Take the 2019 Annual Wedding Photography Industry Survey.

Average spend by Couples in the UK on Photography

£0

How it compares:
2017 - £1,480 | 2016 - £1,450.

Average Full Day Starting Packages

Cheapest Region

North East - £0

Average Full Day Starting Packages

Most Expensive

South West - £0

0 is the average number of weddings captured a year

How it compares: Last year this was 31, and then 28 in 2016.


Average Weddings Shot that were Unplugged
13%


Photographers that would prefer couples have an unplugged wedding?
53%

Why go Unplugged? Here are 23 reasons.

Bookings

Average Percentage
that request a second shooter
32%

A new statistic for this year.

Average Percentage
that Book an Engagement Shoot
34%

Last year this was 35%

Percentage that buy
a Wedding Album
35%

Last year this was 33%

The Business Side

0Years Old

Is the Average Age from those Surveyed

Last year the average was 39

Years Experience
0 Hours

Is the Average Time Spent Editing

Up from 12 hours last year

Time Most Spent on...
0

Is the Average Number of Enquires received a year

New Question this year year

% of clients booking after enquiry
Top 3 Social Media for Bookings
Instagram - Organic
45%
Facebook - Organic
39%
Facebook - Paid
10%

Instagram has become the leading social source for bookings jumping Facebook from last year.

Top 3 Biggest Expenses
Equipment
Online Advertising
Travel

Little change here from last year with online advertising and travel being the next biggest expenses.


Average Marketing Spend each Year
£0

(Includes brochures and wedding fairs)

Awards


Photographers that take part in Online Photography Award Sites
54%
Camera Brand of Choice
Canon Vs Nikon
Canon -
47% Canon
27% Nikon
19% Sony
7% Fuji
47% of Photographers use a Canon Camera, 27% Nikon, 19% Sony, 7% Fuji.


Industry Concerns

Below are a sample of comments you left with regards to your thoughts on the industry.

"The wedding photography industry is ever evolving with trends and fancy presets which is really healthy and exciting to be a part of. Boundaries need to be pushed to elevate and constantly evolve so the rough with the smooth is essential in that growth. A new generation of wedding photographers has emerged and they are totally smashing the 'rules' bringing wedding photography back to the forefront of art and visual communication. Just brilliant!"
"Too many cheap photographers. Far too easy to create a website with 20 half decent pictures on it and clients don't spend enough time actually checking if that photographer can produce that work for a whole wedding at every wedding they shoot."
"Very saturated, and it's becoming more demanding in terms of the client expectations as well as the diversity of skills needed to run a profitable business (e.g. complex SEO, knowledge of increasingly complicated social media strategies, website maintenance, blogging, online sales)"
"My only concern is how some photographers are dealing with the increased demand for second shooters. I suspect it's a cost saving measure, but rather than paying the going rate for an experienced professional photographer, i'm seeing countless people using their boyfriend, wife, teenage son (whoever) as their second shooter. This is giving the impression that a second shooter will only set you back another £100 or so. It's bad practice and damaging to the industry."
"The biggest concerns at the moment is lack of clear communication between industry publishers like magazines, blogs as well as between suppliers & clients where you read silly reports on how much you should charge & expect for wedding photography and if you're charging X amount you're either too cheap or too expensive with wide generalisations (every photographer's experience & circumstance is different so it can be hard to judge). It makes the public feeling confused and even possibly frustrated on the actual price & value of things. I think YPWP report is a good place to start for couples having a good starting point, if only more would follow suit!"

Reasons You Love it!

"On the whole it's a great industry to be part of. It is very competitive but that helps to keep me on my toes!"
"It's great, especially as you become more connected in the industry & network at events & with suppliers, it's a thriving industry helping couples create the most spectacular day in their lives. Though it's thriving, it is becoming more competitive but that means as suppliers we can't be complacent with our business, which is healthy to have."
"I love being a wedding photographer - I hope to do it for as long as I possibly can!"
"The wedding photography industry is more exciting than ever at the moment with amazing new talents shining through all the time. There is also a growing movement away from the staged, fake 'traditional' wedding photography towards the documentary style, real and genuine moments that weddings are really all about. Artistic storytelling is becoming more mainstream and expected at last and not just a slogan on photographers websites!"

Share these Results

Let us Know your Thoughts

Thank you to everyone that took time to complete the survey, I hope you find this useful and interesting. How do you compare? What are your thoughts on the industry at the moment?

Your Thoughts - 27 Comments


  1. Chris says:
    Posted February 11, 2019 at 11:51 AM | Permalink

    Thanks for doing this survey again, not to much change from last year however certainly think this year is going to be tough.

  2. Sarah W says:
    Posted February 11, 2019 at 12:08 PM | Permalink

    Definitely hearing from more couples who hired someone else as they were quite a bit cheaper. These fly by photographers that come and go are certainly not helping the industry. Do wish there was some sort of regulation to help prevent this.

  3. Really interesting – enjoyed looking through this! I wonder what next year will look like!

  4. It was great to be a part of this Interesting seeing the results of past years compared to the last year. Wonder what this year will hold…

  5. Thanks for sharing this again. Useful as always!

  7. An interesting read surprised to see the South West as the most expensive region, competition is fierce down here!

  8. A really interesting survey, thank you. Its great to see honest results and in particular the conversion rate for enquiries to bookings, that’s one of the hardest things to get your head around as wedding photographer, why you aren’t converting those leads, so it is good to know everyone is in the same position, and everyone else has the same struggles too..

  11. Really useful survey. Very thought provoking! Thank you for sharing the results.

  12. Thanks for doing the survey again! Interesting to see that Nikon has lost out to Sony and Fuji but Canon users seems to be sticking with their kit!

  13. Mostly predicted trends which is soothing given the turbulence many have canvases on social media.

    The worrying trend is the route to market is too easy and sadly clients aren’t able to see past a pro looking website and can easily be misled into booking an inexperienced photographer.

    Cheers once again for the research.

  14. Sounds about right on the whole. But I’m surprised that paid Facebook ads are so low for bookings, and equally surprised that Instagram is so high!

  15. A great read, very insightful. Thanks for sharing the results. I definitely agree that documentary photography is becoming more main steam and expected.

  16. Great read, thanks for sharing!

  17. Very interesting indeed!
    I find this survey quite useful.
    Thank you.

  18. 14 hours to edit a wedding? What are they doing? 😳📸

  19. I wonder if Brexit has anything to do with this!

  21. Fascinating stuff. Particularly interested in the Instagram/ Facebook playoff. Must get more into Instagram!

  22. Very interesting reading. Found the information very useful. Thanks you for posting.

  23. It’s really interesting to read. I have been in the industry for over 8 years and have to agree with the other comments that there should be some sort of regulation to prevent cowboys. We all hear horror stories online and from guests at weddings.
    I wonder if the social media results will change since Instagram changed the algorithm?

  24. Haven’t seen your survey before, quite insightful. When is the next one available?

  26. Always useful to see what the trends are and what issues are photographers top concerns. Thanks for the interesting read!


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