Wedding Contracts

[Johnnie Caraballo]

Any thoughts, links, or advice on how I can get started?

[Corey Graham]

If you Google it, there are lots that come up that you can pull from. However, it's advisable to get the contract into the hands of your attorney to make sure it's all kosher.

[Chris Harding]

Hi Johnnie

It might also we wise to search thru the forum and see pointers that might be useful to add into your contract before you get the "terminology" checked over by a legal expert.

Quite a few UK wedding videographers seem to put their contracts on their website so looking at those might help you decide what you need to put in and leave out.

Chris

[Philip Howells]

Whilst Chris is quite correct about the availability of UK contracts, I think I'd endorse Corey's comments and work with examples from your own jurisdiction if you can. It may avoid anomalies which could cost you more if your lawyer has to research before signing off your specific contract.

[Chris Sgaraglino]

I had an incident come up with contracts (lack there of) and a second shooter where things went very bad very quickly - for both me and the client. I will not go into details; but he taught me one very important thing - TRUST NO ONE!

I have since found an attorney who has been helping me with my contracts and agreements moving forward.

What I did was looked on the internet and got a few public domain contracts, got contracts from PPA (Professional Photographers of America) and watched a few videos form Videomaker.com about what needs to be in a contract and I created them myself.

AND THEN - I took them to an attorney and had them "fine-tune" them. It saved me a good chunk of change, and really educated me on whats in my own contracts.

I now have contracts for absolutely everything I do; form clients, models, music, talent, help, property - and oh yes - hired help!

If they will not sign a contract - walk away... no matter who they are, walk away...

[Chris Harding]

Hi Chris

Absolutely!! If a client refuses to sign a contract then the shoot is just not done!!! I had a mate who got badly burned (in another industry) and his attitude after that was "I won't even sign a birthday card without my lawyer present!!"

I even do a contract for freebies!! (Over the last 5 years I have done only two ...(as wedding gifts for my two neices) BUT they still did the contract sign regardless. Remember it protects the client as well as you so they are silly not signing one!!!

Thanks, Philip, good point...Our situation is much like the UK so contracts in the UK were close enough for me but would be different in the USA!!!

Chris

[Don Bloom]

"If it's not in writing, it doesn't exsist"
My laywer about 35 years ago told me that. Ask all the people sueing for a piece of Facebeook.

What I did per my attorney way back then was to write down everything I felt I needed in my Service Agreement (A Contract can be broken, a Service Agreement is simply the papaerwork the client OKs after agreeing to pay for, in some form, your services therefore they can't break the agreement but they could cancel your services-big difference at least according to both my attorney then and now and the court system), anyway back to point. I wrote everything I thought I needed and gave it to my lawyer and let him sort thru it and make it into legal language. Didn't take long and saved my butt over the years.
I also do not do anything for anyone without it being in writing. I've been burned once and for me, that all it takes. Even freebies get paperwork. I never put free on it I put the price and then indicate No Charge to the client. Looks better for the accountant just in case.
I'm just sayin' ;-)

[Greg Fiske]

One thing I added recently is that I have full creative control over the video. I had a bride that wanted revision after revision.

[Johnnie Caraballo]

Thanks for all the tips guys!

[Chris Sgaraglino]

Originally Posted by Greg Fiske

One thing I added recently is that I have full creative control over the video. I had a bride that wanted revision after revision.

I tried that, and it didn't work out so well... So what I did was added a clause that states the clients gets two edits, and then each edit after that costs $xxx.xx

This way the client feels part of the project, but if they go overboard, they just pay...

[Chris Harding]

I'm with Greg here too!!

I have full creative control of the end product and brides have never complained about what they get.

After working with a bridezilla who insisted on looking at every single frame and changing crazy things like "one piece of my hair is out of place..take it out" and "my husband is touching his nose..people might think he is picking it...take it out" I rapidly put in the total control clause!!! The same bride spent 3 days with me (a full 8 hours each day) and had an 8 page edit list of things she wanted to change so never again was I going to put up with that!!

Part of my clause reads " The Client grants the Company full production and editorial control regarding all aspects of this production and post-production

Problem solved!! There are other posts here regarding whether you should give the bride a proof copy but my thinking has always been if you ASK them to look for issues in the edit they will feel obliged to find at least one or two that normally they would have ignored!!!

Chris