Retouching Rates for a beginner

[jkjohnst]

I'm new to the retouching industry, but I have been in magazine photo depts for a few years now. I want to work for a retouching studio or just freelance and make retouching my sole source of income someday very soon.

I know I'm good at it and I really enjoy it. I have some potential clients in upstate NY (wedding photographers mostly) but b/c of my inexperience and lack of references for this field I'm scared to charge too much and scare the client off. It's not a big city (just small towns) and these photographers are charging very little to their clients to begin with so it's been hard negotiating.

I was thinking I could charge some sort of flat fee of around $600 per wedding for just basic cleanup, color, and resizing. Anything more would be some kind of per hour basis?

I was also wondering what is a good way to get your name out there and market yourself to photographers or studios? Is there any online resources where people are looking for retouchers?

[0lBaldy]

jkjohnst, Welcome to RetouchPRO Hope you enjoy your stay here and make lots of friends. Poke around, ask questions, offer help, have fun!

Hit the pavement, network (a lot of retouching jobs are got by knowing someone in the business) get samples of your work out there, use every opportunity you get (like posting here) to get your work shown,.. by including your Website with every written communication... Its the best marketing tool for the masses, it shows your sales objectives, it shows where you are within the field, what type work you do (fashion, high end, magazine, movie, wedding, etc), your client references, contact information, and establishes your credibility. Make it easy for potential clients to contact you by providing them with good contact information

A more relevant and current discussion on pricing is here: what should we be charging?