Product and food commissions priced per item or per day — from S$30 an image, minimum 10, or S$1,800 for a styled half day — with the shot list, the usage rights and the retouch level written down before anything is photographed.
SHOT LIST FIRST / what is photographed, and what the licence covers
Three commission types
What was bought, and what the files had to do.
E-COMMERCE / 120 SKUs / FOUR STUDIO DAYS
A catalogue, shot as one set.
Masked to white · 3000 px square · JPG and TIFF · 5 working days
Every item lit and retouched on one level, so the listing page reads as one catalogue instead of four shoots stitched together.
What the shot list held ↗
Front and one angle per item, masked to white, with one flat lay per ten items. The brand named the marketplace and the pixel size with the brief, so nothing was rejected after upload and no image had to be re-shot.
STYLED & LIFESTYLE / HALF DAY / FIVE SET-UPS
Ten images, five sets, one morning.
10 selected images · stylist and hand model included · props inside the stated allowance
Scenes built around the product rather than a white box, with the props and the set-ups agreed before the studio day is booked.
How the allowance works ↗
A stated ingredient and prop allowance sits on the quotation. Anything beyond it is quoted and approved in writing before it is bought, so a set that grows does not grow the invoice quietly.
FOOD & RECIPE / ONE STUDIO DAY / EIGHT DISHES
The dish, and the way it is plated.
11 edited images · 10 working days · menu-sized crops in the same folder
Finished plates and in-process frames, plated for the menu, the delivery listing and the aggregator that rejects an image on spec.
What arrives with the files ↗
The finish and the process frames arrive together, plus one wider set per dish for delivery listings. The dish is styled on the day, so the plating can be changed while the food is still warm rather than re-shot a week later.
Around 60 commissions a year since 2019, from ten-item listings to four-day catalogues. Every figure below — the set-ups, the selection count, the retouch level, the licence term — is written on the quotation before a carton is sent.
What a commission can be
Three ways to buy the work.
E-commerce on white
Masked, colour-checked images per item, sized to the listing spec you name, priced per image with a falling rate as the volume band rises.
Per image / Masking / Listing crops
Styled & lifestyle
Scene set-ups with a stylist, props and a hand model, sold by the half day or the full day with the number of set-ups and selected images agreed first.
Half day / Full day / Included allowance
Food & recipe
Plating, ingredient handling and in-process frames, for menus, delivery listings and the platforms that reject an image on spec.
Finished dishes / Process frames / Aggregator crops
How far the retouch goes, and where the extras stop.
Two arguments happen after a shoot: how far the retouching went, and what was not in the quote. Both are named and priced here, before the shoot.
Retouch levels
As shot — the frame out of camera, corrected for exposure and colour only. Included in every commission.
Basic pass — dust, scratches and a clean mask, included on white-background work.
Standard — blemishes, seams, reflections and label clean-up, sold per image.
High-end — composite sets, reflection and shadow rebuilds, background replacement, sold per image or per retouch hour and quoted after the frame is chosen.
STYLING / PLATING / RETOUCH
Retouching beyond the included pass is priced per image, so a catalogue can be budgeted per SKU instead of argued about per shot.
What moves the number
The item count, and how many angles each one needs. One image per item per angle is the unit; a second angle is a second unit, not a free extra.
The background. White is the standard set and the cheapest one. Black, coloured or lifestyle staging adds set-up time per item.
What the images have to do. A marketplace listing, a website hero and a paid campaign are three different files at three different retouch levels.
Whether the work comes to us. Studio days are priced per set-up; an on-location day adds travel and set-up time inside your premises.
The date. Expedited turnaround moves a commission up the queue for a stated fee, agreed before the shoot.
Included allowance, and beyond it: a stated figure per shoot day for ingredients and props, with the stylist and a hand model included on styled and food days. Speciality ingredients, custom prop sourcing and prop purchase beyond the allowance are quoted and approved in writing before anything is bought on your behalf.
Illustrative concept pricing, not a quotation. Every figure is a per-unit charge that sits outside the commission fee, quoted as its own line. Rates are for studio work inside the stated allowance; a set that needs a different background, an extra location, a specialist retouch or a purchased prop is quoted before the work starts.
Extra
Unit
From
Black or coloured background
Per image, instead of the standard white set
S$25
Masking or clipping beyond the included pass
Per image, on complex or reflective items
S$50
Standard retouch
Per image
S$30
Additional styled set-up
Per set-up, with the included set-ups named on the tier
S$300
On-location day
Per trip inside Singapore, covering travel and set-up time
S$200
Expedited turnaround
Per commission, where a launch date moves the work up the queue
S$300
Group or lifestyle shots
Quoted per set, because the complexity varies with the group
Quoted as a line
This is the whole extras list. Nothing else is added to an invoice after a shoot without a written change order that you accept first. If a brief turns out to need something that is not on this list, we price it and ask before doing it.
