Hiring a wedding photographer is something that many couples do. After all, they capture the magical day in a way that can be enjoyed and reminisced about for years and years to come. 

In order to get these photos for endless enjoyment, the couple not only has to pay quite a lot of money but also invest a lot of time in waiting. 

But how should you act when you learn that this waiting period might be stretching to an unknown length because your photographer suddenly died!? Well, that’s exactly the question that the couple in today’s story asked.

More info: Reddit

What is the longest you should wait before you ask a grieving person to finish their job?

Image credits: Mariah Krafft (not the actual photo)

A couple hired a team of married wedding photographers who did their job during the wedding perfectly

Image credits: cottonbro studio (not the actual photo)

It was promised that the photos would be delivered in 6 weeks, and so when the due date came, the woman reached out to ask where they were

Image credits: u/Far-Walker

At first, she didn’t get an answer, so she wrote to the photographer’s husband and learned that she had died

The OP and her slightly older husband got married back in May. As it is common to do for a wedding, they hired a photographer. A team of them to be more specific. 

The team that the author and her husband hired was of a husband and wife. In the post, they were described as “awesome and incredible people.” It was also mentioned that they brought a lot of creativity to the couple’s special day.

Since wedding photographers have the important task of capturing someone’s celebration nicely, it’s essential to choose them carefully. For instance, finding someone who can capture the photos in the style you like.

It’s also crucial to determine how much you are willing to pay for these nice photos. Or how long you want to wait for them. There are a lot of things to consider here. But no matter how carefully you choose a photographer, some things you just can’t consider in advance.

Before the wedding, the OP was communicating with the wife of the photography team. Everything went smoothly. Then, after the celebration, they were told to wait about 6 weeks for the photos. We could say that’s a very reasonable time to wait, as typically wedding photos take around 4 to 12 weeks to be finished. 

The reason why they take so long to be prepared after the wedding is editing. The photographer has to edit hundreds or even thousands of photos. Cropping, adjusting colors, and creating the requested style takes time. 

When the photos’ due date arrived, the woman wrote to the photographer she had smoothly talked with up until then. But she received no answer. She reached out again, but the answer didn’t change. So, it’s normal that the author started to worry. What if the photographers had scammed them and weren’t planning to give them the photos? After all, you can read quite a few stories like that online. 

Instead of spiraling into total panic, the OP decided to write to the other part of the photography team—the husband—just to check if everything was okay, without any accusations or anything like that. 

Image credits: Matt Hardy (not the actual photo)

His answer let the author know that one of the photographers—the woman—had died. Apparently, she had a short illness a few weeks prior that she couldn’t overcome. What makes the whole situation even more tragic is that they had two small kids who were now left with only their dad. 

The OP sent her condolences to the photographer. She also told him that he could take all the time he needed to finish the work. 

At the same time, she found herself at a moral crossroads. How long should she wait before nudging the grieving photographer for her wedding photos? After all, his whole world was flipped upside down, but that didn’t mean that the couple didn’t want to see their celebration pics. 

In fact, she even thought about asking for the unedited files. Her boss, who had photo editing software, would help to finish them. They simply just wanted to see them, but didn’t want to look like inconsiderate jerks. 

Well, internet folks didn’t shy away from giving advice. Some said that the couple should wait a little bit and then gently ask about the status of the photos. The timeline people named that “little bit” ranged from a couple of weeks to even a couple of months or so. 

Many also kind of agreed with the idea expressed in the post that the couple could edit the photos themselves. So, technically after waiting for the decided time, they could ask the widower for the raw files and then use the mentioned boss’s photo editing software. 

Well, no matter what and when they decide to do it, they’ll have to tread lightly. After all, considering that this woman died unexpectedly and left two small children behind, the family took quite a hit. While it’s important to try to slowly get back to your work and life after loss, it’s also important to let yourself grieve. And being the person who disturbs a grieving person isn’t a role that many want to take on.

What would you do in the OP’s place? Share with us in the comments!

So now, she wondered how long she should wait before asking the grieving man to finish his job, or if she should do that at all

Image credits: standret (not the actual photo)

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