Dan Robinson
EF5
We had a good discussion on this topic during the last TGT podcast, so I thought it might be worth a thread. Do you know what the TRUE cost of your storm chasing really is? If you sit down and look at the numbers, you might be shocked.
Using my expense/mileage reports that I use for tax purposes, the cumulative cost of my storm chasing/photography/weather coverage "operation" since I started in 1993 is into the six figure range. Yes, SIX figures - that is not an exaggerated number, and I have all of the documents to prove it! In a nutshell, if you go to my web site and look at all of my footage, photos and chase logs - know that to get a similar amount of material, you'll need to commit to close to the same expense!
How would you figure the true cost of your chasing? It's pretty simple, but will take some effort to go through your records and create mileage and expense reports (use a spreadsheet software to do both):
Cash Expense Report: Go through your bank statements and highlight every purchase that was chase-related - hotels, computers, airfare, cameras, gadgets, cables, small parts, etc. Don't include vehicle expenses like fuel, tires, oil changes, etc - we'll get to that next.
Mileage Report: Now, tally up all of your miles driven during chasing. Include everything - both Plains and local chases. If you haven't kept a log, use Google Maps Directions to estimate them (point to point directions will show miles). Once you have your mileage tallied up, multiply it by the IRS's standard business mileage deduction for each year. In 2013, the deduction was 56.5 cents per mile. This will give you a dollar amount that reflects the true costs of operating your vehicle for chasing (fuel, maintenance, tires, depreciation, etc). That's the number that's probably going to shock you! You may not see the depreciation expense in terms of cash expenditure, but you'll see it eventually when you must buy a new vehicle or make major repairs more frequently than the average daily driver.
Now, let me make a few qualifying statements about the six figure amount. It's a cumulative total over 22 years. Even so, it's probably higher than most chasers will see (though not by much). How did I afford all of this? Simple - I have always operated my photography and weather footage as a part time business, and worked very hard at it. As a result, that six figure expense has been covered with weather video income over the years. I take it seriously. I've used brokers. I file taxes as a business and use an accountant to do them, send invoices, etc. I have even had registered business names at various points.
Another important point is that the bulk of my weather and photography income over the years has been mainly from mundane things like winter weather and rain, and even corporate video shoots in a studio setting. In other words, I've paid for my higher-end cameras and some chasing expenses by putting the equipment to work on both chasing and non-chasing things. I sometimes say "storm chasing" as an all-encompassing thing, but it's more accurate to say "weather video" in general. Case in point - I made a large chunk of my income shooting simple rain video in Charleston, WV - boring stuff like people walking down the street with umbrellas, etc. The icy road video has tended to perform well, though it is very expensive and difficult to shoot. If I were to separate out the income/expense for different categories of weather, "storm chasing" meaning convective phenomena like lightning and tornadoes, would have been almost always operating in the red. This is because a tornado video requires long-distance travel and hotels and is harder to sell, while rain/snow is generally something that requires no travel and only a few hours of time.
Some may be thinking to themselves "why is he sharing this publicly?" Well, it's because the weather video market has been declining for years. A lot of this stuff is becoming common knowledge in chasing. I don't really have much to lose by sharing this info at this point in my life, and I figure it will be helpful for others to know. I still do some winter weather work, but the rain/snow/fog/frost/wind video has not been as profitable in recent years. I haven't done a "people with umbrellas" type shoot in years. Icy road footage is simply brutal to shoot - even I'm at the point where I don't want to do much of it any more (it requires very long hours standing out in freezing cold, snow and freezing rain). I have replaced the declining weather video income with other things like still photography and some web design contract work, all which falls under my part-time business umbrella.
My main point: chasing is more expensive than you think, and you're not going to make a profit from it unless you really diversify and make chasing a part of your overall business.
I know there are some who are saying "to heck with all that, I can't stand the thought of mixing business with chasing". That's fine if that's your thing and if you have the disposable income to finance your chasing. But in my case, the only way I have been able to do everything I've done and see the things I've seen is to operate this way. Yes, it has taken a lot of work, but it's all been worth it.