Three ways to spend less without losing the image: send one item first, so the retouch level is agreed before the rest of the carton follows; group the items that share a set-up into one order instead of two shoots; and name the marketplaces with the brief, because a listing crop costs nothing when it is planned and a re-shoot costs a studio day.
A commission is comparable to another studio's only when the shot list and the licence sit on the same line as the price. Each order below carries its own shot list and its own usage line.
Illustrative concept pricing, not a quotation. Figures are for studio work with the products or ingredients delivered to the studio, the stated number of set-ups, and the included retouch pass. They exclude props and ingredients beyond the stated allowance, an on-location day, expedited turnaround, complex retouching and any use outside the usage line shown. A catalogue of 50 images or more is quoted per catalogue. Confirm current rates with the studio.
Commission
Turnaround
From
Per image · white background One set-up per item, masking and the basic retouch pass included Shot list inside it: Front and one angle per item, cleaned and masked; one flat lay per ten items on request Usage included: 2 years, channels you own or pay for
5 working days
S$30 per image, minimum 10
Styled half day 4 hours · up to 5 set-ups Shot list inside it: 10 selected images: 2 hero, 6 lifestyle, 2 flat lay, with the stylist and a hand model included Usage included: 2 years, channels you own or pay for
7 working days
S$1,800
Full studio day 8 hours · up to 10 set-ups Shot list inside it: 20 selected images: 4 hero, 12 lifestyle, 4 flat lay, props and a hand model included Usage included: 2 years, channels you own or pay for
7 working days
S$3,200
Food & recipe day 8 hours · studio kitchen or your premises Shot list inside it: 8 finished dishes and 3 in-process frames, with food styling and ingredient handling, plus a menu-sized set per dish Usage included: 2 years, channels you own or pay for
10 working days
S$3,600
Illustrative concept pricing, not a quotation. The per-image rate falls as the volume band rises, and the whole catalogue is shot on one retouch level so the images look like one set. A band cannot be split across two shoots to reach a lower rate; images added later are priced at the band the original commission reached.
Images in the commission
Rate per image
What changes
10 to 15
S$30
Set-up is charged once per item, masking included
16 to 30
S$26
Items grouped by set-up and lit in one pass
31 to 50
S$22
Two studio days scheduled back to back, one retouch level throughout
50 and above
Quoted per catalogue
Batch masking, a fixed delivery date and a named retoucher
Your files are prepared for the platform you sell on — the listing spec is a deliverable, not an afterthought. Name the marketplaces and the crop, square and file rules when you send the brief: masked JPG and TIFF at the stated pixel size, with the background colour set to the spec, so a listing is not rejected after it is uploaded.
A launch date decides which commission you buy. Every order carries its own turnaround, and expedited work is priced before the shoot rather than after it.
What
When
How it arrives
Per-image and half-day work
5 to 7 working days
A download link with JPG and TIFF files at the stated pixel size
Full day and food day
7 to 10 working days
The same download link, with the menu-sized or listing-sized crops in the same folder
Selection to approve
2 working days after the shoot
An unretouched selection to choose from, so retouching starts on frames you have actually seen
Expedited
Agreed date, priced in the extras table
Moves the commission up the queue; it does not change the number of images or the retouch level
Products sent in
Logged on arrival
Cartons opened, counted and photographed on arrival; a shortfall is reported in writing the same day
Returns
Within 5 working days of delivery
Shipped back insured, with a stated handling fee per carton; collection in person is free of that fee
Files
12 months
The gallery stays available for at least twelve months, then a copy is made available on request
The turnaround starts on the day the products or ingredients arrive and the shot list is confirmed, not the day the enquiry is sent. If a carton arrives short or damaged, that is reported before the shoot rather than absorbed into it.
Usage rights, written down
What the licence allows, and for how long.
"Two years, channels you own or pay for" is the standard line on every commission. It is a real licence with dates in it, so it is written out here rather than left in a footnote.
How an extension is priced
Renewing the same licence on the same channels is priced against the original shoot fee, never as a flat per-image fee — the shoot is what you are extending.
A channel you did not license, or paid media outside your own accounts, is priced as its own licence and costs more than the original one, because the audience is no longer yours.
