Sorry... Wedding Dilemma

Jambo_84

Jambo_84

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408
Name
Rob
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Hi everyone, I have agreed to shoot my cousins wedding (free of charge of course, I'm not a pro and we have an agreement that I'm doing it for free and can't guarantee results which he is perfectly happy with) but someone he knows also wants me to do his wedding but is willing to pay, he said £150 and I said no, photography is my hobby and thats that, I don't want any pressure put on me plus the gear would cost a lot more than £150, then he said what about £500 to which I replied that £500 would be best put towards a pro but he really wants me to do it for some reason!

What would be your advice? Take the money and do my best or say thanks but no thanks (the latter being more preferable to me at this moment!)

Many thanks.
 
If you are not happy then the only answer is no thanks.
If you do go ahead I think you need to make sure he knows exactly what you are and aren't capable of.
 
Thanks everyone, confirmed what I thought, it's gonne be a 'thanks but no thanks!'
 
Thanks everyone, confirmed what I thought, it's gonne be a 'thanks but no thanks!'

well done you. I read these threads with amazement. Someone buys a digital camera and suddenly they are a wedding photographer. I can go out and buy a toolbox but would I try to strip my mates car to bits without the knowledge, no of course I wouldn't.

You have my respect Jambo_84

stew
 
I think you're wise to turn the 500 quid job down at this stage. Let's be real - you have to start somewhere, and jobs like your cousin's wedding are great to cut your teeth on and get some experience in an environment where you'll know many of the people, and they have realistic expectations of your abilities. As soon as you start accepting large bundles of dosh, then regardless of what the customer may be saying at this stage, their expectations of you rise steeply.
 
LOL, given we've just had 2 suspensions and a banning on the last one this could be interesting.

The thing to remember is that the second you take money to do something you are effectively guaranteeing to get a decent standard and if you don't there is always the risk that you'll get sued for a hell of a lot more than you were paid, hence why Pros have Professional Indemnity Insurance. By all means do it if you want to but know what you are getting in to!

I think you'd be wise to pass the offer.
 
It is odd how £150.00 turned into £500.00 ***....hmmmmmm.........

:suspect:

lol - me and my paranoia! ;)
 
Maybe this could be an idea, do the wedding (if you're comfortable doing it) for practice etc, and then if they want to pay you at the end, once you have produced the pics, then let them...

No harm in that is there?

JB
 
krazy_horse said:
Maybe this could be an idea, do the wedding (if you're comfortable doing it) for practice etc, and then if they want to pay you at the end, once you have produced the pics, then let them...

No harm in that is there?

JB
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Normally, I would say no harm at all
But for a wedding, well there really are no second chances there.
If someone is already in a position to stump up £500 for a photographer I doubt they will be wanting a '**** shots no fee' type of arrangement.
 
Taking a fee means you're a Pro - and as CT says expectations rise and so do liabilities

You could always suggest you'd do there's for 'free' too, and that if they liked them then a "Thank you" of £500, or some way towards, would be considered acceptable and most generous !!!

But by leaving the door open for them to pay nothing at all you (in my opinion) avoid the need for all the spare kit and insurances necessary with 'Pro' status (and for that matter the need to declare it as income!)

So, if you fancy doing weddings as a Pro some day, both as freebies would be a good start; otherwise, a big fat 'No thanks' should be the order of the day

2p rolls slowly by...

DD
 
I did my first wedding a few weeks ago I did second photographer and did it for free just to cut my teeth.

Its a very very long tiresome day and that's not where it headaches start, its back home in photoshop......hours and hours of sorting & editing and so on.

But im going to do it again for a family member Im gonna be first tog this time.
 
This photoshop thing is interesting. I have to admit I have fallen into the trap of putting everything through photoshop and spending hours editing and not actually charging for this time.

I started wedding photography on medium format where you had three rolls (=36 shots) and the couple had 20 in the album. You had 16 spares to duplicate tyhe cutting of the cake and the signing of the register etc.

It was so much easier when we got it "right" in the camera :):)
 
artona said:
It was so much easier when we got it "right" in the camera :):)
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Not sure what you mean here m8 :thinking:

Do you mean...

a) you don't now get it right in camera and hence have to fanny about in PP, or (more likely I suspect)
b) you now see how much additional effect you can add in PP and hence fanny around afterwards even though the original shot was ok

:shrug:

I go with the getting it right first time around route, so there are no exposure changes or crops in the images couples will see - and I then batch process everything with a variety of actions afterwards. So while the computer is working hard - I'm not :)

DD
 
An interesting question here - if you are THE MAIN photographer but do not charge - does that make it impossible to be sued? - for poor work, for not turning up (car broke down), for someone tripping over your bag / tripod etc.

i suspect that if you are seen by the B&G as providing a service (even for free) that the photographer could be liable - does anyone here know the correct legal position?
 
sportysnaps said:
An interesting question here - if you are THE MAIN photographer but do not charge - does that make it impossible to be sued? - for poor work, for not turning up (car broke down), for someone tripping over your bag / tripod etc.

i suspect that if you are seen by the B&G as providing a service (even for free) that the photographer could be liable - does anyone here know the correct legal position?
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The positioning is everything - if you're a guest who takes photos then you should be ok (of course some ****** lawyer will argue differently if their client falls over your badly placed camera bag - but I suspect that would happen anyway these days, guest, passer-by, or Pro)

The fact that you seem more in-charge shouldn't mean or imply anything about your status providing the couple know & accept that

You tell them you're there for a shoot, and hope to capture a few nice ones - if you do, you'll show them to the couple later, if they are crap they'll never see you again!

Providing all understand that position, you should be fine IMO

Start promising anything and you've probably crossed the line :(

DD
 
artona said:
.

It was so much easier when we got it "right" in the camera :):)
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But did we always get it right in camera? If you did your own colour processing, how long did you spend in the darkroom labouring over the printing, or if you sent the prints to a pro lab you'll never know quite how much you owe the lab technician who did the printing. ;)
 
CT said:
But did we always get it right in camera? If you did your own colour processing, how long did you spend in the darkroom labouring over the printing, or if you sent the prints to a pro lab you'll never know quite how much you owe the lab technician who did the printing. ;)
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Good point - in my film days ALL my PP work stopped when I put a stamp on the envelope - I've no idea what they did next, but the prints I got back were generally good or better than I expected

One of the cheapest labs I ever found, gone now, produced some cracking colour for me (though I never did find a B&W lab I was happy with, most likely my fault then for shooting it badly or not knowing how to ask them to process it!)

Ah the good old film days - glad they're gone :thumbs:

DD
 
LOL. Colab (now called summat else) used to print a numeric code on the back of each print to show you how close you got (or didn't) to perfect exposure.
 
Sorry haven't been keeping up with the thread :bonk:

I'm gonna tell him he is best off getting a pro in to do the job, as I say photography is my hobby and that's the way I'd like it to stay for the time being!

I have a feeling he will try and persuade me to do it but it's not happening, he can fall out with me if he likes, I've never even met him so it doesn't bother me! I told him I wasn't doing it last week then just today (while he was at a wedding fair with my auntie) that I got a phonecall, presumably after he saw the prices the pro's are charging but like I explained they cost that much because they have all the gear and can guarantee results - unlike me.
 
Stand your ground Jambo. People just don't realise the job and the responsibility they're asking you to take on, or the pressures that come with it.
 
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