wedding photographs

[amightylindz]

What is the name of your state?What is the name of your state? New Jersey


Hi, my name is Lindsy. I am a photography student in my final year of college. I was asked as a favor to photograph a wedding for a reasonable cost. I agreed, but not before she fully understood the verbal conditions of me not photographing a wedding before on my own, that $300 was a very small amount but she if she is willing to take such a risk with that then I'll try my best. I made wrote her a letter serving as a contract and had her sign and return it to me. (posted at the bottom) She agreed and continued to say that she only wanted 10 to fifteen images at the most and that she wanted the majority of the images taken outside. The day came and at the last minute she said she wanted to have everything inside. Well, having the wrong film speed and not a powerful enough flash I did not have enough light to caputre 1/2 of the images. I used everything I had learned and forced the film to work, taking it to a lab that ended up charging me $100 alone for the processing to ensure most of the photos would come out well. I spent an additional $130 on paper and weeks of my time printing these to give her as many images as possible. When it came time to give her everything, I made sure I didn't give her anything that was unusuable, she had upwards to 60 photographs. She dosen't like any of them, she says they took too long to get to her and a lot of photographs are missing. I explained to her (calmly) what had happened and she said she needs to think about things. Now she wants the majority of her money back, plus additional money she spent going to outside photographers to have replacement photographs that were already in the sets I had given her. I'm in the middle of my finals at school, her wedding already had a negative effect on my midterms and I wish I had just said no. Heres the contract/letter :


*
Congratulations and thank you for choosing me to photograph your wedding on October 2nd 2004. I understand that you are on a budget, so I have entrusted a lab that will do a beautiful job at a reasonable cost. I have come to a final cost of $300; this includes tax, lab fees, and my cost per hour. I will be more than happy to provide you with the exact cost of everything if you so desire.
*
I will be shooting five rolls of color film for three hours (3:45pm to 7:00pm). I know that seems like a lot of photographs however I do not want to take the risk of only using two rolls of film. Please recognize that I am a student and I have not had extensive experience in photographing weddings. I do however, guarantee you that you will have much more than the ten to fifteen images you desire.
*
After the wedding I will have the lab print contact sheets so you can view thumbnail images instead of 4 by 6 proofs. This will save you a large sum of money, helping to keep your costs down. I will return the proofs to you at the soonest date possible after your event.
*
All of the negatives and images belong to me. By signing this contract you allow me to use your images in an on line portfolio when I finally create one. If I desire to use them for anything else I will notify you and we'll take it from there. I will carefully store your negatives so if you want anything else printed at a later date (guaranteed to five years) you will have it.
*
I need to have 1/2 of the payment in advance and the other 1/2 the day of the wedding.* When you finally view your proofs and come to a decision I will get another estimate for you. Before I submit you actual order to the lab I would need to be paid in full in order to cover the lab fees.
*
Again, thank you for this opportunity and I hope you have a beautiful wedding.



I thought I had made things clear to this woman, but now she wants to sue me. I feel terrible already that most of her photographs didn't come out, I would be devistated if it happened to me. However the cost of wedding photographers is astrinomical, even student photographers.

Should I stand my ground and refuse or do I give her all of the money back? Or what else do I do?

sorry this is so long but thank you for taking the time to read it (and hopefully respond)

Lindsy

 

[stevek3]

What is the name of your state?What is the name of your state? New Jersey


Hi, my name is Lindsy. I am a photography student in my final year of college. I was asked as a favor to photograph a wedding for a reasonable cost. I agreed, but not before she fully understood the verbal conditions of me not photographing a wedding before on my own, that $300 was a very small amount but she if she is willing to take such a risk with that then I'll try my best. I made wrote her a letter serving as a contract and had her sign and return it to me. (posted at the bottom) She agreed and continued to say that she only wanted 10 to fifteen images at the most and that she wanted the majority of the images taken outside. The day came and at the last minute she said she wanted to have everything inside. Well, having the wrong film speed and not a powerful enough flash I did not have enough light to caputre 1/2 of the images. I used everything I had learned and forced the film to work, taking it to a lab that ended up charging me $100 alone for the processing to ensure most of the photos would come out well. I spent an additional $130 on paper and weeks of my time printing these to give her as many images as possible. When it came time to give her everything, I made sure I didn't give her anything that was unusuable, she had upwards to 60 photographs. She dosen't like any of them, she says they took too long to get to her and a lot of photographs are missing. I explained to her (calmly) what had happened and she said she needs to think about things. Now she wants the majority of her money back, plus additional money she spent going to outside photographers to have replacement photographs that were already in the sets I had given her. I'm in the middle of my finals at school, her wedding already had a negative effect on my midterms and I wish I had just said no. Heres the contract/letter :


