Photography prices in Pattaya span a very wide range. People photography is priced by the hour: from 1,000 baht with a beginner to about 10,000 at the premium end. A wedding is a format of its own: a full day of 6–10 hours plus an album, from 30,000 baht up. A corporate portrait is charged at the same hourly rate as any other people shoot; the word “corporate” carries no surcharge.
That spread is no accident. Behind every price is a specific list of what’s included and what isn’t. Most unpleasant surprises after a shoot come down not to “the photographer cheated me” but to “I didn’t understand what I was buying.” A price is a contract, and it has to be read carefully.
What a standard package includes
Shooting time. How many hours the photographer works with you: usually 1, 2, 3, or 4 hours, or a full day (6–10 hours for weddings).
Location. Either stated in the offer or agreed with you. If the photographer is limited in where they can go (one particular area only, for example), that affects the price.
Number of final photos. This is the critical variable. It may be stated as:
- “All edited photos” (meaning the photographer makes the selection, usually 20–30% of what was shot)
- A specific number (e.g., “50 final photos”)
- “From 30” (a minimum; there may be more)
- “All originals + 20 edited” (a combination)
If no number is given, ask. This is the most common cause of disappointment: the client thought they’d get 200 photos and got 50.
Type of editing. Basic color correction (always), skin retouching (often included, but not always), removing stray people or objects from the background (rarely included), a creative edit with film tones (depends on the photographer’s style).
Delivery time. Anywhere from 3 days to 4–6 weeks, depending on the photographer’s workload and the type of shoot. Weddings usually take 2–6 weeks. Family and couples shoots take 1–3 weeks. Rush delivery usually costs extra.
File format. JPEG (always), RAW (rarely included, usually at extra cost). JPEG is enough for a family album. For commercial use or large-format printing you may need RAW.
Usage rights. Personal use (always included), commercial use (for a business or advertising, at extra cost), exclusive rights (the photographer can’t use the photos in their own portfolio; rare and expensive).
What’s often not included
Transport. If the shoot is at a distant location (Bang Saray, Sattahip, Koh Larn), there may be a travel surcharge. Ask.
Early or late hours. A shoot before 7:00 in the morning or after 7:00 in the evening is sometimes charged at a higher rate. For wedding photographers that’s the norm.
Additional locations. If the standard package includes one location and you want two, there will be an extra charge. Check this before the shoot.
Assistant. For complex shoots (weddings, corporate events), this is usually a separate line in the budget.
Additional equipment. A drone, special lighting, or a tripod for long exposures sometimes costs extra.
Rush delivery. If the standard turnaround is three weeks and you need the photos in five days, that usually means +30–100% on the price.
Additional revisions. The standard package usually includes one or two rounds of revisions. Each further round costs extra.
Prints or an album. If you want physical products, they’re charged separately. Prices range from 1,000 baht for a 20-page photo book to 30,000+ for a premium handmade album.
Full file set. If you want every photo that was taken (not just the selected, edited ones), that’s usually priced separately.
How to read a quote
Compare the full package, not the number. Photographer A: 8,000 baht, 1 hour, 30 photos, delivery in 2 weeks. Photographer B: 12,000 baht, 1 hour, 60 photos, delivery in 1 week, passersby removed from the background. Worked out per photo, B may turn out cheaper — and with better service.
What “from” means. “From 5,000 baht” is the base price of the simplest option. The real price may be two or three times higher. Ask for a figure for your particular shoot.
“All-inclusive.” This phrase is usually untrue. Ask specifically: what isn’t included? The “not included” list tells you more than the “included” one.
Discounts and promotions. A “30% seasonal discount” in the tourist market is usually marketing, not a real discount. The price with the “discount” is the real price. Don’t count it as a bonus.
Deposit. It depends on the size of the job. For a big or important shoot (a wedding, a peak date, a large package), serious photographers take a deposit of 30–50% when you confirm, and that’s normal. For a small, ordinary shoot in town (1–3 hours, not a holiday date), photographers don’t usually chase a deposit: as a rule it’s handed over only when you meet in person. The logic is simple: photography is a service, not manufacturing, and if a non-refundable deposit is the only thing keeping the client on board, nothing good will come of the shoot anyway. Still, bear the local norm in mind: in Thailand a deposit is non-refundable by default if the client cancels, so agree on rescheduling and force majeure in advance.
