The saying is as old as it is true: never work with family and friends.

Why?

Because people who know you are more likely to make demands that strangers wouldn’t make, with the more sentimental among us liable to be completely taken for a ride.

That’s exactly what happened in this story, when a photographer was guilted into an ever-growing job for her friend’s wedding.

And as their demands increased, their kindness took a nosedive.

Read on to find out how her life, her health, and even her friendships were wrecked by this job.

AITA for charging my friend more money after finding out I would be doing five separate photo sessions for their wedding?

I am 25, and was asked to be the wedding photographer for my friend’s wedding.

Although I only had experience in artistic photography and public events, I reluctantly agreed after being assured it wasn’t “that different.”

I offered to do the engagement and ceremony photos for $300, which is an extremely low rate, even considering my limited experience.

A week before the wedding, my friend revealed new plans: I was to photograph the salon preparations starting at 7:00 AM, the ceremony, a reception the next day, and a park shoot afterward.

This was way more than we initially discussed.

After consulting with her mom and sister (my best friend), I decided to increase the fee by $250 for the additional locations and time, bringing the total to $550.

The couple agreed.

Read on to find out how this situation went sour.

The wedding went smoothly, but the reception was small, poorly lit, and difficult to shoot, and the park shoot was long.

By the end, I had thousands of photos to sort through.

I told them it would take months to finish editing, which they understood, and reminded them I was still awaiting the rest of the payment.

Shortly after the wedding, I developed severe health issues, was hospitalized, and was later diagnosed with a tumor that was crushing my windpipe.

Surgery and recovery delayed my ability to work on the photos.

Needing funds for my medical bills, I asked for the remaining payment, but the sister’s wife responded that they didn’t want to pay because the photos weren’t finished.

She also claimed they had felt pressured to agree to the price increase.

I reminded her that they had changed the scope of the work last-minute and that I was already undercharging.

She dismissed me, saying I wasn’t a “real professional” and implying my work wasn’t worth the price.

Let’s find out how the photographer reacted to this.

This was devastating.

I had agreed to five shoots and worked through severe illness for a fraction of what most professionals would charge.

Eventually, they agreed to pay the full amount but only after I delivered all the unedited photos.

Once I sent everything, they blocked me on all social media, and I was effectively cut off from the family.

This created tension with my best friend, as I couldn’t attend events when her sister and wife were present.

Fast forward five years. My best friend, feeling caught in the middle, asked if I could apologize to smooth things over.

Wanting to support her, I sent a heartfelt apology, admitting I should’ve drawn up a contract and regretting the negative feelings surrounding their wedding.

Read on to discover how the bride reacted.

My best friend’s sister responded coldly, claiming she didn’t know I was sick and blaming me entirely.

My best friend now feels worse, as her attempt to resolve things backfired.

I’m left wondering: was I wrong to charge more for the additional work, even though it was still a very low rate?

And could I have handled the apology better?

AITA?

The brides in this story completely took advantage of this woman, simply because she had a camera.

They had no compassion or understanding for the sheer amount of work that would go into this, let alone how her health had caused her to feel.

Let’s see what Reddit thought about this one.

This person agreed that the brides took complete advantage of her.

And others pointed out how unfair it was that the photographer had to apologize.

However, some people thought that her behavior wasn’t right either.

Sure, maybe she should have drawn up a contract and known her worth in the first place.

But how was she supposed to know that her friends would take complete advantage of her?

This woman has been well and truly scammed by her horrible friends.

If you thought that was an interesting story, check this one out about a man who created a points system for his inheritance, and a family friend ends up getting almost all of it.