Legal Advice: No show photographer

I would reach out to the company, first off. Let them know you didn't get the photographer you were promised, or the amount of time you paid for, and ask for a refund (along with the pictures taken). I'd ask for a full refund, as long as their contract stated both would be there & didn't have a clause for "in case of emergency", etc. I would assume if you ask for the full refund, you won't get any of the pictures though. So it's a hard thing to navigate. Maybe just let them know how sad you are about the whole experience, and you'd like the pictures back ASAP, as well as figuring out together some sort of refund since you got an amateur photographer for less time than was promised.

This will be tough since he did show up to the wedding and took *some* pictures and thus did not technically violate the agreement.

Can you send them a registered letter asking for a refund? Barring that, your credit card company (if you paid with a card), may be able to help.

Have you gotten any of the photos back yet? It is possible that they might be better than you think. And honestly, I would wait until getting the photos to proceed with any sort of legal action. Was there a clause in your contract about what the photographer would do if she were unable to do the job? My photographer had in her contract that she would furnish us a replacement professional photographer or provide a full refund if one was unavailable.

At the very least, if the photographer did not do the work for the contracted amount of time, you should request a partial refund for that. At the end of the day, before filing in court, I would request what I thought was a reasonable amount as a refund - certainly for the hours he was not there, and hopefully some percentage to make up for missing shots. If you end up going to court you could probably include a portion of whatever you have to pay to get missed portraits as part of the damages if they are refusing any refunds.

Did you have a contract which started it would be her? It sounds like they broke it in multiple places. When were they supposed to get pictures to you?

OMG this is my worst nightmare!!! I would freak out! Go through your contract and start giving them ultimatums (if you even want to deal with them anymore) and you should definitely get most of your money back if not all of it! If I were them I would feel awful and refund you and offer a bridal session!

That is awful I am so sorry are you going through that .like everyone says reach out to them see if you could get a full refund,And get whatever pictures he took I know he was not the photographer that you had requested but something needs to get done this was handled very poorly. Good luck

I’d scour the contract and make sure they haveno loop holes and ask for a full refund. Namely because you have to redo the shoot.

They should totally understand. If not I’d say that you want to pay for the pictures they took you want to keep but man I’d let a judge figure that out in small claims. I’d need proof the dude was hospitalized.

I totally understand that her father was in the hospital. Which is totally forgivable. However, she should have AT MINIMUM found you a new photographer, and definitely shouldn’t have sent her husband who is not a professional. And there’s no question she should absolutely have refunded your money with her husband then and there. That’s so unprofessional and I would definitely ask for my money back.

Read the contract carefully and note any discrepancies between what they said they would do and what did happen.
After you have identified those, you have a "breach of contract " situation.
I would then contact the company via a certified letter and allow 10 days to address your concerns and then, if they dont, walk my happy behind into a contract attorney's office who will take this on upon a contingency (meaning you will likely eat 30%, but no money upfront) and let them deal with this issue.

Yes, I agree with PPs here. I would like to add/emphasize that all contact with this vendor from here on out should be IN WRITING, to protect yourself. You don't want to find yourself in small claims court with a he said/she said kind of thing. Your initial letter to them should be about what is contained in your contract, and how they breached it. It should contain a demand/request about what you expect them to do about it (full or partial refund/reshoot the bride & groom pics, etc.), as well as a deadline for their response. Make it clear you expect a response in writing, no later than 2 weeks from the date of your letter. It's important to establish a "paper trail" and/or documentation of who said what and when. If they don't respond by the deadline, or if their response isn't what you had hoped for, then you can get some legal advice (most cities/counties have bar associations that will give you free advice), and possibly sue them in small claims court. I hope it doesn't come to that. I hope they do the right thing, and try to salvage photographic evidence of your beautiful day. Good luck.

Honestly I would just suck it up and re-do your photos with someone else.. it sounds like it’s a small business of the husband and wife, and the wife handles 95% of all business aspects. The wife had a true family emergency. I understand your disappointment but I would just let it go. Husband didn’t know the contract details, and like you said is usually there for back up. Also considering it’s his father in law on his death bed he was probably distraught. Let it go

I definitely would not just let it go. Contracts have “in case of emergency this is what happens...” clauses specifically because life can happen, but being a business they have a contractual obligation to fulfill their duties under the contract. If your family had a sudden emergency and you had to cancel your wedding they would have enforced their cancellation clause against you, and doubtfully would just let it go. I agree with others to only communicate in writing from now on and send things certified so you have proof they received it.

