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Why does it take so long to get my photos back from my photographer?

Writer's picture: Grace CadyGrace Cady

A breakdown of the photo editing process for those who are patiently (or maybe impatiently) waiting for their photographer to get their photos back to them



Ah, the anticipation of waiting for your photos. You’ve scrolled through social media, plotted your perfect caption, and now you’re in a high-stakes game of “When will I get my pictures?”


But let’s spill the tea: the editing process is a wild ride that can take longer than most expect. We—meaning the collective demographic of photographers around the world that I am certainly not qualified to speak for but am going to anyways—are SO GLAD you are excited to get your photos back. We love that you love our work and if we could magically push a button that would fast forward us through the editing process and deliver your photos directly to your email inbox, believe me, we would.

Unfortunately, that isn't a possibility in this dimension, and a lot of us photographers are miserable because of it!


We live in a world where everyone has a camera in their back pocket, and as a result we're given the immense privilege of being able to snap a photo and have immediate access to it. However, there's a reason you can't get professional grade photos on that handy dandy little pocket device. Let's dive into the process so you can get a better understanding of why it takes weeks, and in some cases months, for your photographer to get all that art back to you.



1. The Great Culling: A Photo Hoarder’s Nightmare

After a shoot, photographers find themselves drowning in a sea of images—thousands of them! This is known as culling, and it’s not as fun as it sounds. Imagine being a contestant on a game show where you have to decide which of your 1,000 favorite photos make the cut. It’s like picking your favorite child, except some of them are the ugly ducklings that have awkward angles and a little too much flash so you have to weed them out from the ones that are going to make your clients heart stop. Hours fly by as photographers scrutinize every blink, awkward smile, and unintentional photobomb, all in the quest for perfection.


2. Color Correction: When you stare at a screen for so long you begin to wonder if you've gone color blind or if your eyeballs might fall out of your head.

Once the best images are selected, it’s time for the infinite realm of color correction. Photographers use software that offers more adjustments than a Dutch Brothers menu. They balance colors, enhance exposures, tweak skin tones, brighten shadows, darken highlights... you name it. This isn’t a quick fix; it’s an art form, and every image gets the royal treatment. And if you leave your computer during this process and come back to it? You'll find yourself questioning every decision you made during your previous editing session and wonder what on earth you were thinking. I can almost guarantee that by the time your photographer is on their 8th or 9th hour of editing they're already driving themselves to madness over the most minute of adjustments that anyone else in the world probably wouldn't notice.


3. Retouching: Photoshop magic

Next up is retouching, where photographers channel their inner wizards to remove unwanted blemishes, stray hairs, and that mysterious object lurking in the background. It’s a bit like playing whack-a-mole, but instead of moles, it’s rogue zits and random photobombers. The goal? To make you look fabulous while still keeping things real. Because let’s be honest: no one needs to see that pimple you had on the day of the shoot.


4. Compositing: The “Group Photo Shenanigans”

Now, if there’s one thing every group photo has taught us, it’s that someone will blink. Or make a weird face, or sneeze, or look away... Enter the magical world of compositing! This is where photographers take multiple images and blend them together like a smoothie to get that one perfect shot where everyone is smiling (or at least looking somewhat normal). It’s a delicate dance of pixels and patience, and the results can be nothing short of miraculous. If you had kids under the age of 6, you can pretty much guarantee that your photographer is spending a little extra time to get that one magic photo that will leave you wondering: "how did they get so many of all of us smiling?!"



5. Exporting, uploading and backing up: The Tech Tango

Once the editing is done, the technical side kicks in. Photographers have to upload hundreds (and sometimes thousands) of high-resolution images, which is a mix of excitement and sheer anxiety—will the Wi-Fi hold up?  Is my computer going to crash trying to process all this beauty at once? Are the images organized properly? Did I rename the files? Its a digital game of Tetris that can leave even the most tech-savvy feeling a bit frazzled. Before handing over your precious memories, photographers make backups—lots of them. Think of it as the insurance policy against digital disasters. Your photos get stored in multiple locations, ensuring they’re as safe as your grandma’s secret cookie recipe.


Conclusion: Good Things Take time

So, there you have it! The not-so-secret world of photo editing is a colorful tapestry of artistry, tech woes, and a dash of magic. Keep in mind, this is also just a short summary of my personal editing process. Each and every photographer's post-processing flow is as unique as they are, which can mean that this part of the artistic process can take varying amounts of time! It is not uncommon for it to take weeks, if not months, for photographers to get client galleries back because we are trying to make every photo perfect: for every client! Next time you find yourself wondering why it’s taking so long to receive your photos, remember: great things take time! When those images finally arrive, they’ll be worth every second of the wait.


If you can find it in yourself to be patient when it comes to getting your photos back, your photographer will be eternally grateful!

We just need a little time to create the photos that will last you a lifetime (:



an actual photograph of me taking 1 million photos not thinking about how much time its going to take me to cull and edit them all.


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