Know Your CODB
Knowing what it costs you just to wake up every morning is critical information for all business owners to have. Right now, with a country in the throes of an economic downturn and an industry undergoing disruptive change, it’s even more crucial for photographers to do this exercise.
The National Press Photographers Association offers an excellent Cost of Doing Business calculator as part of their Business Practices Module within the Professional Development section of their website.
Keep in mind that this tool was developed for photojournalists so some of the default expense numbers may be low for commercial photographers with greater overhead. Also, the default of 100 days under “Total days per year you expect to bill for shooting” may be aggressive for many commercial photographers whose projects involve more substantial pre- and post-production time as well as those who are still building a client base.
