A Seacoast wedding photographer has pleaded guilty to deceptive business practices for collecting money from couples-to-be and never delivering their promised wedding photos or albums.

The state attorney general's office brought the two misdemeanor counts against Robert Christopher Brown after he reneged on an agreement to refund his disappointed clients, according to records at the Merrimack County Superior Court.

Brown, 43, was scheduled to stand trial in May but instead entered guilty pleas last week. Judge Carol Ann Conboy sentenced Brown to one year in jail, all of it deferred for one year, and 250 hours of community service. He must also repay his victims once the court determines how much he owes.

None of Brown's victims ended up entirely without pictures of their weddings, but in many cases all they got were proofs - not the prints, negatives and albums for which they had paid $1,200 or more, according to Connie Stratton, senior assistant attorney general.

Brown defrauded nine couples and three businesses between 2006 and 2007, according to court records. Stratton said the amount of money owed is in dispute because the victims and Brown don't agree on dollar amounts.

Eric Moyer and Stacie Yonkin of Portsmouth were among Brown's victims. Moyer said yesterday they paid Brown, who used the business name Christopher Brown Photography, about $3,500 to photograph their wedding. Brown gave the couple the proofs of his shots as well as a CD of images. Moyer said Brown told the couple they had a year to choose their favorite shots for Brown to put in an album. They paid $1,200 for that service, Moyer said.

The couple tried for months to reach Brown to get their negatives and album to no avail, Moyer said. He joined the state's case against Brown primarily to get his negatives back, he said. Brown did return those but has not produced the album or refunded the $1,200 he took for that project, Moyer said.

Brown, whose last available address was in North Hampton, could not be reached yesterday. In court records, he described himself as a commercial fisherman who has lived in New Hampshire less than 10 years. According to court records, he made it difficult for investigators to find him by switching phones and addresses often.

The state had initially offered Brown a chance to avoid criminal charges. If Brown paid back his clients or set up payment plans with them and gave them copies of his signed promise to cease business, the state was willing to forgo criminal charges, Stratton said.

When Brown neglected to honor the agreement, the state went to court.

As part of Brown's sentence, he is not allowed to run a business in New Hampshire that requires him to collect money in advance of services.

Brown's business is now one of those with a record on the attorney general office's website. Stratton urged consumers to check the site - doj.nh.gov/consumer - for any company before doing business with them. On the site, click on "business complaint lookup."