*
Congratulations and thank you for choosing me to photograph your wedding on October 2nd 2004. I understand that you are on a budget, so I have entrusted a lab that will do a beautiful job at a reasonable cost. I have come to a final cost of $300; this includes tax, lab fees, and my cost per hour. I will be more than happy to provide you with the exact cost of everything if you so desire.
*
I will be shooting five rolls of color film for three hours (3:45pm to 7:00pm). I know that seems like a lot of photographs however I do not want to take the risk of only using two rolls of film. Please recognize that I am a student and I have not had extensive experience in photographing weddings. I do however, guarantee you that you will have much more than the ten to fifteen images you desire.
*
After the wedding I will have the lab print contact sheets so you can view thumbnail images instead of 4 by 6 proofs. This will save you a large sum of money, helping to keep your costs down. I will return the proofs to you at the soonest date possible after your event.
*
All of the negatives and images belong to me. By signing this contract you allow me to use your images in an on line portfolio when I finally create one. If I desire to use them for anything else I will notify you and we'll take it from there. I will carefully store your negatives so if you want anything else printed at a later date (guaranteed to five years) you will have it.
*
I need to have 1/2 of the payment in advance and the other 1/2 the day of the wedding.* When you finally view your proofs and come to a decision I will get another estimate for you. Before I submit you actual order to the lab I would need to be paid in full in order to cover the lab fees.
*
Again, thank you for this opportunity and I hope you have a beautiful wedding.



I thought I had made things clear to this woman, but now she wants to sue me. I feel terrible already that most of her photographs didn't come out, I would be devistated if it happened to me. However the cost of wedding photographers is astrinomical, even student photographers.

Should I stand my ground and refuse or do I give her all of the money back? Or what else do I do?

sorry this is so long but thank you for taking the time to read it (and hopefully respond)

Lindsy

The photographs took too long to get to her??? What kind of nut says that? Apparently, she's on the 6-month wedding program. I had an ex-wife like that.

Tell her you'll compensate her for her trouble: You'll be happy to take her divorce photos for half-price. How many months does she have left until she reaches six?

 

[amightylindz]

jeese that is too funny thanx for makin me laugh, i just wish i knew exactly how to finish this, i really don't want to start my career off with a woman who wants to already murder me for "ruining the best day of her life."

 

[stevek3]

jeese that is too funny thanx for makin me laugh, i just wish i knew exactly how to finish this, i really don't want to start my career off with a woman who wants to already murder me for "ruining the best day of her life."

If she keeps giving you headaches, then take your out-of-pocket expenses, give her back the remaining balance after deducting all of your expenses, and have her sign a release. She's not worth one minute more of the hassle. She pulled the rug out from under you at the last minute. She wanted cheap. If she really wanted to pay for wedding quality, then she would have hired a guy who takes cover photos for Redbook, Good Housekeeping and big fat Oprah's magazine.

 

[amightylindz]

thanx, i appreciate it

 

[wreckless]

It seems to me that you were contractually obligated provide up to 15 pictures. You actually provided much more. There was nothing in your contract about any deadlines, so I would say that as long as she got her pictures, then the timeframe is irrelevant. And the quality of the pictures is irrelevant too. She knew that you are a student, so she should of known to expect student quality work. No offense to your abilities as a photographer, but as far as the bride is concerned, she got what she paid for. No judge is actually going to judge the quality of the pictures. It's too subjective.

Good luck.

 

[COPhoto]

Quality photos?

I agree with wreckless. The Quality of pictures can not be judged by anyone other than the artist. Every one else only has opinions of the art. You provided her with 15 pictures and she knew you were a student. You get what you pay for. I am also a photographer and luckily got out of a contract with a similar bride because she tried to change the contract. Some brides believe you owe them the world because you only get this day once in a life time. If they truly believe this, they need to spend the money with a seasoned professional who has contracts and insurance to cover such situations. If they are too cheap then they need to just deal with it.
I don't have the legal back ground to offer advice, but I just wanted to wish you good luck and hope you find a good job after school that does not involve brides!

