How is this different from the Photography Package Quoting Calculator?

That one prices the shoot before you take it. This one measures what it actually earned afterwards. Different questions, different days.

Should I count my own shooting time as a cost?

Yes, at your all-in hourly cost. If your own hours are free, every shoot looks profitable and you never learn which ones are not.

Does this work in Excel and Google Sheets?

Both. Google Sheets: File > Import, or open and make a copy. Excel 365: open it directly. No macros, no add-ons, nothing to install.

Should I measure margin against the estimate or the actual?

Always the actual. Measuring against the estimate tells you how good your forecast was, which is useful, but it is not profit.

I'm not confident with spreadsheets. Will I manage?

Yes. The white cells are the only ones you touch. The Quick-Start Guide has your first real number on screen in about five minutes, and if you get stuck, message me.

Home → Tools → Shoot Profitability Calculator

Shoot Profitability Calculator for Photographers

You shot it, edited it, delivered it, and still can't say what the job paid.

Compare what a shoot was quoted at against what it actually cost in shooting, editing and retouching hours, and find where the day really went.

$39 USD · one-time

Buy on Etsy · $39Gumroad coming soon

Instant download · Excel & Google Sheets · works on Mac and Windows · on Etsy today, Gumroad soon

Shoot Profitability Calculator dashboard

Who it's for

Made for the way you actually work.

Photographers pricing next year off what shoots really cost
Wedding shooters whose editing hours never hit the invoice
Studios juggling second shooters, rentals and travel
Part-timers deciding whether the numbers support going full time

What's included

Everything in one file.

Dashboard: True margin, variance and cumulative profit. Read-only.
Start Here: Five steps from opening the file to a real number on screen.
Shoot Costing: Where you close out one job. The main working sheet.
Shoot Log: Every job you have closed, and cumulative profit across them.
Settings: Your target margin and the cost categories you track.
Instructions: What each sheet does, and what to do if a number looks off.
About: Version, license and support.
PDF Quick-Start Guide: two pages, first result in five minutes

How it works

Three steps to a number you trust.

Open Settings. Set the margin a shoot is supposed to earn, and edit the cost categories to match how you break one down.
Open Shoot Costing. Name the shoot, enter the Package value excluding tax, and the date it completed.
Enter your estimate for each category, the numbers you worked from before you started.

A look inside

The screens you'll be working in.

List of the eight sheets in the shoot profitability calculator

Shoot Costing sheet comparing estimated and actual cost by line

Shoot Log sheet with every delivered shoot and cumulative profit

Settings sheet with target margin and cost categories

Three steps: enter the estimate, enter the actuals, read the margin

Compatibility: works in Google Sheets and Microsoft Excel 365

Questions

Good to know.

How is this different from the Photography Package Quoting Calculator?: That one prices the shoot before you take it. This one measures what it actually earned afterwards. Different questions, different days.
Should I count my own shooting time as a cost?: Yes, at your all-in hourly cost. If your own hours are free, every shoot looks profitable and you never learn which ones are not.
Does this work in Excel and Google Sheets?: Both. Google Sheets: File > Import, or open and make a copy. Excel 365: open it directly. No macros, no add-ons, nothing to install.
Should I measure margin against the estimate or the actual?: Always the actual. Measuring against the estimate tells you how good your forecast was, which is useful, but it is not profit.
I'm not confident with spreadsheets. Will I manage?: Yes. The white cells are the only ones you touch. The Quick-Start Guide has your first real number on screen in about five minutes, and if you get stuck, message me.

One mispriced job costs more than this.

$39 once, and it's yours to keep. It pays for itself the first time it stops you underpricing a job or leaving margin on the table. No subscription, no login, just a file that does the maths.

Buy on Etsy · $39Gumroad coming soon

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