Vent and opinion: Potential Vendor making me want to cry!

junelley

I have been this awful search for photographer for longer than I wanted to.  This high potential (so we thought) photographer of mine has been making us jump through hoops and going back and forth with their offer and their availability that  we are not even sure why we met in the first place to talk about working together.  I thought we met because he was available (like he said!). We LOVE their work and got along really well during the meeting that we thought once we got the contract and discuss the details, it's a done deal.  But since we got the contract,  he's retracted his offer we met, reoffered (after our resistance) and now he's modifying what we wanted from 8 hours of coverage to 6 hours, saying we don't need the last 2 hours of the reception, anyway...I really like their work (they are definitely our favorites by far based on what we can afford) but I don't appreciate them changing their mind back and forth due to an issue they assured me at least on 2 separate occasions that it would not be a problem at all, and now it is a big problem for them, and based on that, they can't offer us what they originally offered.I am probably not explaining very well (there was a lot of back and forth with them) and I am almost to my tears now that they want to cut short our coverage by 2 hours and leave at 9:30pm instead of 11:30pm which we agreed on before.  FI is tempted to forgive (even though they didn't apologize), forget and accept their final offer and ask his photographer friend to fill in the last 2 hours (who I don't really feel like we can count on), but I pointed out that if they had offered 6 hours from the very beginning, we'd have said no, as it is not what we were looking for (which is full wedding coverage), but I have to admit I am tempted to just say ok, too.I am so torn!  Would we be missing important photos from the last 2 hours of the reception?  I was hoping to put on mandarin dress the last hour of the reception so it's not like it'll purely just people dancing and nothing else..  ugh.  I don't know what happened, it went from sooo promising to his wavering back and forth and our trying to accommodate them, to this not-so-ideal pacakge they are offering to us. And now it's take it or leave it, and we must tell them ASAP!  I am already behind as is on wedding planning and I didn't expect vendor drama!!

EKobrenski

I don't think it would be terrible not to have the last two hours of the reception BUT you agreed to the price based on 8 hours.  If you have that in a signed contract, they have to do it.  Although do you like the photos enough that it's worth the headache?  I would be worried up until the day till about what else they would change.

junelley

They did lower the price by a little bit for 6 hours.  Value wise it's still about the same, if not a teeny bit better.  I do worry about if they'll go back and forth later on on who knows what else.  We haven't signed any contract, yet.  I guess I just feel like they've been stringing us along without being honest about the timing problem, and I do wonder if that's a huge red flag we shouldn't ignore.  It is a big headache and it's so hard trying to decide if they are really worth it.  (FI seems to think so more than I do. I hold grudges lol)

eouellet

If it's really important for you to have the last two hours and they are now saying they won't shoot the last two hours, I'd tell them you are going to have to find someone else. Maybe they will suck up doing the last two hours when faced with the prospect of losing a client. In any case, I would NOT rely upon a guest to photograph the last two hours of the night - all of our friends were pretty drunk by that point.

evseidl

i'm sorry this is happening hun.  It's awful when a vendor goes back on what they originally agreed to-- and you signed to.  for that matter-- you SIGNED to the 8 hours, you ought to be entitled.  If they can't hold up their end the bargin, they need to refund your money and you need to find someone else.  i'm in the group of brides that really WANTED the photographer there until the very last moment my husband and I were in the reception-- I knew I would be changing dresses, and it was important to get those last few shots of the new dress, final dance, folks still standing after the 2 open bars, etc.  To each her own, but if you want 8 hours of coverage, GET 8 HOURS OF COVERAGE!!  

jthennigar

I guess I would just offer the thought that if you DO work with them, will this taint your relationship with them through this whole process? If it were me, I would find someone else than work with someone who has been so outwardly difficult. I'm sure you don't want to go back to square one, but the one thing I learned in my photog search is that there are SO many good photographers out there. I'm sure you'd find someone else you loved who won't jerk you around with contracts and prices.

junelley

Thanks girls! I agree with what everyone is saying!  I think deep inside I am so fed up with them and think we were mistreated, but FI is still ok with them.  I'll need to bring up the points to FI and see what happens. 

SHAMRK34

Went thru an experience like this with one of our vendors..fi was willing to forgive and my mindset was this is a problem I don't need to be dealing with throughout planning. We put together a list of all our expectations and all the things we were promised - presented it to the vendor and her reaction was priceless, not only was she willing to get her sh*t together but she offered us a few extra incentives (that we promptly added to the list and had signed) and apologized. I think sometimes vendors think they can get away with certain things bc in most cases - this is your first time planning and you are still trying to figure it all out. Stick to your guns, talk about your feelings about it with FI and try to figure out if the pros outweigh your cons..put it all in writing and sign away! GL!

noodle_oo

Do you guys have an alternative if you decide not to go with them?  another photographer who you like and is available?  If so, then I'd go with someone else.  They have already caused you this much frustration and if the last 2 hrs are important to you, you don't want to regret compromising on it.However, since your wedding is coming up, if you don't have another good option, I would definitely voice your concerns about their reliability (and the issues you have had with them so far) before you sign the contract.  They should apologize and be wanting to fix things in order to earn your business. 

GettinHitchedInMA

They sound like jerks to me - what is so important that they need to be doing at 9pm on a Saturday that they can't shoot your entire wedding? You do NOT want to be relying on someone you can't trust. I know it seems like a pain to start over, but IMHO it is better than a) not getting what you want and b) being worried that they are going to pull something on you later. You can get some good recs here and on the nest for other photogs in your budget and go with someone who makes you feel happy and confident. I don't know what your budget is, but my photog offers the "entire day" however many hours it takes to shoot your wedding, with no haggling over overtime charges. And he has been super sweet and easy to work with. www.athousandmoments.com But start a post asking for rec's and you will get a lot. GOOD LUCK!!!