Creative work doesn’t bill in tidy round numbers, and your estimate shouldn’t pretend otherwise. A great quote spells out what’s included, what costs extra, and how usage rights are priced — so your client sees the value, you protect your margin, and nobody is surprised when the second round of revisions rolls in.
Build the quote the way creatives actually work
Fee-Lion estimates mix three line types, which is exactly what design and photo work needs. Head to Estimates in the left sidebar and click New Estimate, then layer your scope:
- Add your task lines for the labor — shoot day, retouching, layout design — entered as hours × rate so the client sees how your time adds up.
- Add fee or unit lines for everything that isn’t hourly: prints, props, a stock license, or a flat day rate, entered as quantity × rate.
- Use a surcharge line for rush turnarounds and a discount line for the loyal-client courtesy — both are first-class line items, not awkward math you do in your head.
- Set your tax and a deposit % on the estimate before you send it.
Want this to feel effortless every time? Save your defaults under Settings → Preferences → Estimates, including your standard tax and deposit, so a new quote starts most of the way done.
Price usage and revisions on purpose
The two things creatives most often leave money on the table for are licensing and scope creep. Make both explicit on the estimate:
- Usage fees — add a fee line like “Web + social license, 12 months” or “Exclusive buyout.” When usage is its own line, expanded rights become an easy upsell instead of an uncomfortable renegotiation.
- Revision rounds — spell out what’s included (“2 rounds of revisions”) in a task line, and keep an additional-round rate ready as a fee line so extra changes bill cleanly.
- Pass-through costs — second shooter, equipment rental, or printing go on unit lines so your labor rate stays clean and your margin stays readable later in reports.
Tip: Name your line items in your client’s language, not your internal shorthand. “Lifestyle shoot — half day (4 hrs)” reads far better in the approval portal than “Photo block A,” and a clear line item is the easiest objection-handler you’ll ever write.
Get the deposit before the shutter clicks
For creative work, the deposit isn’t optional — it’s how you hold the date and cover early costs. Set a deposit % right on the estimate, and when your client approves it in the magic-link portal (no login required), they can pay that deposit on the spot. The money lands in your own Stripe account, and you’ve got a confirmed booking.
Once the estimate is approved, click Convert to turn it into an invoice — or into a project if there’s real production to manage. The full scope, usage fees, and deposit all carry over, so you’re never re-typing the quote you already nailed.
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