Wedding Photography Invoice Template

How to Create a Wedding Photography Invoice That Will Get You Paid

An efficient invoicing system helps small photography businesses and freelance photographers get paid on time and keep good financial records. It’s worth taking the time to set up your billing and invoicing system before you start booking weddings. If you are using a template, be sure to customize it with your own branding and information.

Wedding Photography Prices

Many factors go into determining the cost of production for wedding photos, which should be itemized in detail before the wedding. No matter what type of package or agreement is made, the price should be locked in prior to the event. The average cost of wedding photography in 2019 was $2,400, and this has remained consistent for several years. However, prices will fluctuate according to the location of the wedding.

Cost Breakdown

• Hours – A wedding photography package will include the photographer’s hourly rate. Shooting a wedding requires time spent at the actual wedding (6-8 hours), editing images (4-6 hours), and travel (1-2 hours).
• Travel – Typically, if the photographer needs to travel a long distance to a wedding gig, the bride and groom are responsible for covering travel costs such as airfare, gas, miles, and hotel accommodation.
• Tip – Giving a tip, with cash or check, at 5-10% of the total package is the norm.
• Staff – Hiring a solo photographer is much cheaper than hiring two (2) or more photographers. However, hiring a photo team allows for a wider and broader variety of shots.

Packages

A wedding photography package generally includes the following:

• A pre-wedding consultation
• Photographer(s) to cover the wedding event
• 600-800 photos of the pre-wedding, the ceremony, and the reception
• Private access to downloadable pictures
• An album printed on quality paper (for an extra fee)

Wedding Photography Contract

Wedding photographers should always use contracts and ensure clients sign them before the wedding day. This type of contract protects the photographer from liabilities out of their control (severe weather, for example) and guarantees payment. Here are some important clauses to include in a wedding photography contract:

• Payment – Normally, a down payment of 25% of the total amount is due when the contract is signed.
• Cancellation/Postponement – The photographer should be able to collect an additional fee if the couple cancels or postpones the wedding to another date. Photographers often collect 50% of the total amount if a couple cancels.
• Wedding Coordinator – The contract should state that if there is no official wedding coordinator, the photographer is in no way responsible for any tasks outside of taking photos and their specific job.
• Terms and Conditions/Copyright – There should be a clause in the contract that specifies who owns the copyright to the photos after they have been paid for. Generally, photographers give the rights to the photos to the clients that purchase them but retain the ability to use the photos for their own portfolios and marketing purposes.

Wedding Photography Checklist

Every wedding procedure is the same for photographers, but what the bride and groom want is always different. Use this checklist to get a good feel for what the bride and groom want before the wedding shoot begins.

1. Call the bride and groom early in the morning to come up with a plan. Does the photographer stay with the bride and the bridesmaids while they get ready putting on makeup? And does the groom want pre-wedding photos taken with the groomsmen?
2. Typically, it’s the bride who’s wearing makeup, and tears can ruin makeup. Therefore, it’s key to take portraits of the bride early in the day.
3. Do not finish shooting until you have the following images: bride with bridesmaids, with parents (both individually and together), with the maid of honor, with siblings, and the entire group.
4. Always be on the lookout for tender moments between the bride and her father, especially during the dance.
5. After the cake is cut and the photos are taken, ask the bride and groom if there is anything else to be done before calling it a day.
6. Upon completion of the wedding, try to shoot 800 photos. This will give you plenty to work with when editing.

Key Features of a Wedding Photography Invoice

A wedding photography invoice should include the following elements:

• Name and contact details (e.g. phone number and address) for the photographer
• Photographer’s business logo (if applicable)
• Name and contact information (e.g. phone number and address) for clients
• Itemized description of photo services rendered (e.g. shooting, editing)
• Costs associated with services
• Applicable taxes
• Payment methods accepted (e.g. credit card, check, money order, cash, PayPal)
• Payment terms (including due date)

An invoice can be generated manually and emailed as a PDF or using an online invoice generator.

Wedding Photography Statistics

• The average cost of a wedding photographer is $2,000-$4,000.
• The average cost per hour for a wedding photographer is $250-$350.
• The average number of wedding photography clients is 10-15 per year.
• The average number of years a wedding photographer is in business is 10-15.