On the rate itself
- It changes by the type of project — commercial, television and corporate are described as different numbers — rather than by how big the job is.
- Once a rate is set with a client it is very hard to raise, so the first number matters more than it looks.
- It moves in both directions for reasons that are not the budget: down for a project that sounds enjoyable or people worth working with, up for one taken purely for the money.
- Charge for all three phases. Pre-production, the shoot, and post — with post named as the one you are least likely to be paid for.
On marking up the crew
Answered in a single word: no. The arrangement described is that producers and production companies do the hiring, the cinematographer recommends people, and each of them negotiates their own rate. His reasoning for then pushing for those rates was practical rather than sentimental — a happy crew works better.
On how many people to hire
Aim for exactly the right number, in both directions. Over-hiring takes money that could have gone somewhere the audience would see, and his example was production design. Under-hiring makes you look bad the moment people are standing around waiting on you.
On being a production company
He said he never offers himself as one, and is hired as an individual. Owning a lot of equipment can make a limited company worth having for tax reasons, but that is a separate question from how the work is sold.
What changes in a smaller market
This was the caveat he ended on, and it is the part most likely to apply outside a major hub: smaller markets often prefer one person who does everything. There is more money available that way, and more pressure and risk carried by the person doing it.
One detailed answer from one union cinematographer in Los Angeles, not a survey. It is worth reading as a description of how that market works rather than as a rule.