How much to charge

[cygnus]

Hi

I run a small side business of shooting table tops for web stores. This has given me some exposure of using PS to manipulate images I shoot. Off late I have been receive request for retouching/ manipulating pictures shot by other photographers and I am not sure as to what should I charge them for the service. For table tops pretty much my rates consist of both shooting and minor retouching. I think the best way to go about is assessing the time each image would take and multiply by an hourly rate. The question is what should be the hourly rate which should cover cost towards use of hardware, software & utilities etc. Or is there another method which I should use.

I would appreciate feedback.

[Swampy]

Charging by an hourly rate depends on what your market area will bear. My standard charge is $40 per hour (1 hour minimum on any job). I live in a small rural area of Central Florida, but know that ad agencies and grapic artist in metropolitan areas charge hundreds of dollars per hour. You may have to call around and find what others are charging to get an idea of what is normal in your area.

[cygnus]

Swampy

I see what you are saying. I am not very far from Philadelphia and should look for rates prevailing there. For my photography assignments I kind of use $65/hr and my clients are all over the country.

Thanks for your input.