Just like you, I have listened to many podcasts and read blogs about this subject. To charge or to do it free. Every time I hear or read this, most say you need to charge something, or your business or service is no value. Some do it free to get their business started. I have a different point, and it's my view only.
Dolly for Book night in Montpelier, Ohio
I like to donate my service instead of saying it is free. I understand I have value. But my worth is what I believe in. I think God gave me a talent and use that talent wisely. I look at doing free and donation to whatever the event is. That could be a wedding. Maybe the couple had a horrible situation and can’t afford a photographer? Perhaps its an event like the one I just did in Ohio for United Way. I think when it comes to charging or not charging, it comes to your heart. I don’t care if you are doing photography as a full-time or part-time or a hobbyist. It’s about your heart. I also understand that you are a business, and you need money to survive. But things have a way to work out. You have to do what is right for you and your business. For me, money is not everything. Now I can say this because I don’t today do photography for a living. I did at one time, and maybe that is why I don’t do it fulltime today. Because even then, I just felt it was right to donate my time even though I needed the money. Someday I will not need the money, and I will be based on what kind of person I was while I was living. This trumps everything for me.