Need legal help/advise | GTAMotorcycle.com

Need legal help/advise

black_CG2

Well-known member
I will keep the long story short.

This photography company did my wedding and reception but delivered really bad photos via Google Drive. Photos with soft focus, horrible framing, no editing etc. I confronted the agent who made the contract with me. He admitted over the phone that he sent an amateur photographer, who he believed has improved and he took a chance with her. This admission was over the phone. He offered me 2 photo shoots in future to compensate.

I politely declined because I do not trust this company any more and I asked for the money back. Ever since, he disappeared, does not pick up my call nor answer to my text/e-mail. Keep in mind, we both signed a contract. I have everything documented.

I did some research and I cannot find this guy's physical address nor his business address where I can serve him small claims court documents. His business is not even registered in Ontario. I agree I should have done a bit more due diligence and research but I was planning the wedding within a short time. I went to police to get his address and police said they wont help me because it is a civil matter.

At this point, I am not sure what to do. I could go to small claim court and start proceedings. Or I could post a review on social media. Or swallow my pride and move on *I really don't want to do this*
 
Social media seems like a good start to me. Help protect others and quite possibly use the hive to track down the useless prick.
 
that totally sucks
a re-shoot is useless, no value
can't get family/friends all gathered and dressed again

SCC would be a slam dunk win for you by the sounds of it

social media/internet should be helpful to track the guy down
but I'd keep the harassment on a professional level in case this ever sees a court
a PI could get his details for you, but would cost some dough
 
Does reverse phone number look up give you anything? Is there anything on the better business bureau website? Post up on Red Flag Deals in the art and photography forum for help. I'm pretty sure respectable photographers would have an interest in removing a charlatan from the competition pool.
 
Get a friend to contact him and set up a meeting to discuss “a really big event” that needs photographing.

At the meeting, get the friend to ask for all of his contact info and physical address (make sure to see proper id). If that doesn’t work, he texts you (you’re waiting nearby) and you have the opportunity to confront him in person.

Bring an angry-looking biker mob with you .


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Hmm that sucks sorry to hear. References are a huge deal in that industry to get someone who is worthy of your business and credible.
I guess this "contract" you signed didn't have all the legal stuff in place like contact information and location?

Anyhow lesson learned. It does seem possible to take it to small claims, you do have the evidence that the work was *****. Hard to dispute that. Now if you can track them down. You can use social media to help your case if other people have also had bad experiences. But this could also tip them off if that goes sideways.

Robbo's suggestion is a good one to try out if you don't mind ambushing them.

Good luck!
 
I'm coming up on 42 years :| trust me, the wedding photos contribute nothing to the success of the marriage, that's small stuff in the realm of things.
I look terrified in mine, all the clothing and hair styles are now very odd and in 42 years from now yours will look about the same.
Congratulations, may you both live long and prosper :D
 
Have someone else book a meeting and get your money back. No photos. but at least you don't loose $$. Pics aren't worth much in the long run depending on how things go anyways.
 
For the pictures contact the guests for their shots and assemble your own album. How did they screw it up? Film yes but with digital push a button to see if the pic is OK.
 
So you're out some $ and stuck with some bad pic's..?
Sucks, but... you probably hired this guy cuz he was cheap.
Rest assured though... No one really wants to see your wedding pictures and pretty soon you won't even be able to find them.

[video=youtube_share;XF2RyY7gtJ0]https://youtu.be/XF2RyY7gtJ0[/video]
 
Get a friend to contact him and set up a meeting to discuss “a really big event” that needs photographing.

At the meeting, get the friend to ask for all of his contact info and physical address (make sure to see proper id). If that doesn’t work, he texts you (you’re waiting nearby) and you have the opportunity to confront him in person.

Bring an angry-looking biker mob with you .


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Yeah, I am thinking of that option.
 
I'm coming up on 42 years :| trust me, the wedding photos contribute nothing to the success of the marriage, that's small stuff in the realm of things.
I look terrified in mine, all the clothing and hair styles are now very odd and in 42 years from now yours will look about the same.
Congratulations, may you both live long and prosper :D

YES; This!! You'll never look at those pics except for the first time. I guess we all gotta spend the big $$ on getting photos taken but they are virtually useless and serve NO purpose so, the real beef here is you paid $$ and didn't get what was promised - Small Claims Court is your option but, even if you win, which you should, collecting is a whole other issue.
 
I just found my wedding portrait while cleaning out the cottage basement. Man, we looked good!

Now been divorced for almost 20 years but we remain good friends (we figured, once you have kids, we have to deal with each other for the rest of our lives, so better to get along! Plus her current b/f lets my ride his HD Electra Glide Ultra!).

So, do I throw it away?
If you're together for a long time; and I wish you all the best, then crappy wedding pics are just something to laugh about in the future.
 
This matter will all depend on what's in your contract. He delivered the goods to you, just not to your standards. Does the contract specify some sort of a quality guarantee? However, the business offered you a resolution to fix the matter. But you refused. This is likely not a slam-dunk case.

And even if you got a court to rule in your favour, then there's the matter of collecting. How much did you pay him? Is it worth your time and further expense to go through the process?
 
This matter will all depend on what's in your contract. He delivered the goods to you, just not to your standards. Does the contract specify some sort of a quality guarantee? However, the business offered you a resolution to fix the matter. But you refused. This is likely not a slam-dunk case.

I'm with you PN. Hell, in the past when I shot events, the contract would dictate the time we were on site and only guarantee 10 pictures. Obviously they got more, but it set a simple backstop. Even on green square, it would be hard for anyone shooting digital to not have 10 decent pictures (assuming they were not a complete idiot and only shot on one card or deleted pics before delivering etc).

Even if he had paid via credit card, they don't normally step in as he did receive something, just not what he expected. They only step in if you paid and received nothing in return (which makes sense, it's hard for them to evaluate the quality of product received).

Posting the pics to social media (try to pick the best and the worst as a representative sample) is probably the best approach. On a full refund, you remove the pictures. When the pain of not giving you a refund exceeds the pain of providing it, the business should relent.
 

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