COVID-19 Policy for sarandon mara photography
Hey everyone,
After consulting with many other professionals in the industry I have solidified an official COVID-19 wedding policy for you all. It is largely the same as what I have outlined in previous correspondence with several small changes. These changes are due to the continually evolving nature of this whole situation, and are made so that I can ensure my business can stay afloat to continue to serve all of you as well as future clients. Please know that I am approaching this situation with absolutely as much flexibility as possible because I care so deeply about all of you and want to make sure you can have the celebrations you deserve!
I have been trying my best to stay up to date with the evolving situations in each of the states where I have 2020 weddings. It is my understanding that through the remainder of the year policies will be in place that will be impacting weddings in various ways including limiting guest counts, and I realize this may be a motivating factor in your desire to reschedule your wedding to a 2021 date if possible. I know that many couples are also opting to elope or have “micro-weddings” this year and reschedule their bigger parties for next year. I wanted to give options to you that apply to each of these scenarios and help to keep costs low while you navigate tough decisions.
Below you will find information about options for adding or switching to elopement packages, rescheduling, and my cancellation policy as it relates to weddings impacted by COVID-19. As always, email me with any and all questions you have about the information below and any concerns relating to your wedding specifically.
Keeping your date as planned
If we are able to move forward with fall weddings that is awesome, and if it’s necessary to limit guest counts but you still want to continue with your plans with a smaller guests list that’s cool too. I will still be practicing all necessary social distancing measures to keep you, your guests, and myself safe. This means wearing a mask/face covering, washing and sanitizing my hands often, and keeping as much distance as possible between myself and other. If I have ANY symptoms of illness leading up to your wedding I will secure backup coverage for your wedding as outlined in your contract. In this case my second shooter would become an associate primary shooter and I would secure another photographer to 2nd shoot under them. All the images would still be edited by me. All of the photographers I work with are of equal skill level as myself and work with professional level equipment so you can rest assured you would be in very good hands.
Elopement Options
Some of you have asked about options if you wanted to have a micro-wedding or elopement on your original date and just reschedule your big party for a future date. I wanted to offer a very simple and straightforward option for this so I am offering hourly elopement packages at a discounted hourly rate of $350. This would include a digital gallery of your images and a print release and you can choose to book however many hours is right for you. Elopement packages will be separate contracts from your original wedding packages.
Rescheduling
I am offering no-fee rescheduling for “COVID weddings” for dates within 12 months of your original wedding date. A calendar of available dates at the bottom of this page and will be updated regularly as dates are booked. Soft holds are available and if another couple inquires about the date you are looking at I will let you know and you will have 72 hours to decide if you would like to officially book the date or choose to surrender it.
If you choose to reschedule to a new date I will provide you with a rescheduling contract and your payment schedule will be adjusted to your new date.
If you need to choose a new date where I am unavailable I will be offering the option of an associate shooter who will work for me to photograph your wedding and then deliver the images to me for editing etc. This frees you from any stress related to finding a new photographer and the costs of doing so. If you would like to cancel our contract and find a different photographer for your new date I can provide a cancellation contract for you to sign and the cancellation procedures outlined in your original contract will apply.
Cancellations
If I am unavailable for your new date and you choose to cancel our contract and find a different photographer to cover your new wedding date, I understand. The cancellation policy outlined in your original contract will apply and I will provide a cancellation contract.
Holding to this policy is the only way I will be able to keep my business afloat and able to serve my current and future clients. I will of course be super bummed to not be able to celebrate with you but this is the only way I can also look out for my other clients and ensure I will be in business to photograph their weddings too. Dana Cubbage wrote a really great blog post about this exact topic and I think she sums it up better than I am able. You can read it here
2021 Availability
below is my availability for rescheduling for 2021. If you would like to reserve a date please shoot me an email and I will be happy to get that ball rolling.
Unavailable dates are marked in red. Soft holds are marked in blue
I hope this is helpful for you as you move forward with your planning! I am always available via email and would love to schedule a phone or video call if you want to chat in more detail about options.
Stay safe, stay sane, stay healthy my friends <3
hugs, Sarandon
