If you’ve ever stared at your price list wondering whether you’re really ready to raise it, this episode is for you. In this coaching call from The Motherhood Anthology podcast, TMA mentor Katie Lamb sits down with host Kim Box to answer real questions from TMA members, and much of the conversation centers on photography pricing, the confidence to charge it, and the client experience that makes it worth every dollar.
Katie has spent 16 years building a photography business rooted in newborn and boudoir work, and she’s known inside TMA for her honest, practical take on pricing and marketing. In this episode, she works through member questions live, covering everything from when to raise your rates to how to build the kind of client experience that keeps referrals coming in.
Knowing When to Raise Your Prices
One of the first questions Katie tackles is one almost every photographer asks eventually: should you wait until your calendar is full before raising your prices? For a member sitting at $750 and wanting to move to $950, Katie’s answer was to just make the jump now. Her reasoning comes down to how clients actually perceive pricing. A $200 difference rarely moves someone out of the price bracket they were already comfortable with, so incremental increases often don’t change who books you, they just leave money on the table.
Katie explained that she thinks about pricing in three broad buckets rather than a long ladder of small increases. “I always price them at like low-range, mid-range, and luxury pricing,” she said, and staying aware of which bucket you’re in (and which one you’re aiming for) makes the decision to raise prices feel less like guesswork. She was careful to note this advice shifts for someone charging closer to $350, where the client base and strategy look different. The larger point stands either way: know your bucket, and don’t be afraid to launch straight into the pricing you actually want to be known for.
Showing Up Consistently
Pricing confidence, Katie said, comes from somewhere deeper than a number on a website. It comes from knowing you can walk into any session, handle whatever the day throws at you, and still deliver beautiful images. That kind of trust with a client is what turns into referrals, and Katie pointed out that referrals have been her number one marketing channel for years. Clients who feel like you handled their toddler’s meltdown with ease, or made a tricky lighting situation look effortless, are the ones who tell their friends.
She also walked through practical Instagram strategy, especially the shift toward keywords over hashtags. Her advice was to treat captions the way you’d treat a blog post, working in the same local, market-specific language you’re already targeting in your SEO, rather than relying on a stack of hashtags. She encouraged photographers to commit to three consistent months on Instagram (five posts a week, with a real plan behind them) before judging whether it’s working.
Katie’s own journey backs this up. She started out shooting weddings at $150 a session to help put her husband through law school, working 50 or more weddings a year in the process. That volume is exactly what built the confidence she now points to as the real driver of pricing success. “Confidence comes with experience,” she said, and it’s a theme she returned to again and again throughout the call.
Why Community Makes the Difference
A recurring thread throughout the call was that no one builds a successful photography business in isolation. Katie talked through her own decision to bring on an associate photographer, and she was clear that she never went looking for the right person, she waited for a natural fit. Her advice for anyone considering the same move is to protect your values and your brand first, since an associate’s work and reputation become an extension of your own.
Comparison came up too, gently but directly. Members just starting out sometimes measure themselves against photographers who have been doing this for fifteen years inside the same community, and Katie reminded everyone that a photographer’s current season rarely tells the whole story of how they got there. Her advice was simple: find your people. That’s exactly the spirit The Motherhood Anthology community was built around, a place where members don’t have to figure out pricing, marketing, or the messy middle of business ownership on their own.
Listen and Learn More
This conversation with Katie Lamb is packed with even more than what’s covered here, including her take on gallery upgrades, studio rental fees, and building a referral program from scratch. If you’ve been sitting on a price increase or wondering how to build more confidence into your client experience, this episode is worth a listen.
Find Katie Lamb at katielamb.com or on Instagram at @katiebethlamb.
Ready to build a business that reflects your own creative voice? The Motherhood Anthology membership gives you access to expert mentors, live coaching, monthly marketing suites, and a private community of photographers who are invested in your success. Learn more and join at themotherhoodanthology.com.
The Motherhood Anthology is a community and educational resource for photographers who want a profitable and sustainable business they love. With 15+ expert mentors and 7+ years of proven content, TMA helps portrait photographers build confident, thriving businesses through monthly education, mentorship, and a supportive community of 700+ members.
