitive analysis can help you determine your own competitive edge and stay abreast of the competition. As a best practice, get into the habit of conducting a competitive analysis on an annual basis to stay informed about how your industry and your local market evolve over time.

Detail your marketing strategies.

In marketing, there is a saying that goes, “hope is not a strategy.” Yet many organizations allow an “if you build it, they will come” mentality to drive clients toward their marketing efforts.

In reality, a continuous funnel of new and repeat customers is what ensures their long-term success. This is why continuous marketing efforts are the number one way to ensure a consistent workload. Your marketing should work in tandem with a greater marketing plan that aligns all your efforts.

Because stakeholders and investors know the importance of marketing, they will look for a comprehensive and proactive marketing strategy when evaluating your business plan. This is why it’s important to outline the various marketing mechanisms you plan to use in your marketing plan.

Your marketing strategies encompass your marketing programs and your photography portfolio.

Marketing programs.

Marketing programs mean any platforms, channels, or mechanisms you use to promote your company and attract customers. These may include email marketing campaigns, direct mail initiatives, local photography directory memberships, trade shows, your social media presence, and any paid social media advertising campaigns.

Photography portfolio.

Your online photography portfolio is an essential part of your marketing toolkit. After you make your potential customers aware of your business with your marketing programs, they will seek out a digital presence to explore your abilities as a photographer and to see if there is a fit. A portfolio experience can make or break a client lead, which is why it’s important to invest in a portfolio website that represents the unique offering your photography brings to the world. You can learn how to build a portfolio website the right way with our helpful guide.

Think about operations.

While service businesses like photographers traditionally have fewer logistics than brick-and-mortar ones, it’s still important to consider the day-to-day logistics and expenses when compiling your business plan.

The operations portion of your photography business can include details like information about where you conduct work. Many photographers choose to conduct business out of a home studio or office, holding a majority of their sessions at outdoor locations, client homes, and occasionally utilizing a professional studio. Meanwhile, commercial photographers almost always rely on a professional studio to conduct their business.

Because different types of photographers have different operational needs, stakeholders will look for this information in your business plan to help assess the overhead cost of the operations. Understanding your operations also helps you to plan for potential opportunities in the future.

Draft your financial plans.

This portion of your photography business plan is important to understanding the overall factors in the cash flow of your venture. Cash flow refers to the amount of money going in and out of your business.

While compiling this section of your business plan may take the most time, it’s important to get it right to have an accurate understanding of the amount of money it takes to run your photography business, and which investments (ex. new lenses or editing software) are feasible within your business profits.

If you are a new business owner getting into photography, this section of the plan is where you outline the equipment you hope to invest in and what types of services it will be used for. Consider that as a professional photographer, you may need to invest in two copies of every item in case of malfunction. Some photographers, who may be just starting out, may use rental equipment to help them offset the costs of duplicates. However, the cost of renting can add up, which is why purchasing may be the cheaper option in the long run.

As a photographer, you are investing in hardware and software that is imperative to your job. To protect yourself, consider insuring your photography equipment and professional computer in case of theft. You can outline your insurance policy coverage and its cost in the financial portion of your plan.

Create a timeline.

For photographers, a timeline is a management tool that helps you keep your business goals on track. Some of the key activities to include in your timeline are marketing, financial, investing, and operational in nature.

In your timeline, consider setting goals for when you expect to pay back for the items listed in the financial portion of your plan. Calculating how many completed photography sessions it would take to cover the cost of the item can help you calculate this date.

It’s important to remember that timelines don’t need to be complicated. You can simply write down the task and the date by which you hope to complete it in sequential order. To help you stay on track, you can put reminders in your email calendar that notify you when you are nearing the anticipated completion of a task, as well as your personal deadline for its completion.

Putting your photography business plan together.

Compiling a photography business plan is an important step in starting your business and in evolving an existing one. While our photography business plan outline contains all the elements to run a successful photography business, there is nothing like drawing inspiration from what’s out there. A tried and tested photography business plan sample can give you the guidance you need to brainstorm the ins and outs of your business.

While all photography business plans are slightly different, most professional photography business plans are clear about their vision and how they want to get there. We’ve collected sample photography business plans from some of the best and most successful photographers in the industry and made readily editable templates for a fast and comprehensive photography business plan.

If you are just starting with your venture and feel a little lost, be sure to check out startup costs for your photography business and three business questions new photographers often ask . These guides give you the important information you need to get started on turning your photography dream into a viable business.

Photography business plan examples.

A sound business plan will set you on the path to success as a photographer. Whether you are a studio photographer, wedding photographer, or anything in between, these industry-specific photography business plan examples will help you kickstart your career.

Photography studio business plan.

If you run a photography studio, the most important element of your business plan is the photography business description. This segment in your photography studio business plan consists of a thorough description of all of the activities you engage in and the services you offer.

By keeping a detailed checklist, you can be clearer with your clients about the studio photography services you offer and market your business accordingly. Our guide to photography marketing shows you how to attract new clients the right way, without spending a dime.

Wedding photography business plan.

Creating a wedding photography business plan is a crucial step in better understanding your market and the opportunities you can leverage with your skills and experience. If there are any specific photography services you offer that other wedding competitors don’t, make sure to include them in your business plan.

If you are looking for a place to start, a simple Google search will provide you with a range of wedding photography business plan samples to work from, which can be tailored specifically to your business.

Now that you are armed with your photography business plan, you can attract better clients and be prepared for the future with a firm grasp of your competitive edge and industry shifts. Don’t forget that along with a solid business plan you need a beautiful website portfolio to show off your work and start getting clients.

10 Things to Include in Your Photography Invoice to Get Paid Faster

Contributor

Cheryl is the Director of Content Strategy at Zenfolio and the Owner/Photographer at Portraits by Cheryl and Seniors by Cheryl in Raleigh, NC. Cheryl has mentored countless new photographers looking to build successful photography businesses.

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What Is a Photography Business Plan?

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How to Write a Business Plan for Photography?

Photography business plan template.

General Business Forms
Starting a Business
Business Plan Template

A Photography Business Plan is a business plan that was specifically developed for a photography business. The purpose of this document is to present information about a photography operation, what will be its target market , financial background, goals, strategies, and other details.

Individuals can use a Business Plan for Photography when they would like to create a photography enterprise and want to find funding for it. Therefore, they prepare a document that will show how profitable it will be in order to apply for a loan at a bank or to convince the investors.

Photography business plans can be adapted for different types of photography. For example, a drone photography business plan is suitable for those individuals who would like to start a drone photography business and want to research the market specifically for this service. If you are looking for a business plan for your enterprise you can check out a Photography Business Plan template which can be downloaded below .

Writing a Business Plan for Photography can be complicated yet fulfilling. Completing it will help you understand which steps you need to take in order to succeed in this business. There are no strict rules that would apply to compiling a business plan, nevertheless, make sure you did not miss on including any of the important information about your enterprise. Your plan can include sections similar to the ones described below:

Information About the Operation . At the beginning of your business plan, you can designate the name of your future photography operation, whether it will be specialized on one (or several) types of photography or not, its mission, and more.
Goals and Strategies . Here, you can state which goals you plan to achieve with your enterprise and how you are going to do it. If you want to show how your company will be developing you can include a timeline with milestones that your business can reach during a specific period of time. You can also describe marketing and distributional strategies you would like to apply for the development.
Industry Outlook . Here you can research the industry, what are its main tendencies, where it is headed, and similar aspects.
Competitive Analysis . In this part, you can list your main competitors, and provide details about their main benefits and drawbacks.
Target Market . This section is supposed to contain information about who will be your target customers, how many of them are on the market, and which services you are able to offer them.

Haven't found the template you're looking for? Take a look at the related templates below:

Generic Business Plan ;
One-Page Business Plan ;
Consulting Business Plan .

Download Photography Business Plan Template

Linked topics.

HOW TO WRITE THE ULTIMATE PHOTOGRAPHY BUSINESS PLAN

Table of contents, 1. summarise your services and products, 2. describe your target market, 3. analyse your competitors, 4. conduct a swot analysis, 5. outline your marketing plan, 6. outline your operations plan, 7. work out your finances, 8. set goals and create systems, 9. write an executive summary.

Photography business plan template for services and products section

What is your main photography service?

List any other photography services your offer, how do your photography services complement each other, describe the products you provide to clients.

Photography business plan template - target market section

Sum up your ideal client in one sentence

What are the top 3 desires you can help with, what are the top 3 pain points you can help with, what will connect you and your ideal client, 3. analyse your competitors.

Photography business plan template - competitor analysis section

List 2 or 3 of your closest competitors

Describe their services and products, who are they appealing to, what is their price point and position, what are they doing well, what could they be doing better, write 3-5 adjective to describe their brand, 4. conduct a swot analysis.

Photography business plan - SWOT analysis section

Make a list of your strengths

Acknowledge your weaknesses, where are the opportunities, are there any potential threats, 5. outline your marketing plan.

Photography business plan template - marketing plan section

What makes your business stand out?

Write your elevator pitch, write your big, bold statement (tagline), define your brand personality and tone of voice, what content are you going to create, which social media platform will you use and how, will you do any face-to-face marketing, will you seek publicity for your business, how will you generate and nurture leads, how will you create loyalty and encourage referrals, 6. outline your operations plan.

Photography business plan template - operations plan section

Describe the enquiry and conversion process

Describe the booking and onboarding process, describe the shoot or wedding process, describe the post-shoot/wedding process, describe the product sales process, describe the order fulfilment process, describe the process beyond order fulfilment, 7. work out the finances.

Photography business plan template - finance plan section

Summarise your CODB and salary aims

Where are you positioned in terms of price, which pricing model is right for you, 8. set goals and create systems.

