I just wanted to talk to everyone because clearly coronavirus is on everyone’s mind and it can be especially unnerving with your wedding sometime in 2020. So at this point we should all be laying low, washing our hands a lot, staying positive, and keeping our fingers crossed that this all blows over quickly. But in case this nasty virus does affect your wedding plans, here’s what we can do to help.

Here are some questions that you might have in your mind that I would be happy to answer so that you know what our policies are so that you feel like we are taking care of you! Because as I said when I met with you, “I am here for you, to guide you and help you through whatever may come”. And even, though this was a bit of a curve ball, just know that I am here for you both!

Should we cancel? Should we cancel our engagement session or wedding? Can I still have my wedding? What do you recommend! 

Engagement sessions are really easy to postpone or move around! So for that we got you covered! Weddings on the other hand are a little bit more difficult because you are not working with just me, you have ALL the other vendors to also think about. Like you, I am also waiting to see what the government says and I am getting our info day by day. I am also following the protocols that the Canadian government has set currently for public gatherings in Ontario. As of right now, any weddings of 50 or more people are not allowed. 

Because of the restrictions, your wedding plans might just have to shift a little for 2020. You might do instead an intimate wedding or elopement! You might have to shift to a ceremony only and maybe do a party another day! Or that might not be for you because you have older people and you want them to attend but are nervous of them getting sick so you want to postpone.  

We recommend for now couples that have weddings from mid May onwards to stay on course their plans, and keep planning along! I know it’s a little bit harder with the uncertainty! But I want to let you know we are here for you through whatever you might need! 

As the months go by, we are only recommending couples to think about postponing, changing dates, etc in a 60 day rolling window from today. What does that mean? If today is March 20, couples that have weddings now until May 20th should consider their options!

Any full cancellations of weddings or engagements sessions the contract guidelines will be followed. 

We are here for you if you need to postpone or reschedule!

If you need to postpone the wedding, either for personal reasons or because the venue requires it, you can just reschedule us. Unlike other photographers I am not charging any clients affected by COVID-19 to reschedule their dates. We want to let you know that we are doing this because we are all affected. That being said we need to be available, so we highly suggest you consult with us prior to picking a new date so you don’t accidentally cancel on us.

So how would that work? We highly recommend you call us or email us if you are already thinking about going this route so we can give you our dates so we can be a part of your day. Send us all available dates that you are considering (a minimum of 3-4). We will then connect with you ASAP so that we can be there for you on a date that works for us! I truly feel that part of the wedding experience you receive is making sure that we work well together, and I want to be there for you every step of the way! 

With that being said, us small businesses rely on you to feed our family. We unfortunately don’t get the luxury for receiving EI or employment benefits like big corporations! 

When you booked us, you took a chance on us, and we took a chance on you. With postponement, it helps small businesses like myself carry on and deliver our best to you and to all other clients.

What if you get sick or have the coronavirus and can’t come to our wedding?

The safety of others is ALWAYS my number one priority. This isn’t some regular flu or anything of the sort. I want to let you know that I am #stayingthefuckhome and that I am taking all precautions to stay healthy and safe for your wedding. I also mentioned to you in our meeting that there are options for you when you booked me if I were to be ill for any reason (coronavirus, broken bones, etc). 

Option 1 (Recommended): I have never been so sick “knock on wood” that I haven’t been able to photograph a wedding. Let’s hope that it stays that way! But if I did, I mention I have a huge resource of photographers that I use for as primary and second shooters (meaning I book them to photograph a wedding of the main person or second person) that I trust with my life to photograph instead of me. The good thing about going this direction (meaning I would hire them to come instead of me) is that they know how I work, how I like to interact with you, and how I shoot. And I also know how they shoot and the fact is their shooting style is very very similar to mine. You combine that with my editing style and you get a gallery that can almost feel indistinguishable. 

Option 2: If I am sick, I can’t attend your wedding, and you feel like you can’t have anyone but me. That is also ok, and I mentioned that I would refund you your money in full (minus engagement session if we did it together) and you can use that to hire someone else. However, that might mean more work for you, finding someone, booking them and doing the whole process all over again. But I want you to feel 100% with your decision. 

Just as a reminder that just because we are going through this doesn’t mean that your love story has stopped. Take this time to reconnect with your partner, do an act of kindness, get in touch with your own soul. Sometimes we forget about our own personal well being when life is going by, so use this as a positive time to really dig deep. 

You have my promise as your photographer that I will be there to advocate for you, support you, and try and do what is best for you through these tough times. So stay in touch! 

I am so excited to be documenting your day and your love through creative images. Can’t wait to see soon!