Event Photography Pricing — Cape Town
Transparent rates for corporate events, conferences, awards evenings, brand activations, team-building days, and product launches across Cape Town and the Western Cape.
Event photography rates sit on the higher end of the market — and that’s deliberate. The price reflects what you’re actually paying for: a calm professional working the room without getting in the way, every speaker captured, every key moment documented, and a private gallery delivered fast enough to actually use for press and social.
The package ladder
Anchor packages
| Package | Hours | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Short event | 2 hours | R 4,500 |
| Half-day event | 4 hours | R 7,000 |
| Full-day conference | 8 hours | R 10,500 |
| Long-day event / awards | 12 hours | R 13,500 |
Full hourly breakdown
| Hours | Cost |
|---|---|
| 2 | R 4,500 |
| 3 | R 5,750 |
| 4 (half-day) | R 7,000 |
| 5 | R 8,000 |
| 6 | R 9,000 |
| 7 | R 9,750 |
| 8 (full-day) | R 10,500 |
| 9 | R 11,250 |
| 10 | R 12,000 |
| 11 | R 12,750 |
| 12 | R 13,500 |
| Multi-day / multi-location | Quoted per brief |
Per-hour rate decreases as duration increases — longer events are better value.
What's always included
- ✅ Pre-event brief — phone, video call, or email to walk through the run-of-show
- ✅ All professional gear — Nikon D850 bodies, Nikkor lens kit, on-camera and off-camera Profoto lighting
- ✅ ~100 edited images per hour of coverage — speakers, audience, networking, branding, room shots
- ✅ One full professional edit pass — colour, exposure, sharpness, crop, brand alignment
- ✅ digital channel delivery — high-res JPGs + low-res web-optimised versions
- ✅ Descriptive file naming (not IMG_4523.jpg)
- ✅ Backup gear on every shoot — no critical frame ever missed in 22 years
- ✅ Quiet, fast-moving presence — I work the room without getting in the way of the actual event
Add-ons (priced separately)
Some events need extras. These are quoted separately on the formal estimate:
- 💰 Same-day hero delivery — selected hero images delivered before the event ends, for live PR / social
- 💰 Second shooter — for multi-room conferences, very large audiences, or parallel deadlines
- 💰 Deeper retouching — beyond the standard one-pass edit (per image, agreed upfront)
- 💰 Travel fee — by zone (see below)
- 🚫 RAW files not offered — I shoot JPEG and deliver finished work
Where I work + travel fees
Travel fees are zone-based and added once on the formal quote:
| Zone | Areas | Travel fee |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Northern Suburbs | R 0 |
| 2 | Stellenbosch, Paarl, Cape Town CBD, Blouberg | R 350 |
| 3 | Franschhoek, Somerset West, Southern Suburbs | R 450 |
| 4 | Beyond Cape Town metro | Quoted per brief |
Honest about quotes vs final invoices
My final invoices match the upfront estimate roughly 70% of the time.
The 30% variance is always around scope expansion on the day — running longer than booked, an extra speaker session, an after-party that wasn’t scoped. When that happens, I confirm the adjustment with you on-site before continuing. Never a surprise after the fact.
Estimates are itemised line-by-line — coverage hours, deliverables, travel — emailed to you as a PDF.
How booking works
- You email or use the form below with your event brief.
- I send a formal PDF estimate within one working day — line-item brief, deliverables, travel.
- You confirm the brief.
- Booking fee:
- Date-locked events (basically all events): 30% deposit secures the date.
- Travel-heavy events (flights + accommodation needed): full travel + accommodation cost is the deposit.
- Event day — I arrive ahead of call time, scout the space, run the day calmly.
- Editing — 3 working days standard for commercial event briefs.
- Final invoice + digital channel delivery.
Tell me about your event
The fields below help me scope the brief properly so the estimate I send back is realistic. Reply within one working day.
Common questions
Why are your event rates higher than other Cape Town event photographers?
Because I’m on the higher end of the market and the rates reflect what you’re paying for: zero comebacks, calm professional working the room, every key moment captured, fast turnaround for press and social. I’m not the cheapest — I’m positioned against top-tier event coverage.
How many images do I get?
Roughly 100 edited images per hour of coverage — speakers, audience, networking, branding, key moments. No artificial cap.
Can I get same-day hero images for live press?
Yes, as a paid add-on (R1,200). I deliver a curated set of 5-15 hero images before the event ends, for immediate PR / social use.
Do you bring a second shooter for big events?
For multi-room conferences, very large audiences (300+), or parallel sessions — yes. We discuss this upfront in the brief based on what the day actually needs.
What if the event runs longer than booked?
I confirm the time extension with you on-site before continuing. Never a surprise post-event.
Can I get the RAW files?
No — I shoot JPEG and deliver finished work.
How fast can you deliver?
Three working days standard. Same-day hero images for urgent PR are available as a premium add-on.
Other pricing
For other shoot types, see: