Photography Contract template

Parties and event

This agreement is made on [Date] between [Your company], called the Photographer, and [Client name] and [Partner name], together called the Clients. It covers photography of their wedding on [Date], with the ceremony at [Ceremony venue] and the reception at [Reception venue]. The Clients are jointly responsible under this agreement, and either may give an instruction the Photographer can rely on.

1. Services

2. Deliverables

3. Fees

4. Booking fee

4.1 It holds the date. The booking fee of $1,260 is a retainer that reserves [Date] for the Clients. From the moment it is paid, the Photographer declines all other work for that date. It is not refundable, because the thing it buys, the reserved date, is consumed whether or not the wedding proceeds.

Retainer, not deposit. A deposit is part payment for work to be done and is generally refundable if the work never happens. A retainer buys the reservation itself. This agreement says which one it means, because the label decides who keeps the money when a date is cancelled.

5. Postponement and cancellation

Weather has no effect on the fee. If it rains, the plan changes, not the price: the Photographer carries covered location options for each venue and the timeline moves as needed on the day.

6. If the photographer cannot attend

If illness, injury or emergency prevents the Photographer attending, the Photographer will first offer a replacement photographer of similar standard and style from their professional network, at no extra cost. If no replacement is available or the Clients decline, everything paid is refunded in full. Beyond that refund, the Photographer has no further liability for the non attendance.

7. Copyright and usage

7.1 Who owns the images. The Photographer owns the copyright in all images. The Clients receive a personal use licence: they may print the images, share them with family and friends, and post them online, with no credit required. Commercial use by the Clients or by their vendors requires the Photographer’s written consent.

7.2 The photographer’s use. The Photographer may use images from the wedding for portfolio, website and social media unless the Clients opt out in writing before the wedding day. The opt out covers all guests’ images from the event as well.

8. Editing and style

Images are selected and edited in the Photographer’s published style, which the Clients have seen and chosen. Raw files are not provided or sold. Retouching beyond the standard edit, such as object removal or compositing, is available at $40 per image, quoted before the work.

9. Client responsibilities

10. Limitation of liability

The Photographer’s total liability under this agreement is capped at the fees actually paid, and neither party is liable to the other for indirect or consequential loss. Every camera used on the day records to two cards simultaneously, and galleries are backed up to two locations until delivery, which is the practical protection behind this clause.

11. General

11.1 Entire agreement. This document is the entire agreement and replaces every earlier quote, email and message about the booking.

11.2 Governing law and notices. The agreement is governed by the law of the state where the wedding is held. Notices are given by email to the addresses on the booking form and take effect when sent.

11.3 Changes. A change to the coverage, the deliverables or the fees is valid only when both sides confirm it in writing.

Signed as an agreement. The Clients confirm they have read the deliverables in section 2, the fee table in section 3 and the postponement ladder in section 5 before signing.