Photography business plan template - goal setting and action plan section

Decide on your financial goal

Map out your systems, what needs to happen for your systems to work, 9. create an executive summary.

Photography business plan template - executive summary section

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Photography Spark

Business Education for Photographers

Sample Photography Business Plan – 5 Critical Elements

Last updated on July 6, 2019 By Angela Pointon

** This post contains affiliate links and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking through my links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Opinions expressed are based on the Author’s own experience.

Pen and penciled business plan next to computer

I look at those famous photographers, too. You know, the ones who have tons of gear and who seem to be growing bigger and bigger every year. And sometimes I catch myself thinking, “gosh darn it, how did they get so lucky?”

And then I realize that it probably was only a sprinkling of luck on top of a solid foundation of planning and a bucket of sweat to represent their hard work.

Even though I forget sometimes, I have actually come to realize that so much in business hinges on good planning. And it’s not to say that plans can’t shift and change. They can. But going in feet first with no plan at all can mean rapid disappointment.

By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail. – Benjamin Franklin

As photographers, most of us just want to be behind the camera. If we had all the money in the world, we’d pay someone to do our marketing, respond to emails, do our post-processing, and do our business planning for us. That stuff is all yucky and boring. Being behind the camera is fun.

The good news about planning, however, is that you really only need to lay out a photography business plan once a year and then visit it monthly to ensure things are staying on track (or to see if things need adjusting).

If you plan to start a photography business and have never done a photography business plan before, it probably sounds kinda scary, right? Well, what most of us think of when we think of the words “business plans” are really long, drawn-out documents that take up a lot of time and hard work. But then, they sit on a shelf to rot.

That’s the kind of business planning that I loathe. It isn’t helpful to anyone, except, perhaps, a bank if you’re seeking funding. A solid business plan, and one that actually works and makes a real impact, however, is a business plan that is simple and fits onto one piece of paper.

I’m going to walk you through each step for creating a sample photography business plan as you work on starting a photography business.

1. Know Your Strengths

We’re all good at a lot of things. However, when you’re evaluating your strengths for your photography business plan, you’re comparing yourself to your competitors in the photography industry. So, let’s talk about each of these things for a minute, starting with your competition.

Your competitors are your real competitors . Meaning, they’re the other photographers that your customers are considering when they’re looking for someone like you. So, if you’re a wedding photographer in a really big town, you might have 3-4 actual competitors out of all of the dozens of those doing wedding photography and serving your area. And even though there are other photography businesses, your competitors are only really the select few that your typical client considers.

Now, picturing those few competitors, when you’re thinking about your strengths, you want to be thinking of the strengths you offer that these competitors don’t. Perhaps it’s that you’ve shot at more locations than they have. Or perhaps it’s that you’re more networked than they are. List whatever strengths allow you to shine, where your competitors are weak.

For our sample photography business plan, we’re going to pretend we’re a portrait photographer in Philadelphia. We’ve evaluated our competition and narrowed it down to three. And after careful consideration, we’ve listed our strengths as being: better customer experience, more referring partners for our business, and more connections with Philadelphia non-profit groups.

Why are Strengths Important?

Because when you realize a list of strengths that your competitors do not have, you may see some opportunities for further growth. The key to market significance and capitalization is to leverage your strengths to their fullest

Too many photographers try to match their competition. That just creates more of the same. Leverage your unique strengths, instead, and leave the competition in your dust.

2. Identify Your Weaknesses

So, while strengths are competitive differentiators, weaknesses are holding you back from even more success. Just as we all have strengths to leverage, we also all have weaknesses.

The important thing to remember when thinking about your weaknesses for your own photography business plan is that the weaknesses you list should be things you’re looking to improve before the end of the calendar year. It’s no use listing weaknesses that you have no interest in improving. Think of your list of weaknesses as an alternative version of your to-do list.

When thinking of our sample photography business plan, our fictitious Philly portrait photographer really wants to improve her skills with lighting, the search engine optimization for her website, and her packaging. These are three things that she believes will enhance her business if she can manage to improve them all before the end of the year. As a result, they’re good things to have on her weaknesses list.

Once we know our weaknesses, they cease to do us any harm. – Georg C. Lichtenberg

3. Target Your Ideal Customer

When working on your own photography business plan, your ideal customer might not be the type of people that have hired you in the past. No, this is the opportunity to be super critical and super detailed about the type of person you want as a customer moving forward. They’re the people that make your job easy, don’t ruffle feathers and who are super appreciative of what you do.

They pay what you want them to pay, and they don’t think twice about it. So, while they might not be who you’re working with now, it’s important to document who they would be going forward. And be as specific as possible.

For our sample photography business plan, we’re going to list the following attributes for this Philadelphia-based photographer’s ideal customer (see if any are on your list, too):

the customer lives in Philadelphia’s city limits
is married with at least 1 kid… usually a dog, too
An active lifestyle and seems to really like marathons
both spouses work full-time jobs
their extended families tend to live far away
they commute to work each day via public transportation
they frequently do day trips and go out to dinner on the weekends

While much of the above list seems to have nothing to do with photography, it reveals some interesting marketing opportunities. For example, in this photographer’s case, they’ve identified that most of their customers participate in marathons. So what if they found an opportunity to sponsor a marathon as a marketing opportunity? Perhaps they could take shots of runners crossing the finish line as promotional pieces for their business. Or, since their customers’ families typically live far away, perhaps they can leverage some product sales by marketing special holiday keepsake books that help to connect families through photography that live miles away?

Some really fun brainstorming can come from listing out the commonalities amongst your ideal customers.

4. Understand Your Financials

All good business owners have a keen awareness of their current financial state. They know the revenue they need to bring in each month to make their number, along with their current standings against the goal. While financials can be a scary thing for many creative types, what I’ve found is that awareness actually moderates the fear.

A basic understanding of your photography business financials – including start-up costs and other expenses – allows you to plan better and manage the business better, thus alleviating this general sense of ignorance and uncertainty.

While crunching numbers and determining financial goals can seem like nerd-work, it can actually have a really positive effect on your own personal outlook on your business.

Here’s how I recommend you start:

Determine Your Total Sales Per Month

Grab a calculator and a pen and paper. If you’re an ex-corporate type like me, feel free to open up Excel and do this work there, instead.

You’re going to determine how much in total sales you want to earn for every month that remains in 2017. If you’re a wedding photographer or any other photographer that is booked further out, feel free to start your planning for 2018, instead.

Your total sales generally consist of:

Session fees/month
Average product order amounts per session
Any other miscellaneous fees you charge your clients

If you’ve never done this kind of planning before, you’re probably thinking, “but I have no idea how much I’m going to book from now through the end of the year.” Or, “but everyone orders different amounts of stuff after each session.”

Don’t worry. The lovely part of planning is that we can use rough numbers for now.

To figure out your session fee revenue, determine how many sessions you think you will reasonably schedule between now and the end of the year. Then, figure out how many sessions, on average, you’ll book each month and multiply that number by your average session fee.

To figure out your print and album fees, it might help to look back at the earlier months of 2017, or last part of 2016, and figure out an average print/album order amount and go with that.

Finally, add your monthly session fees to your product order fees and other miscellaneous fees to get an estimated total sales number per month. Remember, a rough starting point is fine. There is an opportunity to refine your estimates later.

Determine Your Cost Of Sales Per Month

For every shoot you book, you have costs. There might be editing costs (if you outsource your editing) or second shooter costs or, at the very minimum, your own costs to the print lab or album company.

When thinking of your cost of sales (otherwise known as the cost of goods sold), consider anything that is variable and only incurred if a client books you. Your business has other fixed expenses (like your website hosting fees or marketing fees), but those expenses fall into another area.

Again, if you don’t know how to figure this out, look back at the earlier months of 2017 and associate your averages from this time period to what you’ll incur going forward. Be sure your cost of sales is a monthly number, as well.

Calculate Your Gross Profit

This is a fairly easy number to calculate. Your gross profit is determined by taking your total sales number and subtracting your cost of sales. You should be left with a positive number, which equals your average gross profit per month.

If the number you’re left with is a negative number, you need to take a closer look at your prices. A photographer should never have a cost of sale higher than the total sale.

Identify Your General Expenses

Your general expenses are the fixed costs associated with running your photography business. They consist of things like:

website hosting fees
accounting and legal fees – manage them using Freshbooks (affiliate)
equipment and computer expenses
studio rent, etc.

In most cases, general expenses don’t vary too much from month-to-month, aside from annual fees or quarterly fees you might pay to keep your business running. For example, I pay my website hosting fee and my email newsletter software fee in an annual payment to take advantage of their annual payment discounts. Therefore, my expenses are abnormally high in the specific month when these two payments are incurred.

Figure out your own personal business expenses per month. Then, add your own compensation to that number. Now, you have a total general expenses number, including the owner’s compensation. If you’re currently running a part-time photography business while still working a “day job,” your owner’s compensation may be $0, and that’s okay.

Obviously, when you’re running a photography business full time and are wanting it to be your source of income, you need to provide yourself with monthly owner’s compensation.

Calculate Your Net Profit

When figuring out your photography business’s financials, the two numbers you’ll find the most enjoyable are the owner’s compensation and net profit.

Net profit is simple to calculate. It is your gross profit minus your general expenses. If you’ve been in business for years, you’re likely to have a positive net profit number. If it’s your first year being a photography business owner, your net profit number might be in the negative, and that’s perfectly okay if you’re planning for the loss.

Many businesses take a year, sometimes more, to get out of a negative net profit (known as operating in the red) and see positive net profits. Smart businesses owners know this ahead of time and save up equity to cover the losses that will be incurred for the first year or so until profits become positive.

