Photography Business Being Threatened By Venue Owner After Wedding Disaster, Do I Have Any Legal Standing?
I run a small photography business on weekends and last month I was hired to shoot a wedding at this fancy venue. Contract was signed, deposit paid, everything seemed normal. Day of the wedding, I show up 3 hours early like usual to scope out lighting and the venue manager starts screaming at me saying I can't bring my equipment through the main entrance because there's another event going on. Fine whatever, I go around back. Then she tells me I can't use any flash photography during the ceremony because it will "ruin the ambiance", this was NEVER mentioned before and isn't in any of their venue rules I was given.
Long story short, most of my ceremony shots came out pretty bad because of the lighting restrictions that were sprung on me last minute. The bride and groom were understandably upset and demanded a partial refund which I gave them because I felt terrible. Now the venue owner is threatening to sue me for "damaging their reputation" and claims I was "unprofessional and difficult to work with." She's saying I cost them future bookings because the bride posted negative reviews mentioning the venue. She wants me to pay them $3000 in "lost revenue" or she's taking me to court.
I have all the original contracts and email exchanges saved, plus text messages from that day showing how the manager kept changing rules on me. The bride's review clearly states the venue was the problem, not me specifically. Do I have any legal standing here? Can a venue actually sue me because a bride left a bad review about their own service? I do have some money set aside for legal fees but honestly don't know if it's worth it or if I'm just being bullied.
Location: Michigan
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