Reviewing a proposal
A proposal is your photographer's quote: what they'll do, what's included, and what it costs. Sometimes it's one option, sometimes several.
Reading it
Open the link. At the top you'll see From, To, the Date it was sent, and, if there is one, an Expiry with the exact date, time and time zone. Below that, the Service date and Location, then what's included.
Take the expiry seriously. After it, you'll need to ask for a new one.
Making your choices
Items are included whatever you decide.
If your photographer set out alternatives, each group says "Pick one of these options". Add-ons says "Pick any of these options", and some let you choose a quantity with a plus and minus.
The total updates as you go, so you can try combinations and see what each costs before you commit to anything. A Payment schedule underneath shows each payment as a percentage with its due date. Above it sits the line "Payment amounts are calculated from your final selections when you accept." You see the figures in money when you press Accept.
Your choices are remembered while the tab stays open, so you can follow a link away and come back. Close the tab and you'll need to pick again, which only takes a moment.
Accepting
Press Accept proposal. A panel shows the Total, every payment with its date, an After accepting line naming your remaining steps, and an Agreement section you can open and read in full.
That's the moment to be sure. Your choices lock in when you confirm, and changing your mind afterwards means asking your photographer to redo it.
What happens after you accept
The page turns into a short list of Next steps:
- Sign the agreement
- Pay the deposit, or Pay, with the amount in the label
Only one is open at a time. Finish it and the next appears.
You don't have to do them all at once. Come back to the same link and pick up where you left off.
Nothing is emailed to you when you accept. Keep the link, or ask your photographer to resend it.
Paying
The payment step is on the same page. You'll be offered whatever your photographer accepts: a card, or their bank details with instructions.
If you pay by bank transfer, you'll be asked to say you've paid and usually to attach a screenshot. Your photographer confirms it at their end, so there's a short gap before it shows as settled.
When you've finished
Once the last step is done, your booking is confirmed and you're taken to its page. That's where everything lives from then on: the session details, the agreement, and any balance still to pay.
Bookmark it.
Declining
There's a Decline button and an optional box for a reason. Worth using. A short "we've gone over budget" or "the date's changed" is more useful to a photographer than silence, and it often gets you a new price.
If the link says it's expired or withdrawn
The proposal has lapsed or been pulled. Ask for a fresh one. Prices may have moved, which is generally why proposals have dates on them.
If you'd already paid something, say so. The page tells you your payment is recorded even though the booking isn't confirmed, and your photographer can sort it out.