If you’re at the point where you’re making money, and you’re left with a positive net profit number, you have a couple of decisions to make. You can either boost your owner’s compensation and take home more income from the business, or you can decide to invest more money into the business to increase its longevity and future success.

There are other potential uses for positive net profit, such as charitable donations or keeping more cash in the business for use later, but investments and bonuses for the owners are typical uses. Investments that photographers typically make are in staff, assistants, new equipment, or an additional marketing strategy.

5. Set Your Goals

The last piece of a solid photography business plan is articulating some goals for the business. When you’re thinking about your goals for the remainder of 2017, review the sections of your business plan that are listed above. They’re loaded with ideas for really strong, growth-oriented goals.

When setting your goals, remember the acronym SMART. What that means is the goals you set should be:

A well-defined goal, so you know your target
A way to measure progress toward your goal
The goal is within reach (although it may be a stretch)
You have the means to achieve the goal (time, resources, knowledge)
A realistic time limit to achieve the goal is essential. Too short and you may get discouraged, too long, and you may lack focus

In the case of the Philadelphia-based photographer we used for our sample photography business plan, she should consider:

making each of her weaknesses a goal to improve upon before the end of the year
leveraging some of her strengths through her marketing plan, such as attending more non-profit group events for marketing and networking, for example
taking a closer look at her financials for opportunities to raise prices and earn more per shoot, lower her expenses and/or invest in some things that will help her photography business grow (this is recommended for all photographers)

To help ensure your success, set goals that are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Time-bound.

Defining Your Business Plan

Having a plan for the plan is also recommended to help you reach your goals. Start with a simple goal with an x amount of days to complete it. For example, you will have your business plan completed in 60 days.

Photography Services

Have you made a list of the photography services you will be offering? Are you a portrait photographer or do you dabble more in commercial photography? Maybe you do stock photography or even pet photography. All of these are different services, and all require their own set of must-haves and must-determines, including calculating what the start-up costs for your new venture may be.

A solid photography business plan will simplify this and outline the main areas you need to focus on to grow a successful photography business.

You can then enlist any help you feel you will need and create a schedule of times that you have available to work on the business plan. In addition to the elements above that should be included in your photography business plan, you should also be able to define your products and photography services, tune up your website, get social, and follow up with any old clients you may have.

Marketing Strategies

As business owners, you need to come up with viable ways to reach your target audience and get the attention of prospective clients for your business. To do this, you need to determine which channels you use the most and what your marketing budget will be. Are you going to put all or just some of your efforts into different strategies, including social media, SEO, and email?

Define Target Market

When you define your target market, you need to do everything you can to understand your ideal clients in detail. It is only then that you can successfully market to the right audience to grow your business.

Final Thoughts

If you can’t sit down and come up with your business plan right away, set time aside each day to work on it, so it doesn’t become overwhelming. If you choose to skip this very critical step for your photography business, you risk financial ruin and the downfall of what could have otherwise been a very successful photography business with clearly defined goals and objectives.

Planning Made Easy

About Angela Pointon

Angela Pointon is the founder of Angela Pointon Photography and Steel Toe Images , which offers advice and inspiring motivation for photography business owners. Angela's weekly email newsletter is packed with advice for photographers, which can be subscribed to for free here . In addition, she has authored multiple books for photographers, is a monthly columnist for Professional Photographer Magazine, blogs at Steel Toe Images and posts to Facebook , G+ , Pinterest and Twitter .

Step-by-step guide on how to write a strong photography business plan

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This article was updated on December 2, 2022

Starting a successful photography business involves more than having a camera and a keen eye for beauty. As a business owner, you must also have a solid business plan.

Without one, your professional photography business may have no legs (or tripods) to stand on.

Creating a photography business plan is simple. This complete guide will cover all you need to know about writing a comprehensive business plan—from executive summaries to competitive analyses.

What to include in a photography business plan:

Write an executive summary
Describe your photography business
Outline your products and services
Analyze your finances and list out business expenses
Understand your competition and the photography industry
Devise a sales and marketing strategy
Set operations logistics and management structure
Perform customer and market analysis
Establish a timeline and exit strategy
Round out your business plan with Nextdoor

1. Write an executive summary

Perhaps you’ve been dreaming of running your own photography business since the day you picked up your first disposable camera, or maybe you just started outlining your vision in recent months. Whatever the case may be, you’ll need to match those dreams with quantifiable business goals and a clear course of action.

Defining your mission is one of the most important aspects of a strong business plan and almost always comprises the first section. In the executive summary, you will explain your business details such as your business name, and a summary of your business plan in a few sentences.

When defining your business as a professional photographer, it’s crucial to cover two key components: the executive summary and the business description.

2. Describe your photography business

Following the executive summary, the business description section is the place where you'll describe the ins and outs of your business.

Effective photography business descriptions usually contain the following information:

A history of your business
An overview of your business structure

Let's break down these two essential components further.

As a professional photographer, your business's history is more than just a summary of facts. It's your unique story . Your passion for what you do should come through in every line.

Include life and color into your business plan by detailing the following:

Your personal relationship with photography
Your professional work experience
The origins of your business and the values you intend to uphold

Describing your history with photography not only gives potential stakeholders an inside look at your motivations but also gives you an outline for an "About" section on your future website.

REAL BUSINESS EXAMPLE: Johnson City, Tennessee's Hunter Kittrell Photography is a business that knows the power of storytelling. Their website's "About" section mentions how the business's founder, Hunter Kittrell, got his start in photography after college and how his love of adventure inspires his work. Look to this small business as a model for your own and add in all of your business's unique details to compel potential clients to work with you.

Business structure

Few business descriptions are complete without an outline of the business structure. To define your business structure, consider the following:

Type - Is your business a sole proprietorship or an LLC? A partnership or corporation? If you're just starting out, there's a good chance your photography business will be a sole proprietorship. However, if you're thinking of future growth (and outside funding), it may be wise to consider an LLC. Whichever business type you choose, providing this information in your business plan will help you think through the management and other logistical structures.
Management and business operations - Most U.S. photography businesses have less than two employees . However, if you're planning on employing more people and/or having a detailed managerial structure, it may be wise to include this in your business description. Furthermore, it may be helpful to include details about business hours and studio location(s).

While businesses, especially startups, can experience a number of operational changes during the first couple of years, outlining your initial business structure is a smart way to set up your photography business for continued success.

3. Outline your products and services

The best business plans clearly specify the business's products and photography services. As you draft your plan include the following details:

Photography type - Will your business specialize in commercial photography, marketing photography, landscape photography, portrait photography, pet photography, or wedding photography? Will you mainly shoot individual portraits or family portraits? Identifying your niche in the photography industry in your business plan will allow you to structure other elements of your business model around that particular focus.
Pricing model - When it comes to the financial aspects of your business, few details are more important than your business's pricing model. Will you charge by the hour or by the photoshoot (regardless of time)? Is photo editing included in the package or is there an additional cos t ? Look at other photographers for example pricing; likely event photography pricing is structured differently than landscape photography. You would also need to consider your business expenses and budget when setting your rates. Being as specific as possible about your pricing model will help you estimate your income and also p rovide a clear outline of your rates for potential clients.

REAL BUSINESS EXAMPLE: Based in Manchester, New Hampshire, Image of Home Real Estate Photography is a small business with a big-time, three-tier pricing model. Their website states that they charge by the square foot and offer the additional benefit of same-day image delivery. This pricing model was, more than likely, hashed out in the business plan. Settle on the pricing specifics for your business and be sure to share them on your online platforms so that they are clearly visible to the public.

4. Analyze your finances

When it comes to financial planning, the more you can foresee, the better. This will keep you from overextending your budget in terms of expenses or overestimating your revenue in your first year.

To adequately plan for finances, detail the following in your business plan:

Expenses – Expenses include everything from ordering business cards to the cost of equipment to your studio space. Make a list of everything you’ll need to pay for to get your business up and running. Doing so will also help you budget for the unknown, such as buying an extra lens in case one breaks or hiring an assistant to lend a hand on a particular photo shoot.
Projected revenue – To stay afloat in the long run, you’ll need to bring in more revenue than you’re spending. As a result, it’s wise to calculate your projected revenue alongside your expenses in your business plan—especially in the first year. These calculations will allow you to budget properly and change your strategy should your financial situation change.
Set up bank accounts and EIN - Most professional photographers tend to work independently or work by case. Therefore, it is better to separate your work bank accounts and credit cards from your personal accounts to manage your finances. Further, even if this is a small business, you still need to apply for an EIN (employee identification number) from the IRS for legal purposes.

In addition, figuring out where you stand financially will enable you to find room in your budget for marketing strategies and competitive analysis metrics.

5. Understand your competition

An often overlooked, yet highly important, section of most business plans is the competitive analysis section.

Researching your competition is beneficial for many reasons. Not only will you better understand your competition’s pricing models and services, but you’ll also learn how you can set yourself apart from competitors. Given the fact that there are more than 40,000 professional photographers in the U.S. , knowing how to stand out in the industry will make sure your one-of-a-kind business doesn’t get lost in the shuffle.

When writing your competitive analysis section, it’s helpful to answer the following questions:

How many photographers are located in my area?
Am I fulfilling a specific niche (i.e. landscape, portrait, etc.)?
What are my competitor’s pricing models?
What are their marketing strategies?
What are my competitors doing well? What could they improve upon?
Who are my potential client pods and are they overlapping other existing photography businesses?
How will I provide a necessary and unique photography service?

Of course, there are many more questions you could ask when thinking about your competition, but these should help you get started.

6. Devise a sales and marketing strategy

Good business plans almost always focus on business growth. But to grow your business and attract new clientele, you need to market yourself.

