“Sepia Gate” Photographer FINALLY Speaks Out
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- Опубліковано 9 лип 2024
- WATCH PART 1: • the “sepia bride” dram...
The Vendor Table Interview: • BONUS: The "Sepia Gate...
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WATCH PART 1 (bride's side of the story)
I feel like the bride left a lot out of her POV. She said she paid $8,000 but didn’t mention that it was a multi-date destination wedding nor did she mention that she got 2,000 photos or that part of the $8,000 was an hourly editing rate. Context matters.
This series of "sepia gate" and the video explaining raws really changed the way i think about photgraphers. I don't know why but i guess i always assumed that there is minimal editing done and that most of the photographers job was just taking the photo, having their camera set to the right settings for the scene, and delivering the photos. I never realized how most of the job is editing the images and how much time it takes... wow, i'm glad to have learned this!
The bride and the photographer both made mistakes here. But I have to say I am on the photographer's side because it seems like she didn't know how to say no to the client and also was unfairly blindsided with this. I do understand where the bride is coming from, but posting it on tiktok when the photographer is still willing to work with you is very rude
No one seems to remember that in the original video from the bride, she states that she fell in love with the photographers work because it had a dreamy, "golden" style. She also said that she loved the photos at first and thr photographer confirmed that she sent a message saying how much she loved them. In my opinion, she got the wedding video back and liked the true to color style more than the golden and then wanted her photos to match. I dont think this is fair. She chose the photographer based on her style and then isnt acknowledging that she essentially changed her mind. I dont think the photographer was perfect in this either, as Jessica points out, but like man, this is not the way to handle this situation.
I like how the photographer was sepia IRL
This whole thing is so interesting. Classic case of liking something you see but when it’s on you, you hate it.
Never send that much photos to a client. They will focus on 30 they don’t like and they will hate the entire gallery
I don't know why but I find it so funny that the photographer looks like she has a sepia filter on even in the video.
I think that people who aren’t photographers don’t understand why giving out the raw photos is such a big deal and why most photographers refuse, which is a big part of why the Bride was so shocked and offended that the photographer wanted $3000 to send the raw photos. The photographer should have explained to the bride that giving out raws is not standard in the industry and is rarely done, hence the high price tag. It sounded like the bride thought the photographer was just charging $3000 to be petty.
The fact that she was able to give 2000 plus photos let’s me know she batch edited and slapped her presets on. I only give 300-500 photos per wedding. I know I’m going to have to tweak some photos of the lighting is trash. You can’t set yourself up to get played like that.
I knew it. The second the bride mentioned that the photographer had “threatened to sue” I had a feeling that it was in response to the bride threatening to use her platform to get her way.
My heart goes out to this photographer. I've been photographing weddings since 2000 and have had my fair share of situations arise. About 10 years ago, I worked with a couple that was referred from another client of mine. I worked mostly with the groom leading up to the wedding, which isn't the norm but didn't seem off base either. I never met the bride as they didn't want engagement photos and she was "always too busy" to meet so I took that in stride, assuming as long as I was getting her input for a shot list and whatnot, we should be good to go. When I showed up to the wedding, the bride was standoffish and clearly really stressed but wasn't projecting that to me. She made her mom re-do her corseted back dress 4 times because of something that was never going to change regardless of how it was tied. Everything was running very behind because of situations like this coming up but as a photographer, you make use of the time you get and that is what we did. It was a beautiful April afternoon and a nice, small ceremony. After the ceremony, I was taking photos of guests during cocktail hour and the guests that had recommended me were there so I got a photo of them. They happened to be standing in a different area then the majority of the guests so the background was different but I thought nothing of it. Typically during dinner, I will hang in an area away from the guests to take a little break but close enough I'll know if anything is going on. This wedding definitely had a strange energy and everyone was so quiet and reserved. Cut to Monday, two days after the wedding, I get a call from the bride while she was at the airport getting ready to go on her honeymoon, expressing concern about if certain photos were taken. I assured her of what we did get and if something was missed, I explained how we discussed that at the wedding because of the scheduling being 2+ hours off the planned timeline. I sent her a super-sized sneak peek and she loved the photos. She posted them all over her social media and got so much lovely feedback from her loved ones-- something ALL photographers love to see. When I met with them to get their album to them, only the bride was at the meeting. She looked through the book faster than I have ever seen anyone go through their album and said thank you and left. Four days later, I start getting a barge of calls from her and the groom about how awful the photos were, how her guests said I looked bored, how I missed "the magic", how I favored some guests and took better photos of them in better backgrounds then where the activities of the guests were taking place, how I missed so many photos, etc.... basically I had done everything wrong and that I ruined her wedding. I was gobsmacked. I had NEVER had anything remotely like this come my way and couldn't figure out what I could have done better. The work they received was very much on brand to the work I have on my website. After a weekend of total harassment, I agreed to meet up with both of them to discuss. I also brought another professional photographer with me to have another professional opinion and a third-party present. The groom was silent as the bride just ripped my work apart stating she had her family friend who was apparently a professional look at the photos, and they agreed there was no way they could be professional. She said she got complaints from her family about the photos and wanted to attempt to retake some of the family photos because the two-year-old was throwing an absolute fit the entire time. We went back and forth on some of the logistics and details of the day and I was very clear with her that I had fulfilled our contractual obligation. That said, I never wanted anyone to feel that way about photos I have taken let alone their wedding. After what truly felt like a beat down, I agreed to give them all their raw files (at NO cost) and they had to sign a statement that they were satisfied with this resolution. The following weeks, all of my business pages started receiving very negative reviews from a lot of different people, many I had never heard of. What I later found out was the bride was going around and asking everyone to leave me bad reviews and was trying to collect affidavits against me. I had all the screenshots of her and her loved ones praise about the photos she posted and had to have a legal cease and desist letter sent advising her she was in breach of our contract and was liable for defamation. The reviews (mostly) got removed and I found out I was not the only person(s) the bride had a beef with after. She also called several guests at the wedding while at the airport to express her concerns about what they wore to the wedding or their behavior. I later put the pieces together to realize I was the only thing the groom had any say in, so I was always going to be an easy target for her because the friends that referred me were people the bride resented. They were friends of the groom for more than 30 years and after the wedding, were no longer allowed to communicate with the groom.
I wish this conflict wasn't online. I think we all have made mistakes in our careers. We never stop learning and improving our craft. I just hope the photographer isn't negatively judged forever for this learning moment. I think Jessica sees the big picture and sees that the battles that occured are not worth it for the photographer's peace. I also love the feedback of less is more. This sounds like great mentorship.
I’m looking at the photographer’s skin and I wonder if she may have some bias about people looking tan or orange. She seems to be a self tanner and likes this look. She may not be aware .
In my previous work in finance. After phone calls I send an email follow up with bullet points “hi, per our conversation this was what’s discuss and agreed upon, please look over them and let me know if I missed anything if I don’t hear back back from you in 2 business days that means everything in this email is accurate and we are good to go. Thank you!”
I've been doing photography for over 20 years, mainly for fortune 500 companies, but I've done quite a few weddings over my lifetime.
For those who are familiar with the music industry, RAWs in photography are like Master recordings.
I love your POV, it is so insightful and not just for photographers, but for freelance creatives!
if she said she thought her hair looked redder than it did in real life, then she WAS upset with the toning. she just didn't realize the toning was the issue. wedding clients arent the same as professional clients, they don't have the same understanding or knowledge to communicate what is wrong. it is your job to be able to understand what they are asking for