 

[cmorris]

What is the name of your state?What is the name of your state? New Jersey


Hi, my name is Lindsy. I am a photography student in my final year of college. I was asked as a favor to photograph a wedding for a reasonable cost. I agreed, but not before she fully understood the verbal conditions of me not photographing a wedding before on my own, that $300 was a very small amount but she if she is willing to take such a risk with that then I'll try my best. I made wrote her a letter serving as a contract and had her sign and return it to me. (posted at the bottom) She agreed and continued to say that she only wanted 10 to fifteen images at the most and that she wanted the majority of the images taken outside. The day came and at the last minute she said she wanted to have everything inside.

**The "poor" quality of the pictures is her fault. However, as a good photographer, you should ALWAYS be prepared for the unexpected.

Well, having the wrong film speed and not a powerful enough flash I did not have enough light to caputre 1/2 of the images. I used everything I had learned and forced the film to work, taking it to a lab that ended up charging me $100 alone for the processing to ensure most of the photos would come out well. I spent an additional $130 on paper and weeks of my time printing these to give her as many images as possible. When it came time to give her everything, I made sure I didn't give her anything that was unusuable, she had upwards to 60 photographs. She dosen't like any of them,

**You are a student, not a professional. Her problem.

she says they took too long to get to her

**Boo hoo.

and a lot of photographs are missing.

**If she only wanted 10-15 photos to begin with, what does she expect?

I explained to her (calmly) what had happened and she said she needs to think about things. Now she wants the majority of her money back, plus additional money she spent going to outside photographers to have replacement photographs that were already in the sets I had given her. I'm in the middle of my finals at school, her wedding already had a negative effect on my midterms and I wish I had just said no. Heres the contract/letter :


*
Congratulations and thank you for choosing me to photograph your wedding on October 2nd 2004. I understand that you are on a budget, so I have entrusted a lab that will do a beautiful job at a reasonable cost. I have come to a final cost of $300; this includes tax, lab fees, and my cost per hour. I will be more than happy to provide you with the exact cost of everything if you so desire.
*
I will be shooting five rolls of color film for three hours (3:45pm to 7:00pm). I know that seems like a lot of photographs however I do not want to take the risk of only using two rolls of film. Please recognize that I am a student and I have not had extensive experience in photographing weddings. I do however, guarantee you that you will have much more than the ten to fifteen images you desire.
*
After the wedding I will have the lab print contact sheets so you can view thumbnail images instead of 4 by 6 proofs. This will save you a large sum of money, helping to keep your costs down. I will return the proofs to you at the soonest date possible after your event.
*
All of the negatives and images belong to me. By signing this contract you allow me to use your images in an on line portfolio when I finally create one. If I desire to use them for anything else I will notify you and we'll take it from there. I will carefully store your negatives so if you want anything else printed at a later date (guaranteed to five years) you will have it.
*
I need to have 1/2 of the payment in advance and the other 1/2 the day of the wedding.* When you finally view your proofs and come to a decision I will get another estimate for you. Before I submit you actual order to the lab I would need to be paid in full in order to cover the lab fees.
*
Again, thank you for this opportunity and I hope you have a beautiful wedding.



I thought I had made things clear to this woman, but now she wants to sue me. I feel terrible already that most of her photographs didn't come out, I would be devistated if it happened to me. However the cost of wedding photographers is astrinomical, even student photographers.

Should I stand my ground and refuse or do I give her all of the money back? Or what else do I do?

sorry this is so long but thank you for taking the time to read it (and hopefully respond)

Lindsy

My father is a professional photographer and I have worked (in middle and high school) as his assistant. If she is so picky, she shouldn't have hired a student. And like others have said, you get what you pay for. My dad charges at least $3000 for a wedding, which is tons of money in his area. So obviously $300 (in any area) is so low, I wouldn't expect more than snapshots.

Something you may want to consider: My father uses a digital camera and Photo Shop. He saves tons of money on film and the pictures look just as perfect. Of course, he spent a lot of money on this camera (I think about $4-5K) and only got it in the last year. He does a lot of his own editing on the computer. He uses his lights, reflectors and meters to control the lighting. I don't know what they teach at your school, but my father got his degree in English. Obviously he doesn't use it and learned everything on his own and through conferences.

One last word: ALWAYS be prepared for the unexpected. Sometimes the weather doesn't cooperate or people change their minds. Of course, as a student, she should have known better. I think you are covered--you had a contract and she was the one who changed her mind. It is her fault, not yours. Chalk it up to a learning experience.