A revised pricing guesstimate today (2013) of our market. Certain tool pricings have come down, labour rates are still high and a lot of new toys have started entering (eg: the drones) but the market has matured a lot.  A new one man start up can be as low as $2000.

We have seen pricing stabilize with the mass concentrating at 2-4k now. I hardly hear of sub 2k except of the Muslim wedding arena due to the different requirements (less deliverables). Even sp, the Muslim market has seen some outstanding players raising the bar (and $$). Of course, there are always rookies entering the scene so it understandable why they need to position afford-ably to get a foot in.

Today’s Wedding Video Pricing
0-1k is beginner testing the market / gaining portfolio (10%)
We all started here. If you are lucky you will find something you like. The work would probably be a little raw. One thing common is if they have got to the next band (in terms of std), you will find it hard to book them as they already maxed out till 2015…

1-2k is affordable mass market (30%)
They offer decent work, probably produced in the masses but hey, if that is what we can afford it still good! They are also maxed out till 2015.

2-3k is hottest Market (30%)
These guys are the up and coming. Probably offering the best deals for quality. The market is very varied so you have to do a lot of homework if you are working here. Some offer a one day SDE (4-8min of deliverables shot by one man). There are 2men $2k folks around and as long as expectations are matched, there should not be major issues.

3-4k is Yuppies Market ( 19%)
This is the new HOT market. 3years ago most folks were in the previous band but many have moved up. The offerings in this range is most varied. Now this is the time to take note, whether it is a one man band or 2-3men crew. More cameras = more coverage = more editing.

Some would also offer loads of deliverables like Blueray, customized DVD package, edited long highlights, chapter edits, Aerial coverage, etc. Often, the end products accomplished with the most deliverables would be the determined the best value for money.

However nothing comes Free. If a company is charging a nominal rate for a lot of work, it doesn’t make sense in the long run. Either the delivery would take long time, or the quality would suffer. Just make sure you know exactly what the deliverables would be. No one in our market wants to do a bad job, but expectation mismatches occur ALL THE TIME. Make sure you ASK, never ASSUME.

4-5k is High End (10%)
This is no longer a pure product selling group. These folks usually offers an experience. Same thing, more camera, more coverage but wait, the story telling effort is most present here. Assess how the stories is unfolded. Different companies have different approaches. Some Arty Farty, Some Emotional, Some EPIC, Some Funny/Fun, etc. It takes more than an hour of meeting to produce something meaningful. When more time is spend prior to the wedding, it translates to cost as well.

5-6k is Luxury (1%)
One word = Branded. Obviously they have made it there for a reason and the branding commands a premium. Are they really THAT GOOD for the money? Choice is yours. No one  style suits everyone but you can’t go wrong (badly).

Firewerkz Team
So where are we? We have stuck to our guns to limit the number of shoots and we continue to be in the Yuppies/ High end. Its our choice to be so, to spend time with the couples to know them, to spend more time to ponder on the story to deliver a truly customized piece.

Happy Shopping!