Consumer photography & video
Books and taxes for family and portrait photographers.
Mini-session Saturdays, holiday card rushes, wall art orders, and retainers paid months before the shoot. Gus keeps each one straight, an accountant checks every transaction, and you get one number a month.
- From $197 a month
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever
October brought in $17,000. Twenty-two mini-session retainers landed this month for December shoot dates, so I held them as deposits instead of counting them as October's income.
- HoneyBook session payoutsSession fees
- Mini-session retainersBooked deposits
- WHCC album orderPrint lab costs
- Backdrop Outlet orderProps and backdrops
- Saturday assistant paySecond shooter pay
Why your books are different
A family photographer's books go wrong before the camera ever comes out.
A generalist sees deposits and print bills. Your business is retainers paid months early, batch mini-sessions, and wall art orders billed by a lab weeks later. When the books do not know the timing, a busy booking week gets mistaken for a busy earning month.
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1
Mini-session retainers land early
Twenty families book $75 mini-sessions in a single Saturday, often weeks before the actual shoot date. Counted as October income the day they are booked, a strong booking week can hide that the real shoot happens in December.
What we doHolds mini-session retainers as deposits until the shoot date, so the month that gets counted is the month the work happens. -
2
Wall art orders hide their real cost
A client orders a $600 canvas wrap and framed print set weeks after the session. WHCC bills the studio for the printing and materials, and if that bill gets netted against the sale, the studio never sees what the order actually earned.
What we doBooks the full wall art order as income and the lab's printing cost as its own line, so the real product margin is visible. -
3
A referral swap never makes it into the books
Trading a free session with a florist or venue for styled photos used in marketing is common before a busy fall season, but it is still worth something and belongs on the return at its fair value.
What we doAsks about trade sessions when they come up and gets a fair value logged, so nothing is missing when the return is filed. -
4
A new camera body gets buried in supplies
A second camera body or a new lens bought before the fall rush can run several thousand dollars. Filed as a supply purchase, it flattens the month it was bought and understates the months around it.
What we doFlags the purchase as equipment the day it shows up and gets the accountant's call on how it should be written off. -
5
Holiday card orders blur into the fall rush
November and December card orders often get paid for in October and November right alongside the mini-session rush, and the two revenue streams get lumped into one number nobody can separate later.
What we doKeeps holiday card orders in their own line, so you can see what the fall rush earned from sessions versus from card printing.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for a family portrait business.
Set up once for how you get paid and what you spend. You never pick a category. He does, and an accountant checks it.
Money in
- Session feesThe sitting fee paid on shoot day for a family or portrait session.
- Mini-session retainersDeposits from batch-booked fall mini-sessions, held until the shoot date.
- Print and wall art ordersAlbums, canvas, and framed prints ordered through the online gallery.
- Holiday card ordersCard design and printing add-ons sold every fall.
- Package upgradesExtra outfits, extra locations, or added session time.
Money out
- Print lab costsWhat WHCC or a similar lab bills for albums, canvas, and prints.
- Backdrops and propsPaper rolls, mini-session backdrops, and seasonal props.
- Second shooter and assistant payHelp booked for busy mini-session Saturdays.
- Camera and lighting gearBodies, lenses, and strobes, logged so they get written off right.
- Editing and gallery softwareSubscriptions for editing and client galleries.
- Marketing and referralsLocal ads and styled shoot trades with venues or florists.
- Studio rent or home studio costsSpace, utilities, or the home studio's business-use share.
What we watch for you
- Average session value
What a booking earns once the retainer, session fee, and print order are counted.
- Print margin
What the lab and materials cost against what the family paid for their order.
- Mini-session backlog
Retainers collected for shoots not yet held, so a busy booking week is not mistaken for a busy earning month.
- The set-aside
What you will owe, tracked every month, so April is a number you already knew.
Ask Gus
Things family photographers ask Gus.
Text him like you would text anybody. He answers in plain English, and when a question is above his pay grade, an accountant looks and gets back to you.
It does, just not all in October. Those are deposits for December shoot dates, so I am holding them until the sessions actually happen.
Usually yes, at what the session is worth. I logged it so the accountant can value it correctly on the return.
Often it can. I filed it as equipment, not supplies, and flagged it so the accountant makes the call with your full year in view.
The tax side
The tax side of a family portrait business.
Most of what goes wrong here is timing and labels. Retainers counted too early, a camera filed as a supply, and a set-aside that starts in April instead of January.
