Manage Contract Templates

Templates give your studio a reliable starting point without forcing every client agreement to be identical.

Open contract templates

1. Open Contracts.
2. Select the templates area.
3. Review Default Templates and your studio’s templates.

The Contract Templates page with default photography templates and the New Template action.View full size

Default templates are provided as starting points. Duplicate one into your templates before making it specific to your studio.

Create a template

Select New Template to begin with a blank reusable agreement. Add a clear title, then complete the pricing, payment terms, delivery timeline, clauses, deliverables, and any additional terms that should appear each time you use it.

The New Template editor with Save Template, reusable contract details, and pricing fields.View full size

Select Save Template when the reusable language is ready. Client, shoot date, and location stay disabled because those details belong to the individual contract created from the template.

To start from a Vignette default instead, return to Contract Templates and select the default template you want to duplicate.

Selecting a default template creates your own copy and opens it in the template editor. Select Create Contract to start a contract from it right away.

The Edit Template header with the Template badge, your studio details, Save Template, and Create Contract.View full size

Client, shoot date, and location stay empty in a template. You fill them in on each contract.

Template client fields with the tip Locations are assigned when creating a contract from this template.View full size

Avoid entering one client’s private details into a reusable template.

Reuse changing details inside clauses

A merge field is a placeholder inside a Terms & Conditions clause. It lets a reusable template refer to information that changes for each job, such as:

The merge-field menu inside a Terms & Conditions clause, with choices such as Client Name, Shoot Date, and Package Price.View full size

• Client name
• Session date
• Location
• Package price
• Studio name

Add or open a clause, place your cursor in the clause text, and select the {{ }} button. Choose the detail you want Vignette to fill when you create a contract from the template.

You will not see the {{ }} button in the main template fields or Additional Terms. It belongs to the clause editor only.

When a value is missing in the finished contract, complete the matching client, contract, pricing, or studio field before sending.

Maintain your templates

From the templates page, you can:

• Open and edit a studio template
• Duplicate it
• Rename it
• Archive it when you no longer use it

Hover over a template in My Templates to see Duplicate, Rename, and Archive. You can also press Tab to reach these buttons with the keyboard. Select the template to open and edit it.

A template in My Templates with Duplicate, Rename, and Archive buttons.View full size

Changes affect contracts created from the template in the future. Existing contracts keep their own content.

Archive a template

Archiving removes a template from My Templates and from every template picker. It does not delete the template, and you can bring it back later.

1. Hover over the template in My Templates.
2. Select Archive.
3. Read the confirmation, then select Archive again. Select Cancel to keep the template.

The Archive “Wedding Day Contract”? confirmation saying existing contracts keep their terms and the template can be restored later, with Cancel and Archive buttons.View full size

Vignette shows Template archived. Contracts you already made from the template keep their terms.

Restore an archived template

1. Select View archived templates beside the My Templates heading.
2. Find the template. Each card shows the date it was archived.
3. Select Restore.

An archived template card showing Copy of Portrait / Family Session Contract, a Restore button, and Archived Sep 29, 2026.View full size

Vignette shows Template restored, and the template is back in My Templates and every template picker. Select Back to my templates to leave the archived view.

Save a contract as a template

While preparing a useful draft, choose the save-as-template action when available. Give it a name that describes the workflow, such as “Portrait Session” or “Second Shooter.”

Open the … menu at the top of the contract editor and select Save as Template.

The contract editor's menu open with Save as Template.View full size

Review saved templates periodically so prices, dates, policies, and business details do not become stale.