Home/Photo Needs Calculator
Melbourne · VIC
Photo Needs Calculator · 60 seconds
How many photos
do you actually need?
Pick your menu size and the channels you actually use. We'll calculate how many photos you need and the indicative shoot cost.
Why most Melbourne restaurants overpay
A 24-dish Vietnamese restaurant in Footscray doesn't need the same image library as a 12-course degustation in Fitzroy. Most photographers quote a flat number — we've seen briefs as low as 18 images carry a venue through 12 months, and others need 140+ images across menu, Uber Eats, Google Business and Reels. This calculator uses the same ratios we apply internally — full menu at 1:1, Google Business at ~15% of dish count (cover + 10 hero items), Uber Eats matched to your live menu, Instagram supporting crops at ~40%. Pick the channels you actually run and ignore the rest.
Typical Melbourne briefs
- Small café, Brunswick — 14 dishes, Instagram + Google + website = ~22 images, $480
- Mid restaurant, Carlton — 26 dishes, full menu + Uber Eats + Instagram = ~58 images, $980
- Group venue, CBD — 60 dishes across 2 menus + reels + GBP = ~110 images, $1,950
Also offered · One photographer, one library
Other ways we shoot for Melbourne hospitality.
Menu Photography
Full-menu image libraries — built for Uber Eats, your website and Google.
Food & Beverage
Hero plates and signature dishes for marketing, launches and editorial.
Venue & Interior
Front of house, fit-out and ambience photography — real service, real tables.
Brand & Campaign
Multi-frame campaigns for openings, PR, franchise rollouts and editorials.
How to read your number
If the calculator put you under 30 images, you almost certainly only need a single 3-hour shoot — most CBD, Carlton or South Yarra venues at this scale book Tuesday to Thursday morning slots. Between 30–70 images is a standard half-day shoot covering web, Google Business and one delivery app — typical for a 22–35 dish menu in Brunswick, Richmond or Footscray. Above 100 images you're into a full-day shoot — common for two-trade venues, multi-venue groups, or anyone running Uber Eats, DoorDash and Menulog concurrently. The volume discount drops the per-image rate below $20 once you cross 100 images.
What this number doesn't include
The estimate covers stills only. Reels are a separate line — typically $180 for a pack of 3 vertical clips, $350 for 8 clips, $620 for a 15-clip campaign set. Drone exterior (relevant for rooftop venues in Southbank or Brunswick warehouse conversions) adds $220 for a CASA- approved sub-25kg sortie. Branded campaign concepts (talent, hair/makeup, art direction beyond standard hospitality editorial) are quoted bespoke. Everything else — surface styling, glassware, props, lighting, colour grading and first re-edit per dish — is already inside the calculator figure.
Final step · Hand-confirmed quotes
Want this
locked in writing?
Pass your channel mix to us via the quote form — we'll respond by phone within one business day.
Request a shoot quote