"Expensive" is a Four-Letter Word

The other day I received an e-mail where I had been carbon copied. I was being referred to someone but my work had been described as, "Expensive but cool..."

I like that someone thought my work was cool, but thought it important to address the "Expensive" part. "Expensive" is a dangerous word to throw around. Dangerous because it's a relative term. Expensive for one person could be a reasonable price for another. Another problem I see with the word "Expensive" is that it could denote that something is over priced and is a poor value.

My pricing structure is based on my cost of doing business + actual production costs + licensing. Please know that I'm not licensing the picture, but its copyright (as defined by the US Copyright Act of 1976).

My goal is to create photography that is an investment for my client. Because it's an investment, my photography should be valuable, and of value, for everyone involved. My photography should give you a return on your investment and that, if you ask me, is the opposite of "Expensive."