Budget benchmarks in Pattaya
These figures come from the public profiles of several dozen photographers in Pattaya and Bangkok, verified through MyWed, their own websites, and Facebook. They are a snapshot, not a rule.
One-hour family or couples shoot (hourly rate by level):
- Beginners: 1,000–2,000 baht
- Standard: 2,000–3,500 baht
- Pro: 3,500–5,000 baht
- Premium: 5,000–10,000 baht
For a ready-made table of rates by level, a list of add-ons, and answers to common questions about price, see the prices page.
Wedding photography (full day, 6–10 hours + album):
- Full day: 30,000–80,000 baht
- Premium with a team: 80,000–150,000+ baht
Corporate portrait. This is the same people photography priced by the hour, at the rates in the table above (from 1,000 to 10,000 baht an hour), with no separate surcharge for the word “corporate.” What makes the difference is technique and approach.
Real estate photography. The spread is wide: from 1,000 baht for a studio apartment shot by a beginner to 30,000+ for a villa shot by a pro (interior and exterior, day and evening). The price is driven by the size of the property, the number of photos, HDR, and shooting in two sessions, daytime and evening.
Rush shoot:
- Usually +30–50% on top of the standard price for the same format.
International aggregators (MyWed and the like). Pattaya rates look higher there, around $95–200 an hour, because those prices are aimed at international clients. Don’t use them as a local benchmark, only as an upper bound: to estimate the local price of the same shoot, divide them by roughly two to two and a half.
Estimate what the shoot costs the photographer
A simple way to tell whether a price is reasonable is to build it from the bottom up, out of what the shoot costs the photographer. There are three components: a day’s rental of their equipment (a full-frame body, a couple of fast lenses, off-camera lighting); fair pay for three or four days of real work (a day of shooting plus two or three days of culling and editing); and roughly a third on top for taxes, if they work legally. A price noticeably below that total means corners were cut somewhere: on lighting, on editing, or on working legally. A price noticeably above it with no visible extras (a team, a special location, premium post-production) means you’re overpaying.
When the price looks too low
1,000–2,000 baht per hour is a beginner’s rate: high-volume shooting, in daylight, with minimal editing. For simple pictures that’s an honest entry point, not a scam. The catch comes when, for that money, you’re promised pro-level lighting, selection, and retouching: that promise won’t be kept.
A wedding for 8,000 baht means either an assembly-line studio doing fast, templated work or a beginner. Either one is a risk for a wedding.
That doesn’t mean a low price is always bad. Some beginners take good photos for little money to build up a portfolio. But insist on seeing full sets from their shoots, ask about their experience, and don’t rush.
When the price looks too high
A one-hour family shoot for 30,000 baht is at the top end even for premium studios. There has to be a reason for it: a studio with a well-known name, a special location, an extra service. If there’s no reason, it’s marketing.
A wedding for 200,000+ baht is the premium tier. It should include a team (a lead photographer plus an assistant or second shooter), a full day, premium post-production, a finished album, and sometimes video. If the offer doesn’t include them, you’re overpaying.
What to discuss before you pay
The full list of what’s included. Get it in writing. Not “everything we discussed” but specific wording in a message or a contract: time, number of photos, editing, location, delivery time, file format, revisions.
What happens if something goes wrong. Rain, you fall ill, the photographer gets sick, a guest is late, the hotel won’t allow the shoot. A serious photographer has a policy for such cases: rescheduling, partial credit, force majeure terms. It should be written down in advance.
Additional expenses. Who pays for transport to a distant location, a permit to shoot at a particular venue, and props? Sometimes the photographer includes these in the price; sometimes they’re charged separately.
Payment schedule. A deposit now, the balance before the shoot or after it. If the photographer demands full payment a month before the shoot with no alternative, that’s not standard practice.
Who is responsible for what. If the photographer doesn’t show up, what are you owed (by law, the deposit is returned in that case)? If you’re the one who cancels, what can you count on (the deposit usually stays with the photographer)? This isn’t paranoia; these are normal business terms.
A low price with a vague offer is more often a risk than a bargain. A high price with no justification means overpaying. A reasonable price is one where you can see how the work is structured and the photographer is ready to discuss it in writing before you pay.