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Brides venue washed away in Hurricane Sandy... How do you...

jared_irl
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p.1 #1 · Brides venue washed away in Hurricane Sandy... How do you deal with that!?!?

Just talked to her today, no wedding this weekend because there's no venue.

She wants to re-booke for March 10th.

two issues:

1. Possible we would still book that date for a new client. (unlikely, but possible)

2. It's my wife's due date. Which is why we haven't booked anything yet.

So how do you deal with that? I'm talking $$, time, possibility of me not being available, etc...

Just to be clear, my business involves two main shooters who work together as assistants/shooters/light stands, etc, so if I can't be there, there is at least one very capable photographers there.

Sucks, I really feel for her, not sure what to do...

Oct 31, 2012 at 05:59 PM

Robin Usagani
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p.1 #2 · Brides venue washed away in Hurricane Sandy... How do you deal with that!?!?

it's an act of God. I would try my best to refund or just do it.

Oct 31, 2012 at 06:01 PM

tobicus
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p.1 #3 · Brides venue washed away in Hurricane Sandy... How do you deal with that!?!?

You don't mess with the wife's due date. Refund it or introduce them to the other shooter with clarification that you won't be there.

Oct 31, 2012 at 06:10 PM

amonline
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p.1 #4 · Brides venue washed away in Hurricane Sandy... How do you deal with that!?!?

Just do it. The chances of your wife going into labor on that day are slime. Move the contract. Take advantage of a bad situation to show your professionalism.

Oct 31, 2012 at 06:11 PM

DmitriM
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p.1 #5 · Brides venue washed away in Hurricane Sandy... How do you deal with that!?!?

Ask her to change the date from March 10th. I don't think she booked anything yet, considering the hurricane just passed. Give her your availability OR inform her that your 2nds will be shooting instead of you. Give her the reasons why that date is not good for you. There's no reason to refund if you can actually TRY to make a reasonable effort to accommodate her. Not wanting to book her for that date because you might get another booking for that day is not a reasonable effort...

Oct 31, 2012 at 06:14 PM

awad
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p.1 #6 · Brides venue washed away in Hurricane Sandy... How do you deal with that!?!?

Has she met the other half of your team? If so, go with it. Sean is more than capable and with a solid second shooter you'll be fine. If not, introduce her to him and let her know the situation about your wife (congrats btw). Should work out for the best.

Which venue was it?

Oct 31, 2012 at 06:19 PM

jared_irl
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p.1 #7 · Brides venue washed away in Hurricane Sandy... How do you deal with that!?!?

yeah, i'm on the phone with her. gonna let her know my situation, and let her know we'll work with whatever dates she has available.

The whole thing is a shame.

Oct 31, 2012 at 06:22 PM

jared_irl
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p.1 #8 · Brides venue washed away in Hurricane Sandy... How do you deal with that!?!?

awad wrote:
Has she met the other half of your team? If so, go with it. Sean is more than capable and with a solid second shooter you'll be fine. If not, introduce her to him and let her know the situation about your wife (congrats btw). Should work out for the best.

Which venue was it?

Yeah, she's met us both. It won't be a big deal.

Venue is South Gate Manor in Freehold NJ.

Oct 31, 2012 at 06:24 PM

Ian Ivey
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p.1 #9 · Brides venue washed away in Hurricane Sandy... How do you deal with that!?!?

It's your wife's due date -- you just hire people to help her out, catch the baby, name it, and so on, while you're shooting. It's just a baby -- you'll have plenty of time to have more of those. This gal is only getting married probably two or three times at most. I'm sure your wife will understand. Hell, hire a photographer to shoot the birth, and later, your wife can give you the play-by-play of what you missed as you enjoy looking through the photos together. You can have popcorn and everything -- it will be even better than being there.

Oct 31, 2012 at 10:21 PM

scottam10
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p.1 #10 · Brides venue washed away in Hurricane Sandy... How do you deal with that!?!?

amonline wrote:
Just do it. The chances of your wife going into labor on that day are slime. Move the contract. Take advantage of a bad situation to show your professionalism.

^^this

The date is moving due to an Act of God, I think the professional thing to do is either
1. Reschedule without charge
2. Cancel, refund and recommend another photographer

Chances of your wife delivering on her due date are slim, and if you ask her to move the wedding forward or back a week, your wife is just as likely to go into labour on the new date
- anytime around the due date there is a risk of course

Your first reason ('might book another client') seems silly to me, I don't understand how this is relevant unless you're planning to dump her and keep the deposit.