I would go crazy and be dramatic over the situation. I also understand the situation she had but like you said, she should of call others colleagues to cover that day for you. As a professional and business owner that’s what you do.
Now contact her and tell her everything you just told us and more. He was an hour and 45 minutes late, not prepare for the job and left an hour and a half early. That’s unacceptable. You deserve a refund and she knows that.
I mean this is not just a photo shoot this is a wedding that you can’t redo again or ever take back. Resting the tux, hair and make up and a new photographer is an extra expense you’ll have that’s simply not fair. I would express my disappointment, hurt and discontent with her first and see what to do but you have legal rights here!

That’s unfortunate about her father, but still the customer service could have been better.

View Quoted Comment I agree with you about keeping an open mind til you see what you get back photowise . I know she may be the “pro” but if he’s always her number 2, he may not be ENTIRELY clueless— my photographer also had her husband as the second shooter, and he wandered around the property and through cocktail hour taking candids and they were absolutely phenomenal photos and a lot of my favorites. Absolutely you are missing key ones and in the right for being upset and definitely deserve some degree of refund , but I’m just advising not to start out guns-a-blazing and to be cautious to keep the relationship civil until you get those photos back— you will treasure them whatever they are, as long as you get them. If you approach the photos themselves with an open mind you may end up liking them a little and not resenting them.

Immediately suing is not the correct course of action — first you contact them to give them an opportunity to right their wrong. I might wait til I get pictures back, but you don’t need to. I’d reach out (always in writing — have a record!) kindly and politely and explain your concerns and dissatisfaction and ask for some sort of compensation (some kind of refund) , citing what aspects of the contract were not fulfilled. Try to be factual, not emotional: the largest reason I’d wait to see what the pictures you do have is so that you can come at that issue with a solid stance (the: “he isn’t a pro and doesn’t know what he’s doing” is strictly presumptive at this point, plus you don’t know what he successfully captured or didn’t from your shot list). I wouldn’t air personal complaints (like “he was looking at his phone”). Look at your contract and isolate the facts that were truly violated (hours, number of workers) that are contractually backed up. Especially if there is an in case of emergency clause (my dj’s promised “reaching out to replacements to the best of his ability” but in retrospect, I didn’t have this for my photographer either). Detail which points you think they failed to provide and should compensate for , be it partial or full refund. But, always give them the first opportunity to right their wrong.

And keep an open mind about those pics that ARE coming . You might not have the portraits you wanted, but you might get some gems. A quality camera and a decent eye go a long way!

Photographer here. First off, I FEEL for you. 😩

I have a clause in my contract that states if I can’t make it on the wedding day, I will send a replacement. It also states that if the client decides not to use my company because I am sending a replacement, I will issue a refund.

There is also a clause that states if somehow all the photos are lost/destroyed through an act of god, I’m responsible for the amount paid to me for my services.

Props to you you for going through with a secondary shoot - I’m sure those photos will be beautiful! And you’ll have more time and be more relaxed for those photos, so that’s a bonus too

As some other posters have said it’s not a full breach of contract because someone did show up and take photos. I would read the contract carefully to see if there’s any clauses about who will show up, what happens if expectations aren’t met, etc. At the very least, if the contract states there would be two photographers, then it was partially unfulfilled since only one showed up.

Best case scenario, the photographer agrees to refund all of your money. However, photog may not feel that’s fair considering the extenuating circumstances and that you did have some photos taken (however subpar they were). I would ask for a phone call or an in person meeting (not email) to hash it out with her.

Oh, and if you do have a phone call or in person meeting: whatever the resolution is, get it IN WRITING and signed!

Reach out, express what you have here and be armed with a clear understanding of what your contract promised you that did and did not happen. You can express your understanding of what she went through and let her know you are disappointed in how she handled the family emergency on a day she was hired to photograph your wedding. See how they respond and move forward based on that.

I am SO sorry this happened to you. Please let us know how it goes. I can't imagine how upset I would be if I were in your position.

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YES! Everything in writing. If you do a phone call make sure you ask that she send you an email detailing the discussion and do it yourself as well to send to her and ask for confirmation. Everything in writing.

PS just for clarification, I suggested having the “hash it out” discussion not over email because people tend to be nicer when they aren’t hiding behind a computer screen, so you both can keep a better handle on your emotions rather than risking you losing your temper or photog being nasty. But again - whatever the resolution is, get it in writing !!