Cheese

My nephew just received his wedding photos. The wedding was in October last year, so the turnaround time was about 7 months. They had ordered 3 photo books, one each for the bride/groom and each set of parents. They also ordered about 200 5x7 prints to distribute to more distant family members. In addition, they received about 1,800 JPG files on a thumb drive.

I confirmed with the photographer that we were free to make additional prints from the JPG files. However, it was obvious that the JPG files were minimally post processed. In fact it looked like all that had been done was to import them into LR in order to convert them from RAW to JPG. To test my theory, I printed one of the photos that I had received as a 5x7 print, and it was clear that the print was post processed, whereas the JPG file was not.

So my questions are these:

Is it typical for wedding photographers to PP only those images that the client has requested be printed, and not those images that are given to the client electronically?

Why would you give the client a processed print, but the unprocessed electronic file of the same print, since clearly that particular file has been processed.

To what extent do you process files you hand over to the client, for which no prints have been ordered. Would you, for example, remove images of a second photographer reflected in a mirror in the bride’s dressing room? Would you adjust lighting and white balance?

I’d like to get the opinions of professionals who do, or have done, this for a living. Thanks.

williejoha

Why would you process pictures that where not picked?
WJH

Mama Bear984 Loc: Langley, BC Canada

Sounds like he was lazy. If your going to do photos then do them all. I would never just dump a bunch of them onto a thumb drive & say here you go. All photos get tweaked. And I put them in order of the day starting with the bride getting ready all the way down to the end of the day. When you import the images from the 2nd shooter they don’t always flow with the day. So now what you have to import & do this persons work, oh great. You mid as well have shot the wedding!!

Cheese

Because you are giving them to your client?

Based on the numbering sequence, the photographer gave the client approx 2,000 files out of approx 5,000 images shot.

Cheese

The files were in chronological order. No complaints there.

jdubu Loc: San Jose, CA

You seriously cannot expect the photographer to spend time (or money) processing 1800 photos for your free use, let alone giving you all his day's shooting results. Just being given the jpegs of all the captures during a wedding is more than most professional shooters would contemplate.

You could find any number of low end shooters that spray and pray their way through a wedding and just give you the raw results. Shoot and done.

Since the photographer will always retain the rights to the photos, that would include the processing results. If you are given the processed file of his work, he loses all control of what happens to that file. He is being paid to produce a finished photo print or book, nothing else. If you are lucky enough to be given his files, you could process WB, lighting and the photo bomber.

Mac Loc: Pittsburgh, Philadelphia now Hernando Co. Fl.

It takes a lot of time to PP. The photog delivered what he was paid to deliver, do you really think he should spend the time and effort on work he was not paid to do?

Cheese

Not so. He was paid to deliver 3 books, 150 5x7 prints, and 1,800 jpeg files out of 5,000 images shot

Cheese

Turnaround time was 7 months. Agreed upon turnaround time was 4 months. Besides, He was paid to deliver 3 books, 150 5x7 prints, and 1,800 jpeg files out of 5,000 images shot. He did not deliver anything that was not paid for.

Mac Loc: Pittsburgh, Philadelphia now Hernando Co. Fl.

Have talked to him to hear his reasoning? What he says will be better than our opinions and guesses.

Rongnongno Loc: FL

Another case here both are wrong...

7 months to deliver? Wow! THAT is wrong.
Client wants to be cuddled and get what he did not pay for (PP JPG)? THAT is wrong.

PP is an expensive skill. If anyone asks me to PP an image for them to print later on, mine or theirs, I would charge $75.00 per hour, minimal 1 hour. If more than one image? Same tariff, PER IMAGE, meaning if I PP three images in one hour, the price would be $225.00.

Yes, I am a mercenary. You do not get to play for free.

As to delivering images from a wedding or any other event, this is akin to deliver negatives. No go, sorry. That alone should cost a bundle.

jdubu Loc: San Jose, CA

I understood about the prints and book quantities (I was simply distilling it down to a per item paid for), but your wording about the 1800 files gave me the impression they were a free add-on. Not ordered and paid for items. So if they were ordered and paid for, what does the contract stipulate how they are to be treated and delivered? If they were not paid for, then be happy he went through and gave your family usable files.

I agree with Rongnongo, PP skills are a billable asset. I pay others for their expertise and skills when I need it, they pay me for mine.

larryepage Loc: North Texas area

When my wife and I got married 37 years ago, one of the products offered for sale by the photographer was an album containing all of the "proofs" of our wedding photographs. It was the same for my sister's wedding and my brother's wedding. Proofs are simply straight prints of each image shot during the wedding, primarily to be used as a catalog from which to order finished prints.

Those 1800 JPEGs on the thumb drive are exactly that...the proof album from the wedding that the photographer has made available for sale. No one has been cheated because they haven't been processed. They were sold exactly as what they are unless there was some specific different provision in the work contract.

BebuLamar

If he determines that the pictures are fine as is without PP it's OK. However, according to the OP he did PP those that he printed and gave the JPG of the same shot un PP. I think that's not right. He can choose not to give any JPEG that he doesn't think good enough. Any images that are delivered must the best he can get.
But what am I to have an opinion, as I would never hire a wedding photographer.

PixelStan77 Loc: Vermont/Chicago

It all depends what was in his contract. I always spelled out what they got as prints, thumb drive and files.
Never had any complaints.