Oct 31, 2012 at 10:25 PM

alohadave
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p.1 #11 · Brides venue washed away in Hurricane Sandy... How do you deal with that!?!?

jared_irl wrote:
1. Possible we would still book that date for a new client. (unlikely, but possible)

2. It's my wife's due date. Which is why we haven't booked anything yet.

If you haven't booked it up to this point due to the expected date of arrival of your child, why do you think that you might possibly book it for someone else?

Oct 31, 2012 at 10:52 PM

cordellwillis
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p.1 #12 · Brides venue washed away in Hurricane Sandy... How do you deal with that!?!?

scottam10 wrote:
amonline wrote:
Just do it. The chances of your wife going into labor on that day are slime. Move the contract. Take advantage of a bad situation to show your professionalism.

^^this

The date is moving due to an Act of God, I think the professional thing to do is either
1. Reschedule without charge
2. Cancel, refund and recommend another photographer

Chances of your wife delivering on her due date are slim, and if you ask her to move the wedding forward or back a week, your wife is just as likely to go into labour on the new date
- anytime around the due date there is a risk of course

Your first reason ('might book another client') seems silly to me, I don't understand how this is relevant unless you're planning to dump her and keep the deposit.

This and this.

A due date is an approximate at best. It means very little other than 'the baby SHOULD be born SOMEWHERE AROUND this day'. It's not meant to be taken literally.

Oct 31, 2012 at 11:22 PM

jprezant
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p.1 #13 · Brides venue washed away in Hurricane Sandy... How do you deal with that!?!?

amonline wrote:
Just do it. The chances of your wife going into labor on that day are slime.

kind of rough no?

or I guess that wouldn't be so rough... nyak nyak nyak

Oct 31, 2012 at 11:23 PM

photolove84
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p.1 #14 · Brides venue washed away in Hurricane Sandy... How do you deal with that!?!?

You could always PLAN to do it, and explain the situation to the bride and have the BACKUP plan to have your partner step in, in the event your wife goes into labor. As far as the possibility of booking another wedding, that's honestly a little cold. Her venue WASHED AWAY, and who knows how much money she already paid them and if she has any chance of getting back. My guess would be not since they changed the date.

Oct 31, 2012 at 11:43 PM

G-Gore
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p.1 #15 · Brides venue washed away in Hurricane Sandy... How do you deal with that!?!?

I just had the same call today too. They moved it to August. I have no problem with it - act of god.

As of your wife's labor - it's a gamble. Babies almost never are born on the due date - you have 50% chances it'll be earlier. So I would just introduce the B&G to a backup team, just in case.

Nov 01, 2012 at 01:32 AM

morganb4
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p.1 #16 · Brides venue washed away in Hurricane Sandy... How do you deal with that!?!?

DmitriM wrote:
Ask her to change the date from March 10th. I don't think she booked anything yet, considering the hurricane just passed. Give her your availability OR inform her that your 2nds will be shooting instead of you. Give her the reasons why that date is not good for you. There's no reason to refund if you can actually TRY to make a reasonable effort to accommodate her. Not wanting to book her for that date because you might get another booking for that day is not a reasonable effort...

Yeah, like this idea, bear in mind that if its your first, she is more likely to be late than on-time/early

Nov 01, 2012 at 03:14 AM

katiedis
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p.1 #17 · Brides venue washed away in Hurricane Sandy... How do you deal with that!?!?

ask your wife.

(that is my serious, but cheeky, answer. some wives don't care about due dates, some do. I, for one, did not care about due dates. Ask your wife what she prefers and go with that.)

Nov 01, 2012 at 06:18 AM

DONIV
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p.1 #18 · Brides venue washed away in Hurricane Sandy... How do you deal with that!?!?

you can always opt to induce the baby to an exact date...fyi, make sure you have a great support system with the baby especially if this is your first child. running a business and newborns can be very tough....congrats in advance with the baby!

Nov 01, 2012 at 02:07 PM

cineski
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p.1 #19 · Brides venue washed away in Hurricane Sandy... How do you deal with that!?!?

Are you running a profitable business? While I have to admit I'd have a bit of internal drama with this, ultimately it's not your fault why the wedding was cancelled under any circumstance. I'd probably tell her you're going to hire someone trusted to take your place but she needs to pay for the actual photographer's fee since that's not part of your original agreement. If you don't end up booking someone else, then shoot it yourself.

Nov 01, 2012 at 03:08 PM

Prettym1k3
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p.1 #20 · Brides venue washed away in Hurricane Sandy... How do you deal with that!?!?

Send them to your second shooter. Offer a small discount. Tell them that you are so sorry, and you wish there was more that you could do.

Hopefully you took a 50% non-refundable retainer, and your contract states that acts of God are not your responsibility.

Big time bummer for that bride, though.

Nov 01, 2012 at 05:09 PM

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