Refund policy

Return & Refund Policy

Last updated: March 2025

Overview

We take great care in every product we offer and every roll we handle. This policy outlines your rights as a customer and how we handle returns, refunds, and service issues — in accordance with applicable European Union and Lithuanian consumer protection law.

Physical Film Products

No Returns

Due to the nature of photographic film, we do not accept returns on opened or used film stock. Bulk-rolled film is prepared to order and constitutes a custom product, which is exempt from the standard 14-day right of withdrawal under EU Consumer Rights Directive 2011/83/EU (Article 16(c)).

For unopened, sealed products ordered online, you retain the right to withdraw from the purchase within 14 days of receiving your order, without providing a reason. To exercise this right, please contact us at info@cele.studio before the deadline. Return shipping costs are the responsibility of the buyer unless the product is defective.

Defective Film — Refunds

We stand behind the quality of our hand bulk-rolled film. If you receive film that is defective beyond the normal characteristics of hand-loaded stock (slight edge fogging typical of hand rolling, etc.), you may be eligible for a refund or replacement.

Batch defects: If it is established that an entire batch is affected by a systematic defect — such as consistent light fogging or light leaks attributable to our bulk loading process — we will:

  • Issue a full refund for all affected film from that batch, and
  • Initiate a batch recall.

To report a suspected defect, please contact us with your order number and, where possible, photographic evidence of the issue. We may request the return of a sample roll from the batch for quality assessment.

Film Developing Services

General

Once a developing order has been submitted and processing has begun, the service cannot be cancelled or refunded, as the chemical process is irreversible.

If your developed film is blank or unexposed due to a lab error on our part (e.g. incorrect chemical processing, accidental exposure during handling), we will issue a full refund for the developing service.

If the blank result is determined to be due to a camera malfunction, exposure error, or other issue on the client's side, we cannot offer a refund for the developing service, as the process was correctly carried out.

Film Scanning Services

General

Scanning is performed on developed film. If you submitted film for both developing and scanning, these are treated as separate services for refund purposes.

Blank Film — Scanning Refund

If your developed film is blank or empty — and this is determined to be due to a client-side issue (e.g. unexposed film, camera malfunction) or a lab error — a refund or credit for the scanning service may be issued, as there is no material left to scan.

We encourage you to save any scanning credit or refund toward a future order. If you reshoot and bring us new film to develop, the scanning credit can be applied to that order.

How to Request a Refund

To initiate a refund request, please contact us at info@cele.studio with:

  1. Your order number
  2. A description of the issue
  3. Photos or scans showing the defect, where applicable

We aim to respond to all refund requests within 5 business days.

Your Statutory Rights

This policy does not affect your statutory rights under Lithuanian and European Union consumer protection law, including:

  • The right to a remedy for goods that do not conform to the contract (Lithuanian Law on Consumer Protection, EU Directive 2019/771)
  • The right of withdrawal for distance purchases of eligible goods (EU Consumer Rights Directive 2011/83/EU)
  • The right to a fair, transparent, and timely complaint resolution process

If you feel your complaint has not been resolved satisfactorily, you may contact the State Consumer Rights Protection Authority of Lithuania (VVTAT) at www.vvtat.lt or submit a complaint via the EU Online Dispute Resolution platform at ec.europa.eu/consumers/odr.

For any questions about this policy, please contact us at info@cele.studio.