Wedding Photo Wait Time??

That is so frustrating! I'd be continually messaging her, especially since you paid her to take photos. Waiting over four months is way too long.

I would give her another 2-3 days beyond the one week that she promised, then reach out again to ask about the status. What does your contract say as far as timing that you would get the photos back after the wedding?

I’d message her again on Monday afternoon. I received sneak peaks the same weekend and the full album on our 1 month anniversary. It shouldn’t take that long.

I agree with Amanda. I received sneak peeks 2 weeks after my wedding and the full gallery 5 weeks after the wedding. What does your contract say about delivery time? Assuming your contract references a delivery time and the photographer has not met that term, I would remind them of the delivery time he/she agreed to in the contract. I would also warn them that if the pictures are not delivered within 10 days, you will be forced to look into other remedies for their breach of the contract.

Very frustrating! It’s been way too long! Look at your contract, if a timeframe was given, I’d email her Monday, informing her that she needs to honor the contract or you’ll have no choice but to seek legal action.

What does your contract say? Your photography contract should specify the wait time window to get your photos back

What does your contract say? A professional photographer should have a very clear timeline outlined in the contract. A wait of 6-8 weeks is typical. It's been nearly 4 months and winter is not peak wedding season (with Covid there are likely even fewer weddings happening indoors), so there doesn't seem to be an obvious reason for the delay. Something is up.

Also I'm a photographer and I can't think of a common photo editing/management system in which a photographer would somehow have deleted all of the edited files but still have the original files intact. It's possible, but unlikely with the way that Lightroom, Photoshop, and most digital asset management systems work, and a professional relying on photography for income should have a backup system in place that would prevent loss from happening. Follow up with your photographer again. Threaten legal action if you don't get your images.

Time to check your contract! If it's been longer than the amount of time specified on your contract (which I imagine it has, since usually these windows are 8-10 weeks), then I'd follow up and threaten legal action.