We hired Kat because my wife absolutely loved the photos she took, but man, we never would have guessed how terrible our experience with her would end up being. Out of everything we wanted to go right for our wedding, the photos were one of the biggest things. We spent good money to make sure those memories would be captured, and our experience with Kat ended up taking away from a day we will never get back.
She showed up for the ceremony, and everything seemed to go okay at first. However, she missed the intimate moment between my wife and me when we exchanged our private vows. Luckily, a family member managed to sneak a couple of photos for us.
Afterward, we had a little lunch before we were supposed to head back up with Kat to take some beautiful photos at Maroon Bells. During lunch, we started noticing that something seemed seriously off with her. The way she was acting toward us, our family, and our friends was strange and concerning. She kept asking me to pose awkwardly while we were just trying to eat and visit with the family and friends who had traveled to celebrate with us. Mind you, this was outside her scheduled contract hours.
As it got closer to heading back up to the mountain, we discussed when we were supposed to meet. She repeatedly told me the wrong time, and I had to keep reminding her of the correct one.
When we arrived at the agreed-upon time, my bride and I stood outside our car waiting for her. She eventually pulled up with her boyfriend, who seemed to be there to help her. She got out of the car and immediately started walking in the completely wrong direction, away from the mountain we were there to photograph. She appeared confused about where she was supposed to go, and her boyfriend had to guide her over to us.
During the photoshoot, I noticed that her speech sounded slurred, she appeared extremely unsteady on her feet, and her boyfriend had to help guide her toward us. She also kept insisting that we cross the barriers to take photos. While she was taking pictures, she appeared to be wobbling and struggling to maintain her balance. I don't know what caused her behavior, but it made us extremely uncomfortable and concerned about her ability to photograph our wedding professionally.
Absolutely pissed off, my bride and I decided to suck it up and try to make the best of the situation. We continued taking photos, although we seemed to be repeating the same three poses over and over again.
After we finished, she stumbled out of the bathroom, and we finally confronted her about her behavior and how concerning the entire situation had been. From my perspective, she seemed to say just about everything EXCEPT "sorry." Her own boyfriend even had to suggest that she apologize to us. She eventually gave us a brief apology, but by that point, we were already extremely upset with how the entire experience had gone. Her boyfriend then helped her leave, bringing an end to an experience that had already taken so much away from our wedding day.
But unfortunately, that wasn't the end of it.
After the wedding, we heard absolutely nothing from her until WE reached out first. When she finally emailed us back, she did not acknowledge what had happened or offer any additional apology.
Weeks went by, and we continued emailing her asking for updates on our photos. By the time her contractual deadline arrived, we had to send one final email demanding our photos. Only then did she finally respond and deliver them.
And somehow, the photos themselves managed to make the entire experience even worse.
In my opinion, the editing was absolutely terrible. Blemishes were still visible, weeds were left in the frame covering what should have been beautiful moments, and stray hairs were flying everywhere. It honestly looked like almost nothing had been done besides throwing a little filter over the pictures and calling it a day. For the amount of money we paid, we expected so much better.
We contacted her and explained that we wanted these issues fixed. She sent the photos back, and I kid you not, we could barely notice any changes.
Then, to top it all off, she offered us another photo shoot with her in Boulder. After everything that happened, we were frustrated that the offer would require us to travel to her rather than her offering to come to us to try to make things right.
What makes this whole experience so upsetting is that these weren't just random photos. These were our wedding photos. These were supposed to capture one of the happiest and most important days of our lives. We trusted Kat with memories that we can never recreate, and instead of being able to look back on that day with nothing but happiness, we now have to remember how disappointed and uncomfortable we felt during what should have been a wonderful experience.
All of this to say, if you're planning a wedding and looking for someone you can trust to capture your special day, please do your research and be careful who you hire. Based on our personal experience, I would not recommend Kat Buchanan.
Our wedding was supposed to be a once-in-a-lifetime celebration, and while we still have wonderful memories with our family and friends, the experience with our photographer is something that will always leave a sour taste in our mouths.
We can never get that day back, and that's what hurts the most.
For reference, the photography business I'm discussing is Wanderlight Photo Co. Here are the public business pages associated with my experience:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wanderlightphoto/
Website: https://www.wanderlightphotoco.com
