Creative & production services
Books and taxes for product photography studios.
A per-SKU photo package, a ghost mannequin add-on, a batch editing contractor, and a client shipping three hundred products for next week's shoot. Gus sorts all of it, an accountant checks every transaction, and you get one number a month.
- From $197 a month
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever
March came in at $10,500. Bellrose Apparel shipped 420 SKUs for ghost mannequin shots, so that invoice landed bigger than a normal batch and I flagged it as one project, not routine monthly work.
- Bellrose Apparel 420 SKUsPer-SKU photo packages
- Retainer clients x6Monthly retainers
- L. Tran batch editingFreelance editors
- Return shipping, samplesProduct shipping and returns
- Turntable motor repairEquipment
Why your books are different
Product photography books go wrong at the per-SKU invoice and the sample shipment.
A generalist sees a photo shoot and calls it one sale. Your business is priced per SKU or per hundred items, runs on batch editing contractors, and depends on clients shipping and returning physical product on a schedule you do not control. When the books do not track volume and shipping, the month looks random.
-
1
A big SKU batch looks like a normal month, only bigger
A client shipping 400 SKUs for ghost mannequin shots instead of the usual 50 makes one invoice much larger than a typical retainer, which can hide that it was really a one-time surge, not a new baseline.
What we doFlags large SKU batches as their own project so your regular retainer income does not look artificially inflated or unpredictable. -
2
A freelance batch editor is not a software cost
Sending a week's worth of shots to a freelance editor for background removal and color correction means paying invoices that can land next to your Lightroom or Capture One bill.
What we doKeeps batch editor payments in their own line and tracks what you have paid each contractor toward the 1099 threshold. -
3
Sample shipping and returns get buried in supplies
Clients ship product to you for the shoot and you often ship it back, which means real postage and packaging costs tied to specific clients that can get lost in a general supplies category.
What we doKeeps shipping and return costs in their own line so you can see what handling physical product actually costs per client. -
4
A turntable rig or lightbox gets filed as a supply
A 360-degree turntable, a controlled lightbox, or a new macro lens can cost thousands, and filed as a supply purchase it wrecks the month and misses the equipment write-off.
What we doFlags turntable and lightbox purchases the day they show up, logs them as equipment, and gets the accountant's call on how to write them off. -
5
Rush orders for a launch date get priced the same as routine work
A client launching on Amazon in three days needs the same shots turned around in a fraction of the usual time, and that rush work is worth more than routine batch photography, but often gets billed the same.
What we doKeeps rush fees in their own line so you can see how much of your income comes from tight-deadline work.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for a product photography studio.
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
- Per-SKU photo packagesPriced by the item or by the hundred, billed per batch.
- Monthly retainersOngoing catalog clients billed on a regular schedule.
- Rush feesCharged for a faster turnaround than the standard timeline.
- Add-on servicesGhost mannequin, 360-degree spins, and lifestyle add-ons priced apart from the base package.
Money out
- Freelance editorsContractors brought in for batch background removal and color correction.
- Product shipping and returnsPostage and packaging to receive and return client product.
- EquipmentTurntables, lightboxes, and lenses, logged so they get written off right.
- Studio spaceRent or lease for the shoot and storage space.
- Props and backgroundsBackdrop paper rolls, mannequin forms, and staging props.
- Editing softwareLightroom, Capture One, and batch processing plugins.
What we watch for you
- Batch margin
What a SKU batch brought in against editing and shipping costs, so you can price the next one right.
- Retainer floor
Monthly retainer income against total income, the base you can count on before a surge order.
- Editor spend
What you pay batch editors against total income, tracked toward 1099 season.
- The set-aside
What you will owe on batch and retainer income, tracked monthly so April holds no surprise.
Ask Gus
Things product photography studio owners 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.
No, I flagged it as its own project batch, so your regular retainer number stays clean and this surge shows up as exactly what it was.
Yes, since it crossed $2,000. I have been tracking every payment to her, so the form is ready by January 31.
Usually it can. I logged it as equipment, not supplies, and flagged it so the accountant makes the call with your whole year in view.
The tax side
The tax side of a product photography studio.
Most of what goes wrong here is treating equipment like supplies and losing track of freelance editing costs.
What your return has to get right
Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.
- Turntables, lightboxes, and lensesBusiness equipment can usually be written off the year you buy it, with 100 percent bonus depreciation for property acquired after January 19, 2025, covering most turntable and lighting purchases.
- Freelance editor 1099sAny batch editor not on payroll who you paid $2,000 or more in 2026 gets a 1099-NEC by January 31. Gus keeps the list all year.
- The pass-through deductionMost owner-operated product photography studios can take up to 20 percent of business profit off their taxable income when batch and retainer income is tracked cleanly.
- Self-employment tax for solo studiosA one-person studio pays 15.3 percent self-employment tax on top of income tax, so the set-aside has to cover both, even during a big SKU batch month.
Deductions product photography studios miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- Turntables and lightboxes
- Macro and studio lenses
- Backdrop paper and backgrounds
- Mannequin forms and props
- Freelance editor fees
- Shipping and packaging for samples
- Editing software licenses
- Studio rent or lease
- Insurance for gear and liability
- External drives and cloud backup
- Continuing education courses
- Portfolio and client portal hosting
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 product photography year, kept every month.
Launch schedules and catalog refreshes move fast. Your team keeps you ahead of both and the return besides. Every month in between, your bookkeeper closes the books and speaks up the moment something looks off.
- January
Plan the year
Last year's return gets started, the batch editor 1099 list is ready, and a monthly set-aside means April is already handled.
- April
Filed. Done.
Your return is filed and signed while spring catalog refreshes keep the queue full. The set-aside covered it since January, so the bill is not a surprise.
- July
Halfway check
Where you stand, what you will owe, and whether spring catalog refresh season changed the number.
- October
Before holiday listings
Sellers rush new listings before the holiday shopping season. Gus looks at equipment you might buy and moves worth making before December.
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 product photography studios. 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 product photography studio owners ask first.
A client sends a huge SKU batch once and then goes quiet. Does that mess up my numbers?
No. Gus flags a surge batch as its own project, so your regular retainer income stays clear and does not look like it suddenly grew or shrank.
I use a few different freelance editors depending on volume. Does that complicate the books?
No, Gus tracks each contractor's total across the year no matter how many you use or how the work is split.
Do I write off a new lightbox all at once?
Often you can. Turntables and lightboxes can usually be deducted in the year you buy them, and sometimes spreading the cost out is the better call. Gus flags the purchase and the accountant decides with your whole year in view.
Shipping product back to clients costs me real money. Is that deductible?
Yes. Postage and packaging to receive and return client product are ordinary business expenses, and Gus keeps them in their own line so you can see what handling product actually costs.
My books are a year behind. Is that a problem?
No. Send whatever batch invoices and statements you have. Gus sorts them by SKU and client, and most owners know where they stand within a week.
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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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