What your return has to get right
Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.
- Cameras and lighting gearA camera body, lens, or strobe kit bought for the business can usually be written off in the year you buy it. Bonus depreciation is 100 percent for property bought after January 19, 2025.
- Second shooter 1099sAnyone helping on mini-session Saturdays who is not on payroll gets a 1099-NEC once you pay them $2,000 or more in 2026, due January 31.
- Trade and styled shoot sessionsA session swapped for a venue or flowers is still income at its fair value, even with no cash changing hands. Gus flags it so it lands on the return.
- The pass-through deductionMost owner-operators can take up to 20 percent of business profit off their taxable income, with the deduction phasing down above $201,750 single or $403,500 joint. It comes out right when the books are right all year.
Deductions family and portrait photographers miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- Camera bodies and lenses
- Backdrops and props
- Album and canvas costs
- Editing software
- Gallery software fees
- Second shooter pay
- Mileage to sessions
- Studio liability insurance
- Continuing education
- Website and booking tools
General information about 2026 federal rules, not advice for your business. Your accountant looks at your actual numbers before anything gets filed.
All year, not just April
A family portrait year, kept every month.
Fall books up fast and the return is due on a fixed date. Your team keeps you ahead of both. Every month in between, your bookkeeper closes the books and speaks up the moment something looks off.
- January
Get ready before mini-sessions
Last year's return gets started, the second shooter 1099 list is finalized, and a monthly set-aside is planned before mini-session season fills the calendar.
- April
Filed ahead of summer
Your return is filed and signed well before the next mini-session push, since the set-aside has been running since January.
- July
A look before fall books up
Where you stand heading into the fall rush, and whether spring sessions and print orders already changed what you will owe.
- October
Fall rush begins
Mini-session Saturdays and holiday card orders start stacking up. Gus keeps retainers and print orders sorted as they land.
What you get
What you pay depends on what your business needs, and it does not move after that, busy season or slow. No hourly bills, no surprise invoices, no setup fee.
Book a call- Monthly bookkeeping
Every transaction sorted into categories set up for family and portrait photographers. You never categorize a thing.
- An accountant checks every transaction
Real review, every month, before your books close. Not a spot check.
- Your business tax return, filed
Prepared, reviewed, and signed by that same accountant every year.
- The monthly number
What you made, what you spent, what to set aside for taxes.
- Your own bookkeeper
A real person assigned to your business, in the app whenever you need them. No hold music.
- On your books all year
Every month, not just in April. Your team speaks up whenever something is worth your attention.
- Cancel any time
No contract. No cancellation call. Your books are yours.
Straight answers
Questions family photographers ask first.
Can Gus handle mini-session retainers booked weeks before the shoot?
Yes. He holds those deposits separately and counts the income in the month the session actually happens, so your monthly number reflects real work.
Do I need to report a session I traded with a venue or florist?
Usually, at its fair value. Gus flags trade arrangements when you mention them so the accountant can value them correctly.
I use HoneyBook for bookings. Does that change anything?
No. Keep booking the way you do. Gus works from your bank statement and asks once if a deposit is unclear.
How does Gus handle my WHCC or print lab bill?
He books the full print order as income and the lab's bill as its own cost, so you can see what wall art and albums actually earn you.
Do I write off a new camera body all at once?
Often you can. Equipment bought for the business can usually be deducted in the year you buy it. Gus flags the purchase and the accountant decides with your whole year in view.
My books are behind from the fall rush. Is that a problem?
No. Send whatever bank statements you have and Gus will work through the backlog, session by session, until the months line up again.
Is a real accountant checking my books?
Yes. You get your own bookkeeper, Gus does the first pass on every transaction, and an accountant checks every one before your month closes. That same accountant prepares, signs, and files your business return. Goatkeeper is not a CPA firm, and we never pretend a person looked when they did not.
What does it cost, and can I cancel?
It starts at $197 a month, depending on what your business needs. No setup fee, no hourly bills, no contract. Cancel any time from the app, and your books go with you.
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- Local podcast networks
- Local radio stations
- Niche trade publications
What makes a bookkeeper worth paying for Every business we keep books for
Book a call
Pick a time. That's the whole signup.
Fifteen minutes with a real person on our team. They look at where your books are, tell you straight what it takes to get caught up, and get you set up on the spot if it fits.
- $197 a month to start
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever