The quolby library

Wedding photography tools & guides

Everything we've made to help you quote, book and get paid — free calculators and templates, plain-English guides, and honest comparisons. Built for wedding photographers, and the couples who hire them. No signup to use the tools.

Free tools

Calculators & templates

Interactive tools you can use right now — nothing to install, no account needed.

Wedding photography contract template
Fill in your details for a clean, plain-English contract — with a note on why each clause matters.
Wedding photography pricing calculator
Work out what to charge from your own hours and costs, with a defensible price floor and three tiers.
Wedding photography deposit calculator
Enter a package total and see the deposit, the remaining balance, and an optional payment schedule.
Client questionnaire generator
Build a tailored questionnaire in seconds — pick your sections, then copy or download a ready-to-send list.
Wedding day timeline builder
Set your ceremony time, toggle each moment, and print a minute-by-minute photography schedule.
Wedding photography cost calculator
For couples: toggle the coverage you want and watch a live subtotal and deposit build for your package.
Invoice & deposit-receipt generator
Add your studio, the couple and your line items to get a clean, printable invoice or deposit receipt.
Questions to ask your photographer
An interactive checklist for couples — tick what matters, then copy or print it to take to your meeting.
How many hours do you need?
Tick the moments you want photographed and get an honest coverage-hours range to hand your photographer.
Guides

Reading, in plain English

Honest, jargon-free explainers on quoting, contracts, deposits and getting paid.

What a contract should cover
Every clause a wedding photography contract should include — and why each one protects both sides.
Is a deposit normal? (for couples)
What a non-refundable retainer really means, typical ranges, and how to pay your deposit safely.
Every line on a quote, explained
Second shooter, culled vs edited, RAW files, print release, travel fee — decoded in plain English.
How to structure your packages
How many tiers, which add-ons actually sell, and the anchor psychology that helps couples choose.
What to check before you sign
A couple's tick-through of coverage, deposit, cancellation, image rights and delivery before signing.
How to compare quotes fairly
Price alone misleads — normalise your quotes by coverage hours, inclusions and deposit terms.
Why couples go quiet — and how to follow up
When to nudge, and warm, reusable messages that reopen the conversation without begging.
Inquiry & quote email templates
Copy-paste replies: the first inquiry, sending the quote, the polite follow-up and the gentle nudge.
Structuring a payment schedule
A retainer to book, optional interim payments, and the balance before delivery — explained clearly.
How photographers get paid online
Bank transfer vs invoice vs pay-on-accept, taking deposits, and Stripe fees explained honestly.
Wedding photography styles, explained
Documentary, editorial, fine-art or traditional — how to tell which you want, and how to brief for it.
Red flags (and green flags)
The warning signs couples should watch for — no contract, no backup, cash-only — and the marks of a pro.
Comparisons

quolby vs the alternatives

How a focused quote-and-deposit tool stacks up against the big all-in-one suites — honestly.

A lighter 17hats alternative
17hats runs your whole solo business. If you just want the quote to close and the deposit paid, start here.
A simpler Táve alternative
Skip the full studio-management system — close the wedding quote and take the deposit in one link.
A quote-first Sprout Studio alternative
One branded link the couple accepts and pays on, without adopting an entire studio suite.
A focused Bloom alternative
Bloom is a broad platform for creatives. quolby does the one job that moves money — the quote.
An Iris Works alternative
The wedding quote and deposit, done well — without configuring a full studio-management CRM.
HoneyBook vs Dubsado
Who each all-in-one suite is really for, how they differ — and a lighter third option to consider.
Genuinely free quoting tools
What 'free' really means: trials, free invoicing, templates, and free-to-send interactive quotes.

Ready to build your own quote?

Build your packages once, then send one branded link your couple picks, accepts and pays the deposit on — straight to your Stripe. Free to start, no signup to try.

Try the free catalog builder →