Hi Robert,

Thanks for the reply. I absolutely agree with you, the price should
depend on the type of job, and the value of the product to the client.

I was hoping for a few more replies, as setting the right price is
something vitally important to me and my business.

Perhaps if I explained a bit more about my reasons for asking, there
might be a better response ... In recent years, the perceived value of
stills photography has been diluted by over supply and so-called
"Weekend Warriors" willing to work for free or a byline credit. I can't
pay my mortgage with a photo credit - and generally find the only new
work they attract is more people asking for free photos!

I recognised panoramic photography and virtual tours as something a bit
more specialised with added value, so have invested heavily in both time
and equipment. It's generally not a mainstream product in the UK (yet).
People who I have shown are genuinely impressed and want it for their
website. I have approached several customers with a fixed price
structure and they've all (without exception) told me that I seem very
cheap. But last week I discovered a VT photographer only an hour away
from me who charges less than £50 UKP per VT. That's about 25% of my
"cheap" rate. How can I compete with that?

I'd also be interested to know how anyone charging £50 (inc. VAT as
quoted by them) can make a profit after a two hour round trip?
Personally, I would allow for 1 hour on site to get the photography
right, then 1 hour (minimum) on the computer to get a good stitch (with
all HDR and alpha channel processing) and a bit longer to convert to web
format using Pano2VR and/or krpano.

That's £50 for 4 hours of effort. Subtract VAT and fuel, wear and tear,
equipment, insurance, all other business overheads and it's starting to
look like £0 profit or even a loss.

The VT product currently has real novelty value, but people like this
are ruining the market. Don't be a "busy fool". Work less, charge more.

Perhaps there will be few more opinions on this?

Regards,
Robert
--

Robert Fisher wrote:
> It depends!
> Any and all of the reasons stated. I try to be flexible since solid
> pricing doesn't really work since it really depends on the job and
> the amount of work involved.
>
> On Jul 3, 2009, at 11:28 AM, Robert Slade wrote:
>
>>
>> Perhaps an emotive subject ... but I am interested in what people are
>> charging for 360x180 virtual tours.
>>
>> Do you charge a fixed fee, or quote per individual job? Do you charge
>> based on your time, or based on the client's budget or ability to pay?
>>
>> Does anyone licence virtual tours in the same way as stills photos
>> e.g.
>> depending on end use, duration, territory etc?
>>
>> Should a global company using VTs to promote multi-million dollar
>> projects pay the same as the guest house landlady who wants a VT to
>> make
>> her website more interesting?
>>
>> Regards,
>> Robert
>>
>> --
>> Robert Slade, Photographer
>> Manor Photography 07890 564889
>> http://www.manor-photography.com
>>
>>
>
> Cheers
> Robert Fisher
> VR Photography / Cinematography
>
>
>
>
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>
>

--
Robert Slade, Photographer
Manor Photography 07890 564889
http://www.manor-photography.com