Quick question about weddings

Kegger · Sep 13, 2008

If you paid out $300 an hour for a wedding photographer and out of 500 images only about 20 are any good, i.e. WB is off, focus is 99% soft, composition sucks, etc...

Would any of ya'll ask for your money back?

I'm posing this for a friend of mine after I went through the wedding album. And quite frankly I'm appalled at the work. It's beginner amatuer at best and she charged entirely too much. :grumpy:

Iron Flatline · Sep 13, 2008

Did they look at the photographer's portfolio before the shoot? Did they speak to other couples who used this person as a wedding photographer?

Kegger · Sep 14, 2008

The portfolio was pretty good. But the finished product is total crap. Looked like it was done with a P&S and very little skill.

Edward Crim · Sep 15, 2008

Not enough lookin' before the leapin'.

But it can't hurt to ask.

JerryPH · Sep 16, 2008

If they signed a contract, it is going to be challenging to get anything back. They may have some luck asking for a reshoot... but if the results were crap before, they will be crap again.

Small claims court may be the best, I'll bet.

IF struck home the main point... someone didn't do their home work properly.

saltface · Sep 16, 2008

What's the photographer? Do they have a website?

Kegger · Sep 16, 2008

URL removed.

THORHAMMER · Sep 16, 2008

Kegger said:
If you paid out $300 an hour for a wedding photographer and out of 500 images only about 20 are any good, i.e. WB is off, focus is 99% soft, composition sucks, etc...

Would any of ya'll ask for your money back?

I'm posing this for a friend of mine after I went through the wedding album. And quite frankly I'm appalled at the work. It's beginner amatuer at best and she charged entirely too much.

300 an hour for how many hours, what was the total they paid.
how many total keepers ?
Anything else included in the package ?
Contract ?

Also, how different are they from the portfolio ? I mean your sure the guy didnt steal shots from anyone else for the portfolio right ? If its a night and day difference then thats probably what happened.

Not taking any sides, just trying to get an accurate picture.

Brian Austin · Sep 16, 2008

Kegger said:
That's the website.

This isn't going to end well.

Has the photographer been TOLD that the customer is not satisfied? Did the customer even KNOW they were unsatisfied until you sat down with them?

Generally speaking, I keep my mouth shut about other photographers' images unless specifically asked to critique their work by another customer. Even then I refuse to be quoted. Why? Flame wars, etc., that just doesn't need to happen.

If the customer isn't happy, they need to bring it up with the photographer and look at what options he/she can present them. Involving the whole flippin' world isn't going to be good for anyone, especially if...WHEN the search engines start picking it up.

Brian Austin · Sep 16, 2008

THORHAMMER said:
Also, how different are they from the portfolio ? I mean your sure the guy didnt steal shots from anyone else for the portfolio right ? If its a night and day difference then thats probably what happened.

Some photographers farm out double bookings to contractors. Might be two complete different people running through the same company.

William Petruzzo · Sep 16, 2008

Brian Austin said:
This isn't going to end well.

Has the photographer been TOLD that the customer is not satisfied? Did the customer even KNOW they were unsatisfied until you sat down with them?

Generally speaking, I keep my mouth shut about other photographers' images unless specifically asked to critique their work by another customer. Even then I refuse to be quoted. Why? Flame wars, etc., that just doesn't need to happen.

If the customer isn't happy, they need to bring it up with the photographer and look at what options he/she can present them. Involving the whole flippin' world isn't going to be good for anyone, especially if...WHEN the search engines start picking it up.

That's a good call. Sometimes customers are happy with what they got until someone told them they shouldn't be. Now, obviously that cheapens the industry for everyone. But, it can also get pretty bloody when one photographer openly slanders another, or worse, turns his clients against him.

All I'm sayin' is for the sake of your own business (if you run one), it might be wise to take down that link and keep it anonymous for when the goog-bot shows up sniffing around. Then, if you really feel your friends got jipped, advise them to go and talk to the photographer themselves.

Two measely cents. That's all.

Dubious Drewski · Sep 16, 2008

300 bucks an hour? Geez, I need to rethink my rates

wchua24 · Sep 17, 2008

well yeah you should look at photographers portfolio's first. for me paying a huge amount for my wedding picture should be a must, who wants there picture to be ugly and remembered forever.

photographyaddict · Sep 17, 2008

shouldn't you simply be having this discussion with the photographer? If I was in her position I would defend my photography because I have had clients who didn't 'get' it until I explained it to them. Some people get disappointed because they expect to suddenly look like Brad Pitt & Angelina on their wedding photos but the reality is that they are who they are. So this really depends on whether or not the photography skills really were bad or if maybe the expectations were unrealistic, is what I mean.

JerryPH · Sep 17, 2008

Odd... the website has a complete price listing and NOWHERE does it list $300/hr. They have packages and what not... what, were there special rates or special requests?

As it stands right now:
- we don't know if it was "jas" that took the pics
- we don't know how much they paid total, for how long and what they got
- we don't know how the pictures came out (they may suck, they may be incredible!)

I will say this much... based on the pictures on the wedding portion of the website, I am not particularly impressed with the results. I am NOT saying they suck, but I am saying that this really looks like the work of a beginner wedding photographer, someone with little experience.

That alone should have been a bit of a warning. I am almost tempted to say that the client likely got what they paid for, but $300/hr is too much for the quality displayed in the wedding section.