Thanks for all the responses!! You all reinforced what I already knew I should do!  So the rest of the story.... I messaged her back, (which with 2 weeks until the wedding why wouldn't you call? but that's a for another thread!) I gave her pretty much the same price that I quoted the first time. I included a slightly less expensive option of a smaller cake with kitchen cakes to fill out the rest. *crickets* Surprise! No response! There's always a cheaper option and I don't want that to be me! Thanks again, everyone, for giving me the push I needed to stick to my guns! 

 I too watched the Cake Hunters...No...no please NO!! Oh and just got an inquire for a 3 tier cake to serve 8-10...you can't make this s**t up!

That's the reason I got out of the photography business!

I was out priced because my product was superior to the competition at a price that would be fair to my team, the size of the shoot and the final product I gave the client which was magazine quality no matter what. I NEVER budged even if it was a high profile client because I didn't want to devalue my own product or brand.

You are providing a PROFESSIONAL service for a REASONABLE rate which is in line with the QUALITY of the product you are selling.

Hold the line and pass on those jobs where you have to bid and undervalue yourself

gwertheim, you are so right.  And there are many people who view the high price as a sign of quality. I have a photographer friend who added a $10K package to his pricing menu because he lost a job once when the groom said, "How good can he be with prices that low?"  My friend said, "Never again will I lose a job because someone thought I wasn't expensive enough!"

@indydebi you and your friend should be pricing at market level or according to supply and demand. 

As you get better and have more orders, you need to raise your prices because you are starting to offer a superior product. If your product sucks and you have tumble weeds for customers, you are overvaluing yourself and your product. When a customer comes in and tries your product and feels that they paid too much for it, word of mouth will spread and you will have to work double time to recover from that.

A high price isn't always the sign of high quality. People make that mistake and don't realize it until it's too late.

well said!  (my friend *IS* a pretty high end photographer tho'.)  :-) 

Then your friend should be pricing accordingly

Know thy market and competition :)