By the way - I have NEVER broken off a chase to send in video early. I always wait until the storm is done - even if it costs me sales! Some might break off early and miss tornadoes to feed video, but it's really a myth that it is common practice or even necessary to make a sale.
Using my expense/mileage reports that I use for tax purposes, the cumulative cost of my storm chasing/photography/weather coverage "operation" since I started in 1993 is into the six figure range. Yes, SIX figures - that is not an exaggerated number, and I have all of the documents to prove it! In a nutshell, if you go to my web site and look at all of my footage, photos and chase logs - know that to get a similar amount of material, you'll need to commit to close to the same expense!
How would you figure the true cost of your chasing? It's pretty simple, but will take some effort to go through your records and create mileage and expense reports (use a spreadsheet software to do both):
Cash Expense Report: Go through your bank statements and highlight every purchase that was chase-related - hotels, computers, airfare, cameras, gadgets, cables, small parts, etc. Don't include vehicle expenses like fuel, tires, oil changes, etc - we'll get to that next.
Mileage Report: Now, tally up all of your miles driven during chasing. Include everything - both Plains and local chases. If you haven't kept a log, use Google Maps Directions to estimate them (point to point directions will show miles). Once you have your mileage tallied up, multiply it by the IRS's standard business mileage deduction for each year. In 2013, the deduction was 56.5 cents per mile. This will give you a dollar amount that reflects the true costs of operating your vehicle for chasing (fuel, maintenance, tires, depreciation, etc). That's the number that's probably going to shock you! You may not see the depreciation expense in terms of cash expenditure, but you'll see it eventually when you must buy a new vehicle or make major repairs more frequently than the average daily driver.
Now, let me make a few qualifying statements about the six figure amount. It's a cumulative total over 22 years. Even so, it's probably higher than most chasers will see (though not by much). How did I afford all of this? Simple - I have always operated my photography and weather footage as a part time business, and worked very hard at it. As a result, that six figure expense has been covered with weather video income over the years. I take it seriously. I've used brokers. I file taxes as a business and use an accountant to do them, send invoices, etc. I have even had registered business names at various points.
Another important point is that the bulk of my weather and photography income over the years has been mainly from mundane things like winter weather and rain, and even corporate video shoots in a studio setting. In other words, I've paid for my higher-end cameras and some chasing expenses by putting the equipment to work on both chasing and non-chasing things. I sometimes say "storm chasing" as an all-encompassing thing, but it's more accurate to say "weather video" in general. Case in point - I made a large chunk of my income shooting simple rain video in Charleston, WV - boring stuff like people walking down the street with umbrellas, etc. The icy road video has tended to perform well, though it is very expensive and difficult to shoot. If I were to separate out the income/expense for different categories of weather, "storm chasing" meaning convective phenomena like lightning and tornadoes, would have been almost always operating in the red. This is because a tornado video requires long-distance travel and hotels and is harder to sell, while rain/snow is generally something that requires no travel and only a few hours of time.
Some may be thinking to themselves "why is he sharing this publicly?" Well, it's because the weather video market has been declining for years. A lot of this stuff is becoming common knowledge in chasing. I don't really have much to lose by sharing this info at this point in my life, and I figure it will be helpful for others to know. I still do some winter weather work, but the rain/snow/fog/frost/wind video has not been as profitable in recent years. I haven't done a "people with umbrellas" type shoot in years. Icy road footage is simply brutal to shoot - even I'm at the point where I don't want to do much of it any more (it requires very long hours standing out in freezing cold, snow and freezing rain). I have replaced the declining weather video income with other things like still photography and some web design contract work, all which falls under my part-time business umbrella.
My main point: chasing is more expensive than you think, and you're not going to make a profit from it unless you really diversify and make chasing a part of your overall business.
I know there are some who are saying "to heck with all that, I can't stand the thought of mixing business with chasing". That's fine if that's your thing and if you have the disposable income to finance your chasing. But in my case, the only way I have been able to do everything I've done and see the things I've seen is to operate this way. Yes, it has taken a lot of work, but it's all been worth it.
By the way - I have NEVER broken off a chase to send in video early. I always wait until the storm is done - even if it costs me sales! Some might break off early and miss tornadoes to feed video, but it's really a myth that it is common practice or even necessary to make a sale.
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