Detailing your marketing strategy is, therefore, a crucial component of a strong business plan. If you’re wondering how to get photography clients, you’ll want to employ a number of different marketing tactics.

When writing the marketing section, it’s helpful to think of the following strategies:

Social media marketing – Given that social media is a major conduit of ideas and information, it’s important to develop a social media strategy for your photography business. As a photographer, your portfolio and past works are the best marketing materials. Image-sharing platforms make the most sense, but you’ll want to consider the potential of other platforms, too. For example, if you want to attract local clientele , the best way to connect with your neighborhood is on Nextdoor. This community-minded platform allows you to set up custom business ads or create a Business Page where you can showcase important aspects of your business—from operating hours to services.
Email marketing – In your business plan, detail how you intend to use email to market yourself. Will you send around a quarterly email discussing new trends in the photography world? Will you deliver special holiday emails urging your target audience to take advantage of discounted holiday shoots? Generating an email list is an effective way to keep clients in the loop about what’s happening with your business.
SEO marketing – SEO, or search engine optimization, is a critical strategy that will help drive potential customers to your website. To improve the quality of your site, you’ll want to decide which type of keywords are important to your business and build content around them to make your website more discoverable by Google and other search engines. You can do this by adding informational content to different pages on your website, as well as creating a photography blog with helpful tips and information for users. For example, if you are a portrait photographer, you can add keywords such as family pictures or graduation portfolio photos.

7. Set operation logistics and management structure

This section gives you the opportunity to first think through the details of your business workflow then define how you will manage the logistics of your day to day operations. A major part of your photography business will likely be post processing and photo editing before final delivery. Spend time defining how long editing will take after a shoot. How many days afte r a shoot will you promise delivery to your customers? What methods of payment are you planning to accept? Other topics to address in this section may include:

Primary and backup suppliers
Equipment inventory
Transportation expenses
Management and staff structure if applicable

8. Perform customer and market analysis

C ustomer and market analysis is a critical part of your photography business plan; it helps define the size of the market needing your service as well as your ideal client. Here you will justify your target market and specify niche segments within that market. To do this answer the following:

What is your dream client - age range, gender, location, demographics, and style of photo shoot. Will you specialize in high end weddings, aerial photography, sports photography, or something else?
What are the needs of these customers
how your services address these needs.
What is the growth potential of your market segment? Including considerations such as the number of potential customers, their annual income, frequency of photography style needs

9. Establish a timeline and exit strategy

This later section describes your timeline for the goals and objectives outlined earlier in the business plan. Describe how soon you plan to become profitable, within what timeframe do you plan to meet your revenue objectives, or even when you might plan to hire employees to help grow your business. While it may seem far off, planning how you may want to exit your business years down the road may open up questions and considerations that can have a big impact near term. For some, selling their business to a larger investor is the end goal, for others, keeping photography as a small side gig to pass to their children is the exit strategy - no matter your desired path, document it here.

10. Round out your business plan with Nextdoor

Developing a strong photography business plan is often the first step in running a successful business. Now that you’re equipped with all the tools to execute it like a pro, you’ll be well-prepared for a promising future ahead.

But no plan is truly complete without Nextdoor — the neighborhood hub that connects you with your local community so that your photography business can flourish.

Claim a Nextdoor Business Page today to simplify the process of building your brand. That way, you can get back to what truly matters—working your magic behind the camera.

How to Start a Photography Business in 2024

Want to learn how to start a photography business in 2024? This in-depth guide will teach you all you need to know to become a professional photographer!

Learn | Photography Guides | By Mark Condon

Want to learn how to start a photography business in 2024? This in-depth guide will teach you all you need to know!

I’ve run a wedding photography business since 2014 and learnt a lot as a professional photographer and business owner.

Starting a photography business allows you to make money using a skill you already enjoy, but it’s important to have a solid plan and realistic goals.

There’s no doubt that photography is a great career – you can earn a good living, make your own hours and travel to exotic places.

Best of all, you’ll make people happy. Whether you’re capturing priceless moments for families or nailing the client’s brief, photos are a precious commodity.

Is photography a good career? Definitely! It was one of the best decisions I ever made.

Now it’s your turn to learn how to start a photography business.

Table of Contents

How do I Start a Small Photography Business?

Reduce risks with a home-based photography business.

Not many professional photographers go from zero to renting a studio – most start off with a home-based photography business, where costs can be kept to a minimum.

As a small business owner, keeping costs low should be a priority, and running your photography business from home is highly recommended.

At this stage when you don’t even have a business plan, all you need is a place in your home from which to work – some private ‘office space’. If you’re using a laptop, you don’t even need a desk!

If you need to meet clients to book work (e.g. for wedding photography), you can do as I did and meet them in a local cafe – clients don’t expect to come to your home, even if you list your home address as your business address.

Decide what types of photography services you’ll offer

Credit: Szabo Viktor

What type of photography is most profitable? You can build a successful photography business by shooting commercial/advertising, event (weddings, corporate, etc), family (maternity, etc), freelance or stock photography.

However, it’s much harder to start earning money as a commercial photographer than, say, as an event photographer.

Also, while stock photography is a good passive source of income , freelance photography allows you to cast a wider net.

When starting your own photography business, it’s important to balance your passion for a specific genre with realistic goals.

Consider whether there’s a market for a particular type of photography in your area, for example.

I chose to focus on wedding photography since there’s a big market for wedding photographers where I live. I also thought shooting weddings would be fun and exciting, and I could also offer mini sessions , pre-wedding shoots and other related services.

You may want to offer several photography services under one unique photography business name , but I recommend focusing on just one genre to become a ‘specialist’.

You need to be the go-to photographer for a certain genre of photography – not the person who shoots everything since this can appear a little amateurish.

That said, there’s always the option to become a professional freelance photographer to offer a selection of different services.

Develop a basic photography business plan

Credit: Galymzhan Abdugalimov

Perhaps one of the most challenging aspects of creating a photography business is to know how to actually start.

A photography business plan is the first logical step to setting up a strong base camp that will allow you to build up your business without feeling overwhelmed.

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What goes into your plan may vary, but at a minimum, you may want to include:

Executive summary: You can start your photography business plan with an executive summary that defines what your general objectives are as well as your key factors of success.
Company overview: Do an outline of the organizational structure of your business according to the terms of the area you are in. Will you be the sole proprietor? Will it be a limited liability company? What will be the business structure? Do you need business licenses? Will you have a business partner? What type of business will you run?
Products & services overview: It’s important to create a detailed description of the products, services and prices you’ll be offering. This will help you to better navigate the many different client requests that might show up.
Audience analysis: Understand who your target audience is and what channels will be most effective to reach them.
Competitive analysis (market research): Have a look at the competition operating in your market locally, identify their strengths and in what ways you can differentiate yourself from them.
Operations plan: Think about operations – what are the day-to-day logistics of running your photography business?
Financial analysis: Make an effort to be financially savvy – this is very important! Create a financial plan to be in full control of all the nuances of your business cash flow. It’s likewise helpful to establish early on what your equipment requirements are and how much profit you expect to make.
Timeline: Establish a timeline with clear milestones so you can track your progress and set goals that are increasingly more realistic and adapted to your situation. Think of it as a photography business roadmap to get you to where you want to be.

I should mention that it’s not worth getting too hung up on having every aspect of your photography business planned out in detail.

There are bits you simply won’t know yet and that’s OK! Do your best with it and don’t let writing a business plan become a block that prevents you from moving forward.

Once you have a basic business plan on paper, it’s time to get into the fun part – bringing it to life!

Find the Right Photography Business Structure

One boring-but-important topic when researching how to start a photography business is the subject of business structure.

In the USA, there are 6 main business types of legal structure to consider for your business: sole proprietorship, general partnership, limited partnership, Limited Liability Company (LLC), S Corp. and C Corp.

Sole proprietorships or sole traders are most common for small home-based businesses. They’re the easiest to manage and easiest to handle in terms of taxes since it’s usually just you involved in the running of everything.

You may also consider going into a photography business with a partner, which is actually similar to a sole proprietorship in terms of liability and taxes.

Each person is responsible for their own side of the business and all profits are split based on the percentages you decide. Of course, you also need to consider that all expenses and liabilities are also split between both partners.

If you want to protect your personal assets, many photography businesses opt for an LLC structure (Limited Liability Company). An LLC or S Corp provides one level of tax and also a layer of protection from personal liability.

At this point, it’s worth mentioning that deciding on a business structure should usually involve some legal advice, or at least, a lot of research on your part to decide what’s most relevant for you.

A quick note on business licenses – in most jurisdictions in the United States, no professional license is needed to run or operate a photography business. However, not all States are the same.

To know for sure whether your locality requires you to get a business license for photography, it’s best to call your local licensing board or city hall.

In addition to a business license, you should also start researching whether you need to use photography contracts or model releases for your line of work.

Putting in the groundwork now will set you up for success without any legal headaches.

Choose a photography business name & branding

Credit: Brad Neathery

Once you’ve decided what your speciality will be and the structure of your business, it’s time to think about your photography business name and branding.

This is what will differentiate you from the competition. It’s also important because of first impressions: when people see your branding, it can instantly give them an idea of what you do and what your style is.

With that in mind, consider the look and feel of your logo and typeface. Is it something quirky and creative, clean and modern, vintage classic…?

As for names, you might choose to name your photography business after yourself (e.g. “Bob Smith Photography”) or you could get creative and have it reflect what you do (e.g. “Maternal Memoirs” for maternity photography, or “Bedroom Eyes” for boudoir – I’m just making these up on the spot here but you get the idea!).

Don’t neglect to choose a unique or catchy slogan or tagline for your photography business .

The most important thing with branding is to be consistent. That bears repeating, so I’ll say it again: Consistency is key!

