lost wedding photos... advice?

My worst nightmare, im so sorry this happened to you!! stand your ground and ask for money back.. OR ALL back! This photographer should be standing behind her product and if she couldn't deliver she should be giving your money back. again,

OMG, that is horrible! I can't even imagine how you feel about this. While I think her offer of taking half off and doing a redo shoot is nice, the redo.won't be from your actual wedding, so I see why you're so angry.

Honestly, if I did something like that to someones wedding, I would refund ALL of the money on top of doing a reshoot.

Firstly i'm so sorry this happened. i would be really upset.

secondly if her stuff really did get stolen, she probably lost a whole ton of money herself on top of what she discounted you. professional equipment is really expensive. If you like the pictures that you did get from her then I would stick with her to take the pictures and maybe ask her to rent you the venue out of her pocket instead of yours.

Check your contract to see what you agreed to. Many photogs write theyre not liable (or only liable up to a certain amount) for situations beyond their control.

Ha! The million dollar question... Is she telling the truth? I have no idea. I want to believe her, but I can almost tell she's not telling me everything. And I didn't even think about insurance! That should cover the cost of what was lost... Again, I want to believe she's being honest but at the end of the day my pictures are still gone.. but I've been fighting with myself wondering if it would be bitchy of me to ask for the money back because a) the pics aren't there and B),c),d) to put towards the venue fee and the hell this is putting me through organizing this reshoot, along with having to get my family and friends together again. We talked about a venue to shoot at that was going to cost around $300 and she said it like "better pay them so I can get pictures from there on my website." Ugh. Idk why she can't rake responsibility for this. I'm just so upset and frustrated.

Sorry I'm typing so badly, I'm on my phone in bed sick, lol. I didn't have wedding insurance,I wasn't even aware that existed. Where have I been? The photo contract says to only pay half, but after she told me what happened she said if I still wasn't happy she'd refund the rest (i have that in writing) so I'm just hoping she'll follow through, since its technically not in the contract. half of me is saying oh just let her do the retakes, and just put thus behind us, but the other half is devastated and angry, and can't put this behind me.

If you have her promise to do a full refund in writing, then she has to honor it. She actually would have to even if it was an oral agreement, but its harder to enforce. Just because it doesn't look like a typical contract with your signatures on, that doesn't mean its not a contract. She can be held legally accountable for promises like this.

Good luck!

Wow I am really sorry this happened to you. This is my biggest fear as BOTH a bride and as a Photographer. I thankfully have never lost any equipment or files of a client but it does happen. I would check your contract. In the contract that I have my clients read and sign it says that I am not held responsible for lost images due to damaged or stolen equipment. I'll make a second post with what my contract specifically says.

My contract says: "RESPONSIBILITIES: The COMPANY is not responsible for compromised coverage due to causes beyond the control of the COMPANY including but not limited to obtrusive guests, lateness of the CLIENT or guests, weather conditions, schedule complications, incorrect addresses provided to the COMPANY, rendering of decorations, or restrictions of the locations. The COMPANY is not responsible for backgrounds or lighting conditions which may negatively impact or restrict the photo coverage. The COMPANY is not held liable for missed coverage of any part of the EVENT(S). The COMPANY will not be held accountable for failure to deliver images of any individuals or any objects at the EVENT(S)."

Again, I am so sorry this happened to you and I know NOTHING will bring back those photos. I hope you and your photographer can come up with a solution.