Awaiting wedding photography album.... possible problem..

DoubleT

DoubleT

Suspended / Banned
Messages
1,318
Name
Matt
Edit My Images
Yes
...
i got married back in august and we used a photographer that was recomended by the family, i find his corigraphy (sp??) to be at quite a high standard . but ive seen a potential problem :(

he was using 2 camera on the day

a medium format Bronica ETRSi
and a Nikon D2x

when we recieved the preview album, as expected the Medium format shots where great, really crisp and great colours, however the Digital shots were somewhat disapionting.

he clearly gave us the photos without any kind of PP.
the photos were soft to say the least, dull and quite frankly guests were producing better quality with their PnS's .
now when i mentioned this to the photographer he said that the photos in the preview album will be the same as the ones in the final print album. so when i met up with him again i gave him a "before and after" print taken by one of the guests which had ran it thourgh PS and crispened it up, as it should be.
he was suprised that i wanted my photos as crisp as the sample i showed .
the sample gave the wow factor and the photos he produced in the preview album clearly didnt .
now, hes told me that the album is complete and has been PP by a company that he uses to do his photos. im yet to see the album but am hoping that they are going to be of the standard that im hoping.

my question is.. if they are not? where do i stand?? am i able to get the files off him myself and rework them myself? ( he says he retains these for 5 years)
do you think it would be an easy battle for me. he seems a nice chap but a buisiness man/ sales man at that ( if you know what i mean).

i dont think he realises the work involved with digital photography, and thats its not just a point and shoot then print process. which is what gave the dissapionting results.

but im looking forward to seeing the "final print" ill let you know how goes ;)

thanks guys

:wave:
 
The first thing that shocks me about this is that you got married in August and still haven't received the images or album - I'd be getting concerned.

From what you say he obviously doesn't know much about digital photography or post processing. I doubt very much whether he will give you the original files to work on as he could (in his eyes) potentially lose a lot of sales through re-prints for family members or guests, I don't know of any wedding photographers who would allow that.

Finally, it doesn't matter if he seems a nice chap, you have entered into a contract with him and it is not unreasonable to expect high quality images from a professional photographer, so if you are not happy I wouldn't accept the final images until they have been processed as you like them.
 
it has taken some time hasnt it! but thats partly my fault as i held onto the preview album for a few months. ( he lives quite a distance from me)

so im well within my right to demand professional pic then!

especially after being around this forum and seeing the quality of photos that are achievable it makes me realise how good they should be .
 
There are lots of conditions attached to this. What do mean by a 'professional' image? I would be surprised if the final images, Bronnie or Nikon (I use an ETRSi and they compare favourable with our D200's), should'nt be that different from each other. Post processing is basically his problem. I would be really amazed if he let you have the files so you could pp them yourself. He is within his rights to keep them that long (5 years?), especially if that's what he's stated in your contract/ terms & conditions.

You're within your rights to expect images to be of a "merchantable quality", simple Sale of Goods Act dictates that. If he's being reasonable then you should negotiate and keep it friendly.

You can easily get A3+ prints from a D2Xs, so stick to your expectations.....

My thoughts anyway....
 
I used to sell the negatives and copyright to the client as part of the deal. This was far more convenient for me than the 20 mile round trip to the lab for the odd couple of reprints.

This tog isn't going to sell these photos to anyone except you Double T, so don't be fobbed off. ;) Obviously you want these photos, and he wants paying so there's a lot of room for negotiation there. I'd wait until you see the final prints though - if he's using a good lab and paying for pro quality printing, then they'll usually make every effort to produce the best prints from the shots they can.

It's very strange though, any wedding photographer worth his salt would want to do the digital processing himself, that's one of the biggest advantages of digital - having complete control over your results. :shrug:
 
I am not hundred percent sure on this but as far as I know - if you payed him to photograph your wedding then the images are all your copyright and belong to you. If you want the files then in the eyes of the law I don't think he can refuse. This is the case for video, if you are hired to record an event then any footage it the footage becomes the clients.
 
That's not the case with photos Jimmy.. copyright remains with the photographer. If someone asks you to make a copy of one of their wedding pics then you're in breach of copyright if you do, which is why wedding togs usually retain the negs.
 
It's very strange though, any wedding photographer worth his salt would want to do the digital processing himself, that's one of the biggest advantages of digital - having complete control over your results.
Click to expand...

i think i recall him saying he hadnt had the D2x for long and was only starting to work it out at the time of our wedding. so im not too sure if he knows the deal with digital photography. but yeah, you would think he would do the work himself, specially being as pationate about photography that he is.

he has his own studio shop where he does portraits and the like. and does many weddings ( photography is his part time line) i just dont like thinking others have excepted his digital work as is without the knowledge of what is capable.

thanks for you replys guys :)

:wave:
 
Nice of him to work out how to use his new camera at your wedding !! Not something i would like to hear. Did he tell you this before the big day ?

If he's that passionate about photography how come he's only just moved into digital ?
 
Best thing is if you haven't paid the final bill so to speak, this will then be your negotiating tool. I think its fair to say (as others have) you expect to get a quality professional result, you may have seen previous examples of his work and have entered into a contract with that in mind.

Now if he choses to change to another format ie digital, then it is HIS responsibility to make sure he retains the standard that he has shown you in his previous work.

Wait till you get the final album and judge then, lets not slay the guy just yet.

With the photographer at my wedding, I phoned him about 8 months after to tell him that I wouldn't be needing any more 'reprints' and because I'm in the trade (Repro - scanning) I wanted to digitize the negs as a backup solution if you like. He agreed, gave them to me, but said if it was OK to get back in touch if he needed them for any presentational stuff, 'cause he basically uses our whole album to showcase his work at Makeney Hall where we got married, my wife Kirstie was in a red dress and people always comment on it so he used our album.
 
im still yet to pay for the "extenstion" photos for the final album. but i will wait untill i see what they have turned out like.
i shall find out wednesday ...

watch this space...
 
CT said:
That's not the case with photos Jimmy.. copyright remains with the photographer. If someone asks you to make a copy of one of their wedding pics then you're in breach of copyright if you do, which is why wedding togs usually retain the negs.
Click to expand...

Really? learnt something new there then :)
 
Joe T said:
Are you saying that film users arent passionate about photgraphy?
Click to expand...

Nope, the other way round. I'm saying that if he's passionate about photography then i would have thought he would have already looked into digital. :shrug:

Anyway he shouldn't be familiarising himself with a camera and PP techniques at someones wedding.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top