You want your brand message to be reflected across your website, business cards, social media accounts , and all materials you deliver to clients including final photo packages, invoices, etc.

What is branding for photographers?

Register a domain and create a photography website

It goes without saying that pretty much all successful photographers in 2024 have an online presence. That’s why the next step in starting a photography business is to create a photography website .

Your website should showcase your best work and give people an idea of who you are and how you work.

While there are plenty of free web hosting solutions out there, it’s worth investing a small amount to register your own domain name.

This not only looks more professional, but it’ll also help you rank in Google searches (just ensure your domain name reflects your business name).

From there, you’ll need to build your photography business website and connect your domain name to it.

Now, if your web design skills are non-existent, don’t worry: there are plenty of solutions out there that can make life ridiculously easy.

One of the best options is to use a content management system (CMS) like Wordpress – you can download elegant-looking, customisable themes (for example, Flothemes make some great ones) so the design and layout aspects are all there for you.

With a few clicks of the mouse, you can adapt a pre-made template to include your own branding and start getting your website out to potential clients.

Invest in professional photography equipment & software

At this point, you’re probably wondering: What kind of camera do most professional photographers use?

While there’s no one correct answer as to what is a ‘professional camera’, by and large, most pros use full-frame DSLR or mirrorless cameras.

However, some do absolutely fine by using APS-C sensor cameras, particularly if high ISO low-light performance isn’t required. (Full-frame sensor cameras are better at this, among other things.)

DSLRs are still an industry standard, but are somewhat of a dying breed – mirrorless cameras offer better features and more recent technology, although the number of native lenses still dwindles in comparison to those on offer for DSLRs.

You can see more of the differences between mirrorless and DSLRs here , but suffice to say, you won’t go wrong with either.

As for the question, what camera should I buy to start a photography business? Initially, it’s whatever you can afford, but once you start making a better income, you should always upgrade your equipment in line with what you need to complete your job efficiently.

For example, wedding photographers need cameras with excellent autofocus and high ISO capabilities, whereas a portrait photographer may not need either of these things.

There’s always the option of renting equipment when you first start out – get yourself a good all-round camera, then if any job comes around that’s out of its comfort range, hire something to suit.

The same goes for camera lenses, of which there are a plethora of options . Again, depending on the type of photography services you’ll offer, you can choose between a wide range of telephoto and primes at various price points.

Most pros can get by with an affordable and fast 50mm lens (nifty-fifty), so you can start your lens collection from there. Remember that buying used camera lenses is also a great option.

As for software, this is another area you’ll need to invest in in order to grow your own photography business.

Many photography business owners start out bare-bones with a mixture of Google Sheets for keeping track of expenses and clients’ information and Google Calendar. You’ll soon outgrow these, through.

When you start making money, you’ll also need some kind of accounting software to keep track of all the figures.

It’s wise to pay for premium photographer software early on as it can really help save you time and headaches in the long run.

At a bare minimum, you’ll need photo editing software (we recommend Adobe Lightroom ), client/studio management software , and an online gallery to deliver your photos to your clients.

You can also consider an all-in-one business management tool such as Bonsai to help you manage your photography projects more efficiently. They offer features like invoicing, proposals, contracts, time & task tracking, client CRM and more.

All features are integrated to work seamlessly together and you can automate the entire customer relationship journey – from the proposal, and e-signing contracts to invoicing and tax season. On top of that, Bonsai offers hundreds of free templates for proposals, contracts, invoices, and more.

If you’re not shooting high volumes, you can get by with a photo editing software that doesn’t lock you into a subscription, as Adobe Lightroom does – fortunately, there are several great alternatives .

If you’re wondering how to start a photography business with no money, it may well be tough due to the requirements to invest in all the things mentioned above.

If you have good friends or family, perhaps they can lend you the gear until you’ve done enough jobs to earn the money to buy or rent your own.

It’s also possible to find free software that helps to manage your own business, albeit with some limitations.

Take out photography business insurance

We can’t talk about how to start a photography business without covering some more of the boring-but-important stuff, like… insurance!

Yep, it’s not the most fun thing to have to research and organise, but trust me – if something goes wrong, you’ll be glad you took out insurance.

There are various types of insurance your photography business might need, depending on what kind of work you do.

First and most obvious is your precious equipment. Some insurers offer specific camera insurance or photography plans designed to cover gear and studio fittings.

Note that while your regular home contents insurance may cover loss or damage to your gear, it will only be applicable if the damage occurs at home and not while you’re shooting on location. That’s why it’s worth looking into some specific cover.

On top of that, consider taking out some public liability insurance.

Despite our best efforts, sometimes things go wrong while we’re out shooting. Let’s say you’re photographing a wedding and a guest trips over your tripod, breaking their leg and taking out the entire wedding cake in the process – liability insurance will cover the damages.

If you plan on hiring any extra staff, you’ll also want to look at taking out employers’ liability insurance. This is to cover you if an employee gets sick or injured on the job.

Lastly, some photographers choose to take out professional indemnity insurance as well.

Imagine a client accuses you of some negligence and claims they lost some income due to your actions.

(For example, if you photographed a corporate event but lost your memory cards and couldn’t deliver the images. Indemnity insurance would cover any legal and other costs.)

Insurance needs vary depending on where you are in the world and what your business model is, so take this as a rough guide and do speak to your insurer about what plans are best suited to your needs.

Learn how to market your photography business

On to the next step of learning how to start a photography business: I bet you’re keen to start raking in the customers (and the cash!).

If you’re asking, “How do I get clients for my photography fast?” , the answer is marketing.

Unlike advertising, marketing can be done for free (or very cheaply), but it takes a little work.

One marketing strategy you can use is to network with other photographers. But wait, you say, aren’t they the competition? Not necessarily!

Another photographer might get a request for a job that doesn’t fit their style or speciality, but does fit yours – and they can refer the client on to you. These referrals are a great way to generate business, so make sure you nurture your relationships with other photographers.

Meeting other photographers is also a great way to learn. You can find out how they generate new business and meet prospective clients, and learn about which marketing strategies work best for them.

You can easily network with other photographers online through photography groups, or in person at your local photography club .

Marketing via social media is obviously another big one. It’s worth using platforms like Instagram to showcase your photography work and interact with your target audience.

To succeed on Instagram in 2024, you need to be creating entertaining Instagram Stories and posting fresh content regularly, as well as interacting with your followers and other accounts.

Online marketing for photographers is a huge topic, but at a bare minimum, make sure you learn the basics of SEO , how to write interesting blog content and how to attract new business via Facebook ads.

(If you want to become a wedding photographer, check out More Brides where I reveal all the marketing secrets that helped me quickly grow my business.)

Once you do get a few clients, make it as easy as possible for them to recommend you. Word of mouth referrals are one of the best ways to net in new clients, and that’s true of any type of business!

If your clients are happy with your work, ask them to leave you positive reviews online, tag you on social media, and recommend you to their friends.

Also, create an email mailing list where you can keep existing and potential clients up to date with your work and aware of any special offers you might be running. Remember to ask for permission and give people an option to opt-out or unsubscribe.

Let’s not forget that nondigital marketing methods also exist. Don’t underestimate the power of business cards, flyers and other physical marketing materials for distributing around your neighbourhood or pinning to the local notice board.

For example, if you’re a food photographer you might drop round to local restaurants and hand them a brochure or card.

Or if you want to get a foot in the door as a real estate photographer, you might do a letterbox drop to all your local estate agents.

Whether online or offline, find out where your target market hangs out and go there to introduce yourself.

Invest in photography business education

When you’re just learning how to start a photography business, it’s important to grasp the basics. Then, as your business grows, your knowledge of how to run it has to expand as well.

That’s where it can be worth investing in your photography business education. By investing, I’m talking about time as well as money.

In fact, sometimes time is all you need to invest thanks to the copious amounts of free resources online.

Some areas you might choose to study, whether via a free or paid course or workshop:

Understanding the full commercial photography workflow, from client briefs through to delivering the final product.
Pricing structures and how to charge for your services.
Business administration includes registering your business, filing taxes, etc.
Best practices for dealing with clients.
How to market and grow your business.

Your best bet is to determine where your knowledge gaps are, then start looking for ways to fill them.

And, of course, you should continue your photography education as well.

The best professional photographers are those who are always open to learning new things and developing their skills in every aspect of the art, whether it’s compositional techniques, lighting, post-processing and retouching, or something else.

Fortunately, a lot of free photography courses are available right here on Shotkit!

Start thinking about passive income for photographers

Passive income is basically regular earnings that take little-to-no regular effort to maintain. In other words, you set up the income source and money kinda just rolls in while you sleep. Pretty sweet, huh?

So, how do photographers make passive income?

The most obvious is through stock photography. With stock photography sites , you can upload images and get a commission every time someone downloads one (normally, they’re used for commercial or editorial purposes).

The reality of the stock photography world is that thanks to digital photography, it’s highly saturated. So be aware that it takes some dedication and a high volume of photos to make a decent passive income.

That’s not to say it can’t be worth it – just that you should approach it realistically.

There are other potential passive income streams. You can sell digital products such as Lightroom presets or online courses and ebooks.

Or, you could use a print-on-demand service to offer products printed with your photographs .

If you write a photography blog, perhaps you want to start writing reviews of camera gear and link to sites like Amazon and B&HPhoto to earn a commission as an affiliate.

There are also platforms like Patreon that allow you to charge for content that you provide to your followers.

Think outside the box and see what passive income ideas you can come up with – it’s an excellent way to grow your revenue and ensure you have some income even in times of seasonal fluctuations.

