The wedding photography industry is unregulated in Canada. You may have seen prices range between $1000 and $10000 from different photographers. It may be overwhelming and sometimes confusing to navigate through various pricing structures. In this article, I aim to clarify and break down the cost of hiring a wedding photographer in Toronto. My objective is to help newly engaged couples on making a smart and informed decision.

How much does a wedding photographer cost in Toronto? (Updated for 2022)

According to various reports and surveys among vendors, brides spent between $2500 and $4000 for their wedding photography service. This includes 8 to 10 hours of wedding day coverage, edited images and an engagement session. Note that the above figure is for professional photographers, with at least 50 weddings under their belt and a solid portfolio of work. There are several factors that impact the final price and I will get into those later.

What is a reasonable budget for a wedding photographer in Toronto?

A good rule of thumb is to allocate 10% of your wedding budget to photography. This budgeting strategy has been practiced for many years and it is still valid today. Typically venue and food expense eats up a large chunk of a wedding budget, followed by photography, bridal outfits and decorations. But there is one exception to it and that is micro weddings.

What is a good budget for micro weddings?

Micro weddings gained popularity in recent years due to pandemic restrictions. They are usually several hours long with less than 40 guests. I have not seen any published reports on micro wedding budgets yet. But based on personal experience and conversations with planners, the average photography spending on micro weddings falls within $2000 to $3000 range.

What impacts the cost of wedding photography?

From a customer’s perspective, there are roughly two categories of factors that impact the cost of wedding photography.

Promised deliverables

Promised deliverables includes the rendering of agreed services and the delivery of goods. Consider a typical full day wedding. The number of hours you need photography service for and the number of required photographers are key factors. On average 8 to 10 hours is sufficient to coverage a 150 guest wedding. There are exceptions to this practice. The obvious examples are micro weddings and multi day weddings. After the wedding, what do you expect the photographer to deliver? This may include some combinations of processed digital images, physical prints and wedding albums. Professional graded albums can easily bring the overall cost by a few thousands, depending on the album supplier and number. I mention number because it is not unusual for couples to order three albums, one for themselves and one for each parent.

Market condition

Other important elements that contribute to the cost of wedding photography fall under the category of market condition. In Toronto, most weddings happen during a weekend date between the month of June and September. I recall working for a busy studio many years ago, the studio averages over ten weddings on Saturdays during the busy months. I have also seen some photographers reject smaller and less profitable weddings during the busy season. Ultimately, most couples choose to get married during the warmer months and that behavior creates a supply and demand imbalance.

Why some photographers charge much more than others?

There are many possible reasons. Some photographers charge a higher than average price, simply because their target market has stronger spending power. Price is not a huge concern for these deep wallet customers. Another reason is to cover the overhead cost of running a business. This includes the cost of advertising, marketing, equipment and studio rental, just to name a few. The rent of a commercial studio is at least a few thousands a month in Toronto. Running marketing campaign on google and social media platforms can get expensive very fast. Overhead cost can easily add up and turn a business unprofitable.

Summary

In summary, the average cost of hiring a wedding photographer in Toronto is around $3000. One should expect to budget about 10% of their wedding budget to photography. Key factors that affect the final price include hours of coverage and seasonality.

Are you searching for the best wedding photographer within your budget? Take a look are some of these reasonable wedding photography packages, available for newly engaged couples in Toronto.

Questions or comments?

My name is Wayne and I have been working in the wedding industry for over ten years, primarily as a photographer. I have done work for huge photography companies as well as smaller and niche-market studios. The information presented in this article are based on published reports and conversations with industry vendors such as venue owners, planners and other photographers. If you have any questions and comments, feel free to reach out using the contact form by clicking on this link.