As you begin to research wedding photographers, you’ll likely notice that many of them require a travel fee outside of a certain radius. Some photographers have a set rate for their travel fees, whether it be certain states or even throughout the country, whereas others calculate and customize the fee based on the destination’s location. Most assume that this fee goes towards gas, car maintenance, meals, lodging, airfare, and car rental – with the rest of it being pocketed as extra income, but there is more to it!
Travel fees also compensate for the time needed to be away from the studio (and family) when traveling. While on the road, all back-end workflow must come to a halt: emails are not able to be responded to, calls are not being returned, new clients are not being booked, photos are not being edited, and albums are not being designed. Photographers consider all of these scenario to determine their travel fee.
I hope this quick explanation gives a bit of insight on the reasoning behind travel fees!