Money and Photography Business FAQs

When researching how to start a photography business, you’ll likely have a ton of questions regarding money – how much it costs to start and run the photography business and how much you can expect to earn as a professional photographer .

We’ve answered all the most common queries below – feel free to leave a comment if you want to ask something specific.

How much money does it take to start a photography business?

It depends on what you’re shooting and how much equipment you need, but a good starting point is around US$10,000. That’s to cover basic camera gear, software, insurance and business registration fees.

How can I start a photography business with no money?

If you already have some basic camera gear and an internet connection, then you can start a photography business by simply getting out and shooting! Find clients using free marketing strategies and build up from there, reinvesting your earnings until you can buy adequate insurance, better gear, etc.

How much money do professional photographers make?

According to ZipRecruiter.com, the average photographer salary in the US is $43,114. However, photographer salaries vary greatly depending on country/location, experience level, education level and genre.

How much money does a photographer make per hour, a week, a month?

Careerexplorer.com states that the average wage for a photographer in the US is around $18.22 per hour; however, that figure ranges from as low as $10.36 per hour for someone starting out to $32.04 or more for an experienced shooter. ZipRecruiter pegs the monthly average salary at $3,592. Again, location is another big factor in how much you can expect to earn.

How much should I charge as a beginner photographer?

For a beginner, you’re probably looking at an hourly rate of US$25-$50 (or equivalent in your currency), or between $10 and $25 per image. Think about the time and expenses of the work for you and factor that into what you charge.

Final Words

I hope you found this guide to how to start a photography business useful. Moreover, I hope it genuinely inspired you to get out there and do it!

As I’ve found, starting your own photography business and being your own boss is incredibly rewarding. Yes, there are some challenges ahead, but I assure you, there’s nothing that you can’t overcome with a little perseverance!

So what do you think? Are you ready to take the leap?

If you have any other questions about how to start a photography business, please leave them below and I’ll do my best to answer.

Also, if you have your own tips or want to share your experiences with venturing into the business world, do add them as well – simply leave a comment below.

Check out these 8 essential tools to help you succeed as a professional photographer.

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Mark Condon is a British wedding photographer and editor of Shotkit. When he’s not taking photos or reviewing the latest camera gear and software, Mark can be found cycling around the northern rivers.

As Jon Morgan, CEO of Venturesmarter.com, I couldn’t help but dive into this article on starting a photography business. With my extensive experience in helping startups and small businesses scale, I love exploring different entrepreneurial pursuits. Who knows, maybe I’ll start a photography business myself and capture all my consulting successes! This article provides a fantastic roadmap for budding photographers ready to take on the world, one click at a time. Keep up the great work, Shotkit!

I still don’t know where to go now. I have shot a few wedding films and have some engagement photos scheduled. Website is still a work in progress (cringe rn). Still, the business is actually there and working but i’m not a business as far as the government is concerned, you know? If I buy a new piece of gear, i can’t write that off as of now and get a tax break on the money I make. I’d like to get a body with 10 bit video and dual card slots for redundancy but would love to capture some of that as a business expense to soften the blow. Plus being licensed probably looks less armature to clients. I need to know where to go to actually like, fill out a form so that when tax season comes I can fill out a 1099. Any direction would be appreciated :)

Love these tips Mark. One thing that really accelerated my career was having a Mentor too! I use https://www.lisnic.com to connect with mine now, mentoring is honestly the way to go.

Thanks Taylor – are you associated with Lisnic? Looks interesting…

Thanks for this great article. Coincidentally my brother just wanted to start a photography business.

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Writing a Photography Business Plan: Complete Guide

By Tata Rossi 16 days ago, Professional photography

To successfully start and develop your business, you should make up a photography business plan that will help you get stable increasing revenue.

A business plan for photography is like a map for a traveler – it specifies your goals and explains how to achieve them. It is a great way to assess your achievements and monitor your progress. Moreover, if you want to get engaged in some new projects, you should also include them in your plan and it will help implement all the ideas faster.

Finally, a photography business plan is something you can’t do without in case you want to attract new partners or investors.

Photography Business Plan: Key Elements

If you want to know how to start photography business with no money , you should get acquainted with the key elements of a photographer business plan.

1. Executive Summary

An executive summary is an introduction to your photography business plan. It is a clear preview that defines your objectives as a photographer and your mission statement. Decide what photography genre you want to engage in. The most profitable genres are the following ones:

Portrait photography
Wedding photography
Boudoir photography
Newborn photography
Studio photography
Underwater photography
Product photography
Food photography
Real estate photography

Later, when you already have your regular clients and orders, you may dive deeper into different specialties. But, to begin with, you should present yourself as a specialist in one particular genre (newborn, wedding or portrait photography) and prove that you are not like anyone else.

In this section, describe the key components for the success of your business. It may be the experience you provide during the shooting or how you promote your business. If you write all this down, it will help you implement your ideas faster.

2. Company Description

When you describe your company in the photography business plan, you should highlight the most important ideas about your business.

First of all, you should decide on the business entity you want to have. Research your business formation options and assess your current business state. If necessary, consult a lawyer or financial advisor and they will help determine what structure is the most suitable for you ‒ a limited liability company (LLC), general partnership, sole proprietorship, or another organization.

The next point is to describe where you are going to do business. For example, if you work much in a studio, it’s recommended to lease or buy some premises. However, if you shoot events, a studio is not necessary.

Also I recommend making photography business cards . It may be the only thing standing between your photography portfolio and your potential customers.

3. Assess the Competition

Every shooter should clearly understand who their competitors are. So, research your target market and demographic area, and decide on how you are going to win the clients.

You may use some analytics tools, like Quantcast , Alexa and Google Trends that will identify and assess competitors in the area and help you find new clients. It will also help you improve your services.

Besides, you may use the U.S. Small Business Association’s SizeUp tool . It provides the info on other similar services in the area and local consumer spending in that category, enabling you to size up the competition in your market.

However, mind that the coronavirus pandemic affected all types of business, including a photography one.

4. Consider Your Target Market

Writing a photographer business plan, you should research your target market. To begin with, do some research about photography in general and how the photography business is developing in your region. Only then you will be able to narrow down your target market.

Who are your potential clients? Who are your ideal customers? Learn as much as you can about them and you will be able to attract the right people. It won’t hurt to create a client profile and study photography marketing tips that will help you understand your potential clientele.

I believe that the following four customer segments should be primarily targeted:

New Parents . People expecting a child or those with a newborn child try to capture these magic moments to memorize them for long years. They don’t want just images on their smartphones. They want to have qualitative professional shots that will impress everyone. So, if you choose this photography direction, discover various newborn photo ideas and maternity photo ideas first.

Families . Many families regularly update their photo albums with new family portraits or pics from events. Some people take photos for their homes, offices, wallets or holiday cards. That is why I recommend learning more about family photography and considering some family photo ideas .

Area Businesses . Today, even the smallest company has its website and pages on social networks. Businesses want to create the best Internet sites providing pics of their facilities, portraits of the staff, etc. As a rule, businesses try to find one professional for a long-term relationship that will satisfy all their headshot photography needs.

Product Manufacturers . E-commerce is on its peak today, with businesses creating products and selling them online. Consequently, they need qualitative images for websites, brochures, spec sheets, and other marketing materials. Such companies don’t need a staff shooter so they outsource this task to freelance photographers or photography studios.

If you want to work in this segment, you should get acquainted with these food photo ideas , learn how to edit food photos and also look through some product photography tutorials .

5. Develop Key Marketing Strategies

We proceed with your photography business plan and you have already decided whom to sell your services to. Now it’s time to decide what strategies you apply to achieve your goals. What activities will lead you to success?

I often send a PDF of my recent work to advertising agencies and publishers. Remember that even famous photographers used to include external promotion in photography business marketing.

If you are a wedding photographer, connect with some bridal boutiques and hair saloons ‒ you may cross-refer your services. In case you are involved in commercial real estate photography , cooperate with real estate agencies.

Considering that social networks are rapidly developing nowadays, I suggest creating your pages on Facebook and Instagram so that your potential clients get acquainted with your works. For better results, learn how to have successful Instagram .

By the way, you may also use photography business apps to make your working process easier and more convenient. They will help monitor costs, organize photoshoots, promote business, etc.

Starting a podcast is also a way to gain authority in your field and attract customers to your marketing funnel. Imagine how many great (or not so great) photographer stories you can share with your audience! To learn more, we recommend this article about how to become an expert in your field through podcasting .

6. Think about Portfolio

One more point in your business plan for photography services should belong to your portfolio. It is a base of your previous works available for any user interested in your professional activity. For today, the most effective way to acquaint your prospective clients with your works is to create a photography portfolio using website builders .

Mind that your website should highlight your images and be convenient for users. Moreover, it should be easy to find your contacts there. Finding such project-based assistants is very easy because many skilled people favor modern freelance ideas and opt for remote work rather than a 9-to-5 schedule.

7. Determine Pricing Strategy

You should set up prices that will make your business competitive in the area. Will you have packages or provide à la carte services? Maybe, you will charge by the day, per shot, or by print or download. Moreover, you will have to decide how you will take payments from your clients. The most popular payment method in the photography business is invoices. It is a great way to get paid as quickly as possible.

8. Consider Your Operations Strategy

how to write a photography business plan

In this section of the photography business plan, you will have to describe in detail where you will work. Many portrait photographers arrange studios at home and work there. If you are a commercial shooter with clients and creative directors, you need to rent a studio.

However, depending on the photography genre you are involved in, you might not need a studio all the time. So, there is no need to rent a studio on a monthly basis. Decide what genre you are going to work in and where you will photograph more often.

In case you need a professional studio, I recommend learning how to find photography studio rental .

