I want to virtually strangle my wedding photographer...

[olive519]

Thanks bellafleur, that's something I'll keep in mind.

I am more than willing to pay the late fee that the contract listed ($250).

[Pursegrrl]

When the OP initially wrote she now has a lot of time on her hands, I took it literally, not as irony. So the impression I got was that she had plenty of time to sue, but then posted "when am I going to have time to make an album." Call me crazy, but it sounded like she was itching to pull the trigger and sue. Sorry, but first impressions and all...and the internets

I would pay to get the negatives and make my own album. I don't think legal action is the way to go...I agree with the "catch more flies with honey" dealio given all the water under this bridge.

[juneping]

wow...didn't forsee this thread would grow that fast and long....

well, i read all the posts. i work in design field..and we have dwgs and rendering (images) and stuff. we store them in electronic format and in paper as well. depends on who takes care of the project they are working on. for the photographer to store the negatives and/or image files, that's the nature of her business to store those materials. i don't think it's never done that some people might come back to the photographer to ask for more pictures.
OP, you need to ask what their rates are in the scenario i mentioned above. how do they charge?? and compare to the price they gave you.
the way i see it is they still owe you 20 pictures. you didn't pick them out 4 years ago but they still owe you 20 pictures. she still owe you 20 pictures no matter how i see it. it's not like she did it and you didn't pick them up...the fact that she didn't make them. period. that could be labor intensive to develop 20 pictures but she didn't do it so for me to see it is: you paid for something she hasn't done yet. so it pretty much sums up you might need to pay her the storage fee...but again, that's the nature of her business to keep the negative. but you can ask her to charge you for the "looking for negative fee"...but it shouldn't cost you 1500. as far as i know, some photographers don't release their negatives...i've taken photography at school...so i know a little about it.
regardless how she's going to upgrade her technology...well..you are not supposed to be responsible for that. that's her business..not yours.
you are wrong for not doing it in a timely manner but she still owes you 20 pictures. so the most she could charge you is the "searching fee". with the economy now....she should not be that busy that she cannot find time to develop those photos.
but if she already gone into digital/electronic...may be her dark room supplies are no longer used as frequently as before...may be she needs to buy all those chemical solutions to develop those pictures?? but i am pretty sure she has some kind of device to scan those negatives into image files...but again those are labor intensive job.
it still doesn't make sense to me why she charge you that much....

[candypants1100]

yeah that sucks, but i would just pay the smaller fee and get the negatives myself and then make a book. those frilly albums are kinda blah- you could probably make something much better and more meaningful yourself.

[TFFC]

Originally Posted by gga

The OP vented in her first post. The thread was labeled as venting. The words that some people read as harsh and entitled sounded tongue in cheek and satirical to me. People hear things differently. For example, since I've seen the OP post about a new baby in another thread, I read the "so much time" comment as irony, as saying one thing, when another is the reality. Since I could have been mistaken in my understanding of the initial post, I read the entire thread, I read each of the OP's posts, and I read responses, both reasonable and not so much. In each of her responding posts, the OP has remained calm, matter of fact, unemotional, and free of insulting others. This behavior on the part of the OP would seem to contradict all the posts accusing her of bragging or entitlement or trying to make someone's life miserable. Those are highly charged words, and the OP has not risen to the bait. Some of the responses to the OP don't seem to make much sense with what the OP has actually said. When I read this thread, many of the responses seem to be a result of the posters' projecting their own fears, aggravations, assumptions, and attitudes onto the OP. Whatever your reading on the OP's initial post, I just wanted to point out that in multiple very stern posts, she has been nothing but calm, respectful, and polite in responses. I can't help but feel this contradicts all the assertions being put out here. In the end, I think actual, trained lawyers are the best to give an educated opinion on what the legalities of the contract would be, and as to the rest, we'll all end up in the end agreeing to disagree.

I've read this whole thread and I agree with this post.

How come no one has mentioned the photographer's partner talking about clients from 1999 etc? I'd think a court would consider that, it's not like the OP hasn't made any contact since her wedding.

Anyway, OP I hope you and your photographer reach a resolution which is reasonable for both sides.

[digby723]

Originally Posted by TFFC

I've read this whole thread and I agree with this post. How come no one has mentioned the photographer's partner talking about clients from 1999 etc? I'd think a court would consider that, it's not like the OP hasn't made any contact since her wedding. Anyway, OP I hope you and your photographer reach a resolution which is reasonable for both sides.

I think that would be considered hearsay, the photographers partner saying people have been calling about photos from 1999. Plus, even if the partner agreed to having said that, they could also turn around and say that yes, they have clients calling from 1999, but they never disclosed to the OP that they have charged them "late fees" also.

I agree with almost everyone else, I'd just buy the negatives and make the wedding book myself. I do think that you paid $3k for her time and a 20 picture wedding book, but you signed a contract that stated that after 1 year you'd have to pay $250. I would see this just like any other late fee, whether it be from a video store, library or a service, if you don't return something or do something in a given time then you get another fee added on. 4 years @ $250 though would be $1000, so where the $1500 is coming from, I'm unsure, and that's what I would be mad about, paying an extra $500.

One poster said that she was a lawyer and it's not up to us to disperse judgement, it's up to the court, and I agree. OP, if you want to sue the photographer, then by all means, do so. But you said that you spend all day at home with a little one, and litigation can stretch on for months, or maybe over a year. That's a lot of babysitting to have to pay for, in a case that you have a 50% chance of loosing. I would honestly chalk this up to a lesson learned. You said you don't do well without a deadline, but in my eyes you had one, 1 year if you didn't want to have to pay an extra fee. That year has come and gone and now you're arguing over what fees are reasonable to pay. I would e-mail her politely and tell her that at this point you'd rather just get the negatives and ask if she will discount the price or them for you. You may have better luck this way. At the end of the day, even if she finally agrees to make the album for the $250 only, it may be crappy and then you'll want the negatives to make your own album anyways, which would cost over $500. At this point I just don't think it's worth trying to get her to do an album at her original price. You can argue all you want about how the contract is binding (and yes, this does vary on the state laws) but the contract gave you up to a year, after that it is ambiguous. For all you know had you not contacted the photographer in all this time, they could have destroyed the pictures because they were taking up space!

[Charles]

I don't think some people can pick up on the subtle nuances of sarcasm and passive aggressiveness.

Then again, this is only text and it's hard to be 100% on a person's intentions in their reply.

[ShopGirl647]

I'd say just get the negatives back and personalize your own wedding album. any way you like it since u mentioned u have some time on hand. I did that for my own album and is starting one for each of my kid as well ... great way to start cracking that inner creativity in yourself!!!