Exclusivity in a product category is priced against what the studio gives up: the work it cannot take from your competitors while the term runs.
A full buy-out of copyright is a different agreement from a usage licence and is quoted as one, with its own term.
Every channel you own or pay for: website, marketplace listings, your own social accounts, email, print menus and paid social
Crops and edits of the delivered images for those uses
The edited file count and pixel sizes stated on the order
Quoted separately, or outside it
A longer term, or a term that has already expired — renewed by a written term, never by silence
Resale, distribution or licensing of the images to a third party
Out-of-home, broadcast, billboard and packaging campaigns
Exclusivity in a product category, which restricts what else we may shoot
A full buy-out of copyright, which is a different agreement from a usage licence
Images supplied to a distributor, agency or marketplace as their own marketing material
The licence is issued with the files and it states the delivery date, the channels, the territory and the term, so a marketing team can tell at a glance what it may do and what needs a conversation. Where a commission needs exclusivity or a longer term, we price it on the quotation rather than assume it was included.
From a shot list to delivered files
Six stages, each with an output.
1 · Shot list and brief
What the images have to do, where they will be used, and the platforms they must satisfy. Output: a written shot list with the image count per set.
2 · Written price
The commission, the retouch level, the usage line and the extras that apply. Output: a quotation with the included allowance and the turnaround date on it.
3 · Send-in or delivery
Products and ingredients arrive at the studio, or we come to you for an on-location day. Output: a logged count on arrival and a written note of any shortfall the same day.
4 · The shoot
Set-ups built to the shot list, with the frames checked on screen as the set is lit. Output: the agreed number of set-ups and frames captured, plus a written note if a set needs an extra set-up.
5 · Selection to approve
An unretouched selection is sent within two working days. Output: your chosen frames in writing, which is what retouching is performed on.
6 · Retouch and handover
Retouching to the level bought, then files prepared to the listing spec. Output: the delivered files, the licence in writing, the returns within five working days, and a seven-day window to flag a crop or a retouch note on any frame.
“The shot list, the retouch level and the licence term were on one page before we sent the first carton. The delivery date held, and the extras list turned out to be the whole extras list.”
Catalogue shoot · sample story
Sample story. Not a real customer review.
Before you book a shoot
The licence and the extras, answered first.
What exactly does the usage licence cover?+
Two years from delivery, worldwide, across every channel you own or pay for: your website, marketplace listings, your own social accounts, email, print menus and paid social — including crops and edits of the delivered files. It excludes resale or distribution of the images to a third party, out-of-home and broadcast campaigns, category exclusivity and a buy-out of copyright. Each of those is priced as a change order, so a term can be extended deliberately rather than discovered in a dispute.
How many images do we need, and how is that quoted?+
Count one image per item per angle, plus a flat lay per ten items if the listing needs one. The per-image rate falls as the volume band rises — the band table above shows what 10, 16, 31 and 50 images cost per image — and a catalogue of 50 or more is quoted as one job with a fixed date. Adding images later is priced at the band the original commission reached, so a two-image top-up is not charged at the single-image rate.
What counts as extra, and what is in the price?+
Inside the price: the set-ups named on your commission, the stylist and a hand model on styled and food days, masking and the basic retouch pass on white-background work, and an ingredient and prop allowance stated on the quotation. Extra: black or coloured backgrounds, masking beyond the included pass, standard and high-end retouching, additional set-ups, an on-location day and expedited turnaround. The extras table lists every one of them with a unit rate, and nothing else is added to an invoice without a change order you accept first.
How is retouching scoped, and when do we approve it?+
Retouching has four levels: as shot, a basic pass included on white-background work, standard clean-up sold per image, and high-end work — composites, reflection rebuilds, background replacement — sold per image or per retouch hour. You choose from an unretouched selection sent within two working days of the shoot, and only the chosen frames are retouched, at the level written on the quotation.
How does a send-in shoot work?+
Cartons are opened, counted and photographed on arrival, with any shortfall reported the same day. Turnaround starts when the products arrive and the shot list is confirmed. Returns go back within five working days, insured, with a handling fee per carton that is stated on the quotation before you send anything.
What if our launch date moves up?+
Expedited turnaround moves the commission up the queue for a stated fee, agreed before the shoot; it changes the date, not the number of images or the retouch level. Two working days after the shoot you still see a selection, and the files are still prepared to the listing spec. If the date cannot be met at all, we say so when the brief arrives rather than after the shoot.
Start with the shot list
Tell us what the images are for.
A shot list, the platforms the files must satisfy and a rough number of items is enough for a written price with the usage line on it.