9. Define Business Participants

There are two ways here. The first one ‒ you will take pics and edit them by yourself. Yes, it will be cheaper since you don’t have to pay money for that. However, on the other hand, you will not have time to rest and you will have to turn down new orders because you have to edit photos from previous shootings.

The second way ‒ outsource retouching services . If you approach these guys, you will get at least three benefits.

Firstly, you will have some time to develop your business. Secondly, you will boost your productivity. Finally, you will not waste time on image post-production.

10. Financial Component of Your Business Plan

A solid financial plan is an integral component of each photographer business plan. A big part here belongs to startup costs. They include:

legal advice
website design
essential photography gear
advertising

To begin with, estimate how much money you need to cover these costs and how much capital you have in reality. You may consider such funding options as small business loans, grants and crowdfunding.

In the future, when you are already working and fulfilling orders, you may include other financial statements in this section, like a balance sheet, cash flow and income. They will help you create a cash-flow analysis and monitor the financial success of your business.

If you are not good at accounting and finances, it’s better to approach a professional for advice.

11. Make a SWOT Analysis

A SWOT analysis is a planning technique used to determine the strengths and weaknesses of your business, opportunities open to it and threats that it might face. When you examine these internal and external factors, you will be able to create strategies to address challenges and find your niche in the market.

Making a SWOT analysis online , you may look at a business as a whole or consider some specific projects before they are launched. It’s often displayed as a matrix with each of the categories (strengths-weaknesses-opportunities-threats) occupying a cell on a table.

Executive summary
Company description
Assess the competition
Consider your target market
Develop key marketing strategies
Determine pricing strategy

Photography Business Plan

Photography has been a part of everyone’s life since the 19th Century. We all loved the photos we see coming out of the dark rooms and the change from negative to something vibrant and priceless. However, due to the current world’s technological feats, photography businesses became more irrelevant and insignificant. Nonetheless, it is still a growing industry with its advantage in quality and convenience but at a lower rate than other business industries within the arts and culture section. That’s why, if you want to stand out within this industry, an exceptional business plan is necessary, and we provide you Photography Business Plan Samples that will surely keep you relevant. Hop in and check our guide below as well and see create your document fast.

10+ Photography Business Plan Examples

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What is a Photography Business Plan?

A Photography Business Plan is a document that people within the arts and culture industry use to start a photography business, either as a photographer in fashion , event, or freelance photography. This document is essential for the company or for the founders to ensure that what they are doing will become an investment and not a liability.

What are the most profitable photography fields?

Photography, in itself, is art. It is a field that captivates people’s emotions and imaginations, but it ensures that memories and history are told to the next generations. However, as sacred as it may seem, this art is also a business for some. Here is the list of the most profitable photography styles to help you earn your keep using this craft.

Social Media

Let’s go with the most profitable photography field. Undeniably, social media marketing is way beyond the marks of basic photography. It involves marketing within the photography itself. Some samples of this type of photography are creating social media ads, doing a corporate photoshoot for social media exposure, and other things. You are not limited by anything in this department, and sure can do more.

Event photography is all about capturing moments and memories. This is one of the most critical functions of photography since its creation. We see this from the photos of the two world wars, historical revolutions, and other events with great importance. However, since people nowadays don’t need many photographers to capture these moments, event photography is now more on weddings , conventions, concerts, and other events. However, this type of photography is still vibrant and growing, so you can be sure that you can still earn your way through this area.

Portrait photography is also an excellent way to earn money within this industry. Baby pictures before the 2000s were not beautiful at all. They were shot by people in the family and hence lacked the creativity and art that photography demands. That’s why, today, we see families asking professional photographers to create portraits of their families and children, and hence an excellent avenue for a business that specializes in this area.

Travel Photography is a type of photography that captures places, culture, tradition, and all those little things that make traveling worthwhile. This type of photography is best suited for bloggers who have a considerable following to provide travel funds. Social Media influencers are also good with this type of photography.

Stock photography is all about creating value in everything. A bottle in a basket, a torn shirt, even an old watch can be sold as a stock image. The possibility is limitless. Photographs from this are sometimes sold to companies, graphic designers , and people with creativity that can use these images as backgrounds, illustrations, etc. However, because of the need for these pictures being undervalued, then you need to take many photos to ensure that you can earn more.

Documentary

Documentary photography is like travel photography but differs significantly as they usually use photos in this industry as supporting documents for a story or an article. However, as a photographer, you can be sure that you’ll earn enough here as you’re not working alone. Sometimes a company hires you for a project , and that’s good.

How to Create a Photography Business Plan

Whether or not you are new to creating a business plan , it doesn’t matter. What we’re going to mention here are just general tips that can get you started. However, take note of these things as they will help you much.

Step 1: Executive Summary

This is one of the essential elements in creating a business plan. Why is that? Because with an excellent executive summary, you can be sure that your investors will become interested in your work and their investments . So make sure that you make it right.

Step 2: Marketing and Operational Plan

After your Executive Summary, you should note that you have a marketing plan and an operational plan ready. In this way, your investors will be caught in a quagmire in which they willingly jump, which could, in turn, increase their trust in your business. By doing this, you also ensure that your small business will have better commercial value because you will have connections.

Step 3: Company and Team Profile

Sometimes you don’t need this. However, if you still want to improve your company’s credibility, this is an excellent way to go. With a highly detailed company and team profile, your investors will increase trust, knowing that the men and women doing the project are credible and professional.

Step 4: Financial Plan

Why do you think you create a business plan? Of course, it is to know how the business will grow and how you can gain something from the initiative. So, a financial plan is necessary to support your claims and improve your business.

Is a photography business profitable?

Yes and No. You see, a photography business is not all about just taking pictures. It is a business first and foremost, so you should make sure to do all the company sides. Editing, finance, and other things are necessary for the industry to be profiting

Is photography a profitable business?

Of course, as mentioned earlier. Although this business loses its relevance in the typical days, it’s worth as a luxurious art is more prevalent. Therefore, if you want to do this business, you can be sure that it will be an excellent business.

How do I sell my Photography?

If you plan to sell your photographs, then many websites in the market, accept stock photos, such as iStockPhoto, 123RF, and Shutterstock. These websites will help you gain money by providing them with random images that people may want.

The current photography industry is filled with new and exciting things. We see drones being used in events, table shots done at weddings, and other things. However, the secret to keeping your business relevant and not short is the people. That’s why it’s good to use a template, but ultimately the people will decide. So, create art and become an artist—the world will follow.

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10 Key Steps for Writing Your Photography Business Plan

You can also select your interests for free access to our premium training:

A surprising number of photographers never write a photography business plan. If you plan to embark on a career as a freelancer, you need a plan. A business plan is a road map to success. It outlines your business-related goals and how you intend to achieve them. There is no need to have a very formal business plan. But the components of a traditional business plan can help you be more specific about your goals. This way, you are more likely to achieve them.

The Components of a Photography Business Plan

Create an executive summary.

The Executive Summary is where you define your photography business . What will be the legal structure of your business? Will you be operating as a sole proprietor? This is an overview of your business. It lays out how your business will meet the needs of your target clients. It’s helpful to write out a mission statement for your photography business. You should have tangible objectives and the keys to success.

Write a Product and Service Description

Overhead shot of a person making an illustrative photography business plan on a white desk

Consider Your Target Market

Assess the Competition

Overhead shot of a person holding a coffee cup at a table with plants, camera, lenses and other photography equipment

Develop Key Marketing Strategies

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Consider Your Operations Strategy

A laptop, film and camera set up on a wooden desk to prepare a photography business plan

Plan the Financials

A photo studio set up as part of photography business plan

SWOT Analysis

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Make a Timeline

Preparation and goal setting are crucial to success in any business. A plan for your photography business can make all the difference. Start today by working on your photography business plan. If you can set aside 30 to 60 minutes a day, you’ll finish before you know it. And then you’ll be far ahead of most photographers, who have no plan whatsoever! Now you’ve worked out how to make your business plan, check out our posts on how to price your photography services or use social media marketing next!

PHOTOGRAPHY AND VIDEOGRAPHY BUSINESS PLAN SAMPLE

Looking for a Photography and Videography Business plan in Nigeria for your new or existing enterprise?

Download this Photography and Videography Business plan sample, which you can download to present to NIRSAL, BOI, BOA, and other investors.

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1.0. Business Overview

RAYMOND Photography and Video Production Company is a media service business. The services provided include events photo-shoot and video production editing services for clients in Tanke, Ilorin. We will have the capacity to record video shoots, edit this footage, as well as place it on DVDs, stream it on the internet, and place it on public access television.

RAYMOND Photography and Video Production Company are owned and manage by johnson Raymond. he has over 7 years of experience in photography. He is a fine art graduate from the University of Benin, a postgraduate student of photography from the University of California–Los Angeles, and an accomplished photographer. He brought to the industry capacity to consistently provide high-quality products and services to our wide array of clientele, Valuable expertise that makes us own the value chain to a good extent and a good understanding of the market trend especially as it is affected by seasons.

2.0. TARGET MARKET

RAYMOND Photography and Video Production Company have decided to stand out among other video production companies by providing its customers professional-level video production and editing services at an avoidable price in our immediate community. Furthermore, the Video Production Company will have the ability to edit all material shot in a very timely manner. We will also be able to provide the option of placing the footage on the internet, DVDs, and public access television.

Our target market includes the following:

Educational institutes
Cultural institutes
Individual artists and musical shows
Local events and conventions.

