Lifestyle Product Photography: Pricing, Rates, and Contracts Explained
Lifestyle product photography is one of the most in-demand commercial photo specialties, and it’s also one of the most poorly priced by new photographers. A product photography pricing guide helps you charge what the work is worth from the start, rather than discovering your rates are too low after months of undercharging. Whether you’re setting product photography rates for still-life e-commerce or exploring 360 product photography software for interactive product views, your pricing structure needs to match your costs and the value you deliver.
This guide walks through how to price lifestyle work, what a product photography contract should cover, and where 360 product photography software fits in your service offering.
Setting Your Product Photography Rates
Day Rate vs. Per-Image Pricing
A product photography pricing guide for lifestyle work typically starts with your day rate. Calculate your cost of doing business (equipment, insurance, software, marketing, studio or location fees) and add your desired profit margin. Day rates for experienced product photographers range from $600 to $2,500 depending on market, experience, and output complexity.
Per-image pricing works for smaller clients who need 5 to 20 images. Product photography rates on a per-image basis run from $25 to $150 per final delivered image depending on styling complexity, licensing, and usage. Lifestyle product photography with props, models, or location sourcing commands higher rates than flat-lay e-commerce work.
Licensing and Usage Fees
Your product photography rates should separate licensing from the shoot fee. A brand using your images in a national ad campaign pays more than one using them for a website only. Product photography rates for web-only use are typically 20% to 40% lower than rates that include print or broadcast rights.
What a Product Photography Contract Needs
Your product photography contract protects both parties by defining deliverables, timeline, revision limits, and licensing terms in writing. Include the number of final images, the delivery format and resolution, usage rights, and payment schedule. A 50% deposit before the shoot date is standard.
A product photography contract should also cover what happens if the client requests significant reshoots beyond the agreed scope. Define “revision” (color grading, minor retouching) separately from “reshoot” (new session, new setup). Without this language, a single client can request unlimited free work under the cover of “just a few tweaks.”
360 Product Photography Software Options
Adding 360 product photography software to your service offering opens a premium tier that e-commerce clients pay significantly more for. Software options like Orbitvu, Iconasys, and Sirv handle frame capture, stitching, and interactive viewer export. Setup requires a turntable, consistent lighting, and compatible software, but the recurring revenue potential is strong.
For a lifestyle product photography studio adding this capability, expect a startup cost of $500 to $3,000 for turntable hardware and software licensing. Clients typically pay 30% to 50% more for 360 product photography software-generated deliverables compared to standard lifestyle stills. Bottom line: build your lifestyle product photography pricing on your actual costs, protect every engagement with a product photography contract, and consider adding 360 product photography software as a premium upsell that differentiates you in a crowded market.