Concept: Candid workplace lifestyle and portrait photography with b-roll video of employees during an in-office event
Licensing: Collateral use of all content captured in perpetuity
Photographer: Corporate lifestyle and portraiture specialist
Client: Consumer software company
I recently helped one of our India-based photographers build an estimate for a mid-sized consumer software client. They needed a mix of candid workplace portraits, environmental lifestyle photos, and b-roll video of their employees at one of the company’s office locations in India. While originally the shot list and creative brief were a little vague, we eventually learned that this shoot would be taking place during a CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) event. Also, the images were intended for internal use, for use on their public website, and for social media.
Our initial impression was that the scope of the project, deliverables, and creative needs were quite large. This meant that it would need to be shot over two days and require a substantial budget. As more details came to light (including a $10,000 budget), it became clear that we would need to scale back the estimate and expectations accordingly.
The client admired the photographer’s work and let us know that he was their first choice for the project. Since the shoot location was in a somewhat remote area and quite a distance from the photographer’s home base, they recognized the need to set aside a part of the budget to fly in the photographer and crew.
I noted on the estimate that the client would provide (and coordinate) the following:
Also, we noted that the client was handling the image post-processing and retouching (outside of the initial edit from the photographer).
Take a look at the estimate we built:
Because of the limited budget, and after learning that this would essentially be glorified event coverage with fairly narrow usage, I landed on $2800 for the creative fee. I added 2 travel days, one of which would also allow for a brief scouting trip to the office location. While most of the fees and expenses we quoted seemed somewhat meager for the U.S. and other larger market rates, I worked with the photographer to confirm that our numbers were reflective and in line with the typical and expected rates in India.
Because of the limited photo/video resources in the shoot location, we wanted a first assistant to travel with the photographer. Since there was quite a bit going on in the office that needed to be covered in a single day, we also brought on a videographer from the photographer’s home location. They would capture b-roll video alongside the photographer’s still photography.
The photographer anticipated limited equipment needs and knew that he would need to travel light. So we included a small $300 budget for his basic camera and grip kit that they would fly with. The videographer’s kit would be included in his day rate.
The client noted that there would be food available to the crew during the event. However, I included $200 for some additional snacks/drinks for the photographer, assistant, and videographer throughout the days they would be on-site.
While I would have liked to assign some of the budget to items like mileage, parking, and production insurance, due to budget constraints, we ended up absorbing those into the photographer’s creative fee.
For this project, the client would be handling the retouching themselves. However, we anticipated a good-sized collection of content from the shoot day that would need to be sorted through. So I included a fee of $875 for the photographer to organize, rename, and edit down the images (as well as provide basic color grading) before delivering them to the client.
After a handful of revisions to accommodate the client’s evolving needs throughout the negotiation process, they finally approved the project. In the end, the photographer was content with the budget. He was eager to get his foot in the door with this client. The shoot was a success, and with any luck, there will be more to come.
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