3.0. BENEFITS OF OUR PRODUCTS SERVICES

We handle our company and personal dealings, arrangements, and relationships decently.
We believe in client service and treat our customers and their audiences with the highest level of respect beginning with the professional demeanor and expertise of our employees.
Our team are very creative and we deliver to our clients’ high-quality pictures and videos
Exceptional customer focus marketing tactics
Low prices of our products and services

4.0. OUR OBJECTIVES

To have cultivated a culture of oversight and accountability.
To be among the top-tier commercial photography studio
Build a multi-media platform that encourages social networking and educates as well as informs our customers, clients, and audiences

5.0. Our Goal

Define all steps in the services provided and assign individual responsibilities accordingly.
Build a multi-media platform that encourages social networking and education and also informs our customers, clients, and audiences.
Prepare a code of ethics for our relationship with our artists, our customers, our employees, and our broader community.

6.0. Vision and Mission

Our vision is to be among the best Photography and Video production companies in Ilorin, Nigeria and its neighboring cities by providing excellent products and services.
Our mission is to provide professional quality photography and video production and editing, promoting educational and artistic pursuits in the Western Region of Nigeria, starting from Ilorin Kwara state Nigeria.

7.0. Materials and Machine

Kodak printers
Studio lightings
HDD cameras
Tripod stands
Greenback robes
Business office building etc.

8.0. COMPETITOR ANALYSIS

People will patronize us because of the following reasons:

High-quality service and technological expertise
We have established a prolific relationship with our clients.
Exceptional customer care services
We have well-trained sales and marketing reps who know client’s needs.

Our major competitive advantages are:

High-quality computer service and technological expertise
Prompt service delivery
Fair and best possible prices and discount offers

Want to see the complete Photography and Videography business plan?

Read below.

How To Download Photography and Videography Business plan Template PDF and Doc (With financial analysis)

Pay the sum of N5000 ( Five thousand naira only) to the account detail below: Bank: GTBank Name: Oyewole Abidemi (I am putting my name and not our company account so you know I am real and you can trust me, and trace me) Ac/No: 0238933625 Type: Saving

P.S: We can also tailor the Photography and videography Business plan to your name, business size, capital requirements, and more to fit your direct needs. Call or message +234 701 754 2853 for inquiries.

Dr. Abi Demi is a skilled technical writer and author with specialties in the martech and fintech space. Featured on Tekedia, Coin Review, Business Insider, Fintechna, Cryptocoin.news, Date 360 and several other sterling online publications, Demi is an astute technical writer that specializes in finance, marketing and technology - with over 500 published pieces across the internet ecosystem. Contact Abi Demi - [email protected]

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Photography Business Plans

Commercial photography business plan.

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Phoebe’s Photo Studio will meet the needs of professionals and their families to capture the special moments in their lives and present them in the best light.

Photography businesses are all about capturing memories or events for your clients. A good business plan will help you capture their business. Get started writing your business plan by browsing these sample business plans for portrait photography, pet photography, commercial photography, and other related businesses.

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LUMAGRAFX PHOTO STUDIO BUSINESS PLAN "We lead, they follow"
2020, LUMAGRAFX PHOTO STUDIO BUSINESS PLAN "We lead, they follow". LUMAGRAFX is derived from LUNDA, MATTHEWS and GRAPHICS as in GRAFX. Matthews has worked as a photographer and freelance portrait photographer in Mufulira and Kitwe for six years. He has found that personal customer relationships are the key to repeat business and will open ...
Photography Business Plan [Free Template]
Here are a few key industry highlights to consider: Number of businesses: There are 258,450 operational photography businesses in the US in 2023. Industry employment: 293,339+. Key players: Shutterfly Inc., Alamy Ltd. Say goodbye to boring templates.
Photography Business Plan Template [Updated 2024]
Photography Business Plan Template. Over the past 20+ years, we have helped over 10,000 entrepreneurs and business owners create business plans to start and grow their photography businesses. On this page, we will first give you some background information with regards to the importance of business planning.
Photography Business Plan Template (2024)
Starting a photography business can be an exciting endeavor. Having a clear roadmap of the steps to start a business will help you stay focused on your goals and get started faster.. 1. Develop A Photography Business Plan - The first step in starting a business is to create a detailed business plan for a photography business that outlines all aspects of the venture.
PDF Free Version of Growthinks Photography Business Plan Template
Sample from Growthink's Ultimate Photography Business Plan Template: According to IBISWorld, the American photography industry had revenues of $10 billion last year spread over 92,000 businesses. This averages to $109,000 in revenue per business per year. The industry employed 167,000 people, earning $4 billion in wages, roughly $24,000 per ...
Photography Studio Business Plan Example
That comes $10K from owner savings, $20K as a 5-year loan (family cosigning), and $50K as an interest-free loan from family. If the business proceeds according to plan, we will have about half of the $50K family loan paid off within three years. See why 1.2 million entrepreneurs have written their business plans with LivePlan.
How to Write a Successful Photography Business Plan
Why you need to make a photography business plan. The main components of a photography business plan. Write an executive summary. Explain your company in a business description. Describe your product and services. Determine your target market. Conduct a competitive analysis. Detail your marketing strategies.
Photography Business Plan Template
A Photography Business Plan is a business plan that was specifically developed for a photography business. The purpose of this document is to present information about a photography operation, what will be its target market, financial background, goals, strategies, and other details. Individuals can use a Business Plan for Photography when they ...
Free Photography Studio Business Plan Template + Example
Get the most out of your business plan example. Follow these tips to quickly develop a working business plan from this sample. 1. Don't worry about finding an exact match. We have over 550 sample business plan templates. So, make sure the plan is a close match, but don't get hung up on the details. Your business is unique and will differ from ...
How to Start a Successful Photography Business
16. Reinvest in your photography business. Once you have at least three months' worth of income socked away, then you can start thinking about reinvesting it. From new lenses to better editing software, new pieces of technology can improve your product. To make wise decisions, make a list of the items you want.
How to write the ultimate photography business plan
3. Set aside no longer than a day to do this and block that day out in your schedule now because, the sooner you finish planning, the sooner you can take action. Growth happens with action and action happens with a plan . To help you further, I've created a free photography business plan template to use with this guide.
Sample Photography Business Plan
5. Set Your Goals. The last piece of a solid photography business plan is articulating some goals for the business. When you're thinking about your goals for the remainder of 2017, review the sections of your business plan that are listed above. They're loaded with ideas for really strong, growth-oriented goals.
Step-by-step guide on how to write a strong photography business plan
Write an executive summary. Describe your photography business. Outline your products and services. Analyze your finances and list out business expenses. Understand your competition and the photography industry. Devise a sales and marketing strategy. Set operations logistics and management structure.
How to Start a Photography Business 2024 Checklist
What goes into your plan may vary, but at a minimum, you may want to include: Executive summary: You can start your photography business plan with an executive summary that defines what your general objectives are as well as your key factors of success. Company overview: Do an outline of the organizational structure of your business according ...
Writing a Photography Business Plan: Complete Guide
1. Executive Summary. An executive summary is an introduction to your photography business plan. It is a clear preview that defines your objectives as a photographer and your mission statement. Decide what photography genre you want to engage in. The most profitable genres are the following ones: Portrait photography.
Photography Business Plan
Photography Business Plan. Photography has been a part of everyone's life since the 19th Century. We all loved the photos we see coming out of the dark rooms and the change from negative to something vibrant and priceless. However, due to the current world's technological feats, photography businesses became more irrelevant and insignificant.
10 Key Steps for Writing Your Photography Business Plan
A surprising number of photographers never write a photography business plan. If you plan to embark on a career as a freelancer, you need a plan. A business plan is a road map to success. It outlines your business-related goals and how you intend to achieve them. There is no need to have a very formal business plan. But the components of a traditional business plan can help you be more ...
How to Make a Great Photography Marketing Plan
Make sure that your website features a blog as well. Some of the best blogging platforms for photographers to consider in your marketing plan are WordPress, Squarespace, and Blogger. Write your blog posts from the heart, but make sure to keep SEO in mind so your content can be found on search engines. Franzi Annika.
Commercial Photography Business Plan Example
In the past two years, the market for commercial photography in Rochester, NY has contracted due to the recent economic downturn. It is estimated by the Rochester Chamber of Commerce that commercial photography has shrunk from $5.7 million to $4.5 million annual revenues since two years ago.
Photography and Videography Business Plan Sample
How To Download Photography and Videography Business plan Template PDF and Doc (With financial analysis) P.S: We can also tailor the Photography and videography Business plan to your name, business size, capital requirements, and more to fit your direct needs. Call or message +234 701 754 2853 for inquiries.
How To Start A Photography Business
Steps to Starting a Photography Business. Step 1. Purchase the Right Equipment. In order to set yourself up as a competitor in the photography industry, you'll need the best equipment possible ...
Photography Business Plan Examples
Photography businesses are all about capturing memories or events for your clients. A good business plan will help you capture their business. Get started writing your business plan by browsing these sample business plans for portrait photography, pet photography, commercial photography, and other related businesses. If you're looking to ...
Photography And Videography Business Plan Pdf
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1. Write an Executive Summary

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3. Describe the Services You’ll Offer

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6. Plan Your Finances

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Please select the country/region in which you do business.

How to write a successful photography business plan.

Why you need to make a photography business plan.

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Write an executive summary.

Explain your company in a business description.

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Determine your target market.

Conduct a competitive analysis.

Detail your marketing strategies.

Marketing programs.

Photography portfolio.

Think about operations.

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Photography studio business plan.

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HOW TO WRITE THE ULTIMATE PHOTOGRAPHY BUSINESS PLAN

What is your main photography service?

Sum up your ideal client in one sentence

List 2 or 3 of your closest competitors

Make a list of your strengths

What makes your business stand out?

Describe the enquiry and conversion process

Summarise your CODB and salary aims

Decide on your financial goal

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Sample Photography Business Plan – 5 Critical Elements

1. Know Your Strengths

Why are Strengths Important?