A newly-married couple have launched an online plea in a bid to recover their wedding pictures. The pair were left distraught after their wedding photographer was mugged shortly after the big day, with thieves taking the camera that still had the only copy of their wedding pictures inside.
Jade Metherell, 30, and her fiancé Eddie Simpson, 36, got married in a rustic ceremony in the UK, with family flying in from as far as the Far East and Canada.
However, their wedding celebrations were cut short following the devastating news that their photographer and close family friend Hugh Lloyd was mugged upon flying to Rome shortly after the ceremony.
Photo: Jade Simpson.
The couple have a few nice images from the day taken by friends, including one cutting the cake, but clearly it pales in comparison to that of the entire collection by a professional photographer.
Photographer Lloyd took to Facebook to ask guests of the wedding to send through any images they had, so that he could assemble an album from any pictures captured. Writing in a status, he said “Today the worst thing ever to happen to a photographer happened to me. At Rome Ciampino airport I had all my cameras and lenses stolen. In my camera bag were all the memory cards for the cameras and on two of them were all the pictures from a friends wedding I shot last week.” To make matters worse, the groom’s mother was unable to attend the day.
Photo: Jade Simpson
Bride Metherell added:
We were devastated that someone could be so heartless to steal a camera. He got tricked by a passerby asking for directions and then another person came by and took the camera bag while he was distracted.
Hugh has quite a dry sense of humor so when he did ring to say what had happened I wasn't sure whether he was joking around. I didn't think something like this would happen to any bride post wedding so it was very much of a shock.
The couple are now hoping their message is read by someone in Italy, and remain optimistic the photos may be recovered once the thieves realize what the memory cards hold.
Lead image: Nyana Stoica on Unsplash.
Inset images used with permission.
Six whole days without making a backup... oy.
I won't leave the reception hall without having two copies of every photo.
Exactly my thoughts.
No professional should walk around for days without making a backup. Gear can be replaced, images can't...
How do you know it was 6 days? This article says "shortly". I wouldn't class waiting 6 days to back wedding photos up as "shortly"!
I read his Facebook messages. It was six days, with international travel involved.
Ok, thanks. Then this article is just plain wrong - nobody in their right minds would call (at least) 6 days to back up all someone's wedding photos as "shortly". It's much closer to "an eternity" than "shortly"!
hope they will find their photos!
I can feel the guy's pain, but he learnt the lesson, that was extremely stupid... (local, external and cloud copy is the bare minimum...)
Ah, the old “I only had one camera, my single card got corrupted, and shot my portraits @ f1.4 so the groom is out of focus” robbery story.
What?
Wait. He didn't download and backup the photos after the gig?
Tough way to learn the lesson I guess.
This is why whenever I leave an event like a wedding or special event, one of the cards from my camera goes in my pocket. This sort of scenario scares the crap out of me, and I live in a safe city.
That's exactly what I have been doing for the past year after hearing some horror stories from my colleague's. Then I get home and immediately make copies on my server and cloud.
Bottom line - the photos weren't important to the 'professional' photographer. Important data is backed up, period.
it’s sucks for this guy, but he was clearly negligent and should have known better.
Fishy story Jack! You are saying : "The pair were left distraught after their wedding photographer was mugged shortly after the big day, with thieves taking the camera that still had the only copy of their wedding pictures inside."
THE PHOTOGRAPHER IS SAYING : "In my camera bag were all the memory cards for the cameras and on two of them were all the pictures from a friends wedding I shot last week" !
This is not news, but misleading what the real story was !!! Do you read yours write up at all? Shame something like this gets published !!! and not clarified with a man who got actually robbed.
Btw, yes really bad idea fly week after a wedding and not to have copies of cards in different part of luggage or on himself! Happy shooting everyone :)
It's easy to judge someone until we ourselves are in the same situation.
There might be a reason why he didn't have the chance to backup the photos. And if the intention was to scam their clients, their doing it the wrong way. No one can tell if the photographer is lying or just making excuses. But if the photographer is trying to find ways to make up for it, then it's a good start.
the least I do is if I dont have time to copy images over is to take 1 card out from the double slots in each camera and keep it in my safe( thats installed in the cement frame of the building) till I can get to it. and the 2nd card is on me.
it does happen I shoot a morning corporate gig I do regularly for a magazine, then run to shoot a wedding.
yes we shoot weddings here from sunday to friday.
My dog ate my homework!
I always backup at the wedding with Nexto DI NSB-25 with 2 drives, one always leave with the assistant... clients are always told this. This photographer is very unprofessional… There was a case of a photographer being sued and forced to pay for all guests to come back and recreate the wedding photos a while back... Good insurance, Professional Indemnity insurance...
Good thing he didn't have one of those crap cameras with only 1 card slot.
"The couple are now hoping their message is read by someone in Italy, and remain optimistic the photos may be recovered once the thieves realize what the memory cards hold."
Ha! Yeah, thieve's with a conscience about a first world problem. Ain't happening!
Sorry, I am not buying it. Pros make the backup.Nahhh... fishy.
Dual SD-card slot anyone...? Ohh, wait...
Just came here to watch people flame him for not making a backup...
Sounds like he lost the images due to carelessness, ...then made up an elaborate robbery story to cover his tracks. I'm a glass half empty kind of guy though...
One SHOULD NOT leave the wedding without a backup. Anything can happen on your way home. Least you should do is keep your card inside camera.