Photographer problems ?

Oh no my advice would be if he's taking a TON of photos and he likely will for the wedding day then you'll likely get a lot more out of those that you'd like. And just do a ton of poses so you can have variety and angles

View Quoted Comment Great advice, Thank you!!

Congrats... well, it sounds like it's time to be a bridezilla and lay in on him what u expect and what u will not except and demand a refund for him not fulfilling the contract terms... technically he supposed to pay 4 a better photographer if he cant cut it

Any chance you can hire a 2nd shooter for 1-2 hours and let him know it’s to get different angles? Or ask him to hire a 2nd shooter so he’ll play nice with a 2nd photographer? It may be only $100-$300 for a more novice photographer.

Do you have any family members with great cameras? You can inform your photographer your cousin will take some photos during the ceremony and reception to build his portfolio. For our local reception, we asked my hubby’s cousin to take some using his pro camera and he took some amazing shots!

View Quoted Comment Omg! Your so right, I usually can’t get a word in anyway, because he wants to teach me about photography, which I careless about, just do your job,
thanks for your comment. I’m trying to be nice, but 3 weeks away is not cutting for me anymore

View Quoted Comment Wow, that’s a great idea as well, I will be letting our guests know they can take pictures as well, I will do some research on someone that can also take pics
thanks so much for your input

Telling other people they can take photos too, can turn into a disaster! First off if they are using a flash it can ruin his shots. Also have a ‘friend’ as 2nd camera, unless they are a photographer isn’t a good idea. Best thing is write out what you want in your wedding photographs, and give it to him. After he has had time to read it sit down and have a discussion. Plan B hire a second photographer. They may not be a professional wedding photographer, but should know photographer etiquette!

I would be very careful about hiring/finding someone with a great camera before re-reading your contract. Ours specifically states if there are any other photographers (professional or otherwise) interrupting our photos, our photographer can leave and doesn’t need to refund us.

Like someone mentioned above, he’ll likely get way more pictures at the wedding so hopefully they’ll be more you like. And have a shot list that both your photographer and a trusted family member have access to so you can get all the photos you want.

What's your contract say? The photographers I've been looking at take 1000+ photos, surely if he takes that many some of them have to be good.

View Quoted Comment I’ve never seen a contract with terms like that, mostly because quality is so subjective.

Also, instead of “going bridezilla” why not set up a meeting with the photographer, making it clear that you have concerns, and give him 3-4 of the major issues that you see with the photos? Things that he can actually address. Is it the editing style you don’t like? Posing? Be as specific as you can.

View Quoted Comment This. I’ve never seen a photo contract WITHOUT an exclusivity clause.

What does the contract state? What's his background, style, and other work showcase? If he isn't a professional then likely he won't have his stuff together and will continue to disappoint you.
You need someone who knows what they're doing.

I'm a photographer and can get you in contact with pros (of whom I can vouch for) that fit your budget and are in the area of your wedding.
If you're interested, just let me know what you're able to spend, the style you're looking for, and the city. I'll have options in your inbox within the next couple of hours 🤗

That sounds absolutely annoying. This isn't a photography class. He should be talking to you about anything else honestly. Ours tried to relate to us and we got into conversations about her kids, etc. Mine made me iffy because she wasn't good at giving us direction and all our engagement shots were practically the same pose because we didn't know what to do. I was upset but I plan to be proactive about it. I will send her example shots/poses I like for the wedding and I am going to tell her we need more direction. I am also showing FH poses I would like us to do so we know. I think it's important to be very proactive about it and phrase it in such a way that a review depends on it (customer satisfaction). Especially since you are 3 weeks out from your wedding I would address it. I don't think he'd really have much time to talk about photography for a wedding but you certainly don't want him boring your VIPs or guests. He is there to take pictures. As far as quality of photos that needs to be addressed to.

My first suggestion is to talk to your photographer about being displeased with the outcome of most of your photos. Let him know the few you really like, and why you like them. That may get him off the high horse... or that might bruise his ego even more. Make sure to write a detailed review about him at the end of this stating why his personality and product were a concern.

Also, see if you can get rights to the raw/original footage. Down the line you can take it to a photo editor. They can take an image you find 'almost decent' and polish it differently to make it closer to what you want. My best friend does a lot of photo restoration, and I highly suggest that as a backup option for you.

This happened to me too, unfortunately! Your wedding pictures are the only thing you have left at the end of your big day, so if you are really that upset with them start looking for new photographers. I know it sucks because I had to do the same thing but it will be worth it! Maybe your photographer will give you a partial refund?

Hi! I am just reading your post and I am having the exact same problem. Our photographer is a great guy but I’m really questioning whether or not we made the right choice. I HATE almost all of my engagement pics. There’s maybe two I would share. And that’s a big maybe. I’m so upset bc there’s SO MANY photos and I hate all of them. I couldn’t tell if I just was unhappy with how I looked or what so I looked at photos from recent weddings and sessions he’s done and I am even more nervous!!! I am really upset. I, of course, scoured his website for his previous work but the stuff I saw today was only accessible once out engagement shoot was posted— and I’m just NOT impressed with ANY of the photos in anyone’s album. I’m completely freaked out so I’m wondering what you ended up doing and if you have any suggestions for me. I’m so so so disappointed. I had such high hopes. Help! Please!

* I mean I was very cautious before hiring him in looking at his previous work on his website- but it wasn’t until our engagement session pics were uploaded that I could see his current or most recent photos and I’m wildly unimpressed and in a complete panic.

View Quoted Comment I’m sad to hear this, so what I did, since we were already 7k over budget, I made our wedding a “Plugged” wedding, everyone is allowed to take pictures, and highly encouraged to do so during the entire wedding, I mean, my friends have the new Google Pixel phone that takes absolutely gorgeous pictures, also have a few friends with professional cameras, there was no clause in our contract saying they couldn’t take pictures, it was my last resort, especially being 13 days out.
Also, when I took the ONE picture that I liked to be enlarged, to a 8X10, it cut our feet off!! I wanted to throw up.
Good luck
PS. Do a hashtag so all your guests can send you the pics.

Thank you so much for your reply. I’m so sorry that you’re going through this too - it’s ridiculous! I can't believe that the one picture you like didn’t even get ALL of you in it! That’s ridiculous.


I’ll have to look at my contract again. It obviously says I can’t contractually hire anyone else... but I’m sort of thinking of possibly cutting ties and finding someone else. My wedding is in nov... so I have a bit more time but I know that great photographers are probably already booked. 🤦🏻‍♀️
Good luck to you! I’m sure you will get some amazing shots of the day! Who knows, maybe your photographer will surprise you! Did you mention to him that you disliked your photos? I’m on the fence about that one bc I don’t want to piss him off and then have him do some passive aggressive-hate photography during my wedding haha.