How much to pay Student Photographer?

I went to school for photography. I shot a wedding shortly after graduating (this was eight years ago). It was my first wedding and the bride was an acquaintance from highschool who was looking for a deal. I think I charged her about $1500 plus traveling expenses since it was far away. I shot the rehearsal the night before as well and stayed overnight (in a freezing cabin 🥶) and shot the wedding all day the next day. Looking back I should have charged more, considering the travel and unlimited hours and then all the editing afterwards!


Anyhow, if it's only for the wedding day for a set number of hours I think that would be a reasonable price these days or maybe a bit less. Have you seen other work by them (not weddings) to make sure it fits your vision? Maybe they could do an engagement shoot first to make sure you vibe well. Also, make sure you still have a contract even though it's a student. They should be able to draft one up.

Hey Kayla!

If you are planning on contacting a few different students about it, one of the questions that you could ask them would be what their fee would be for X amount of hours, plus editing. After receiving replies from them, you will be able to get a good idea of what would be a reasonable amount.