I'm no computer expert but I think that often even if you delete files they are usually still recoverable from the hard disk (I think that's how they catch a lot of folk who've been saving dodgy stuff on their computers, even if they delete it it can still be recovered). If you have a computer shop near you I'd give them a ring tomorrow for advice and they should be able to tell you how to recover the photos or do it for you. Don't create any new files or anything until then though because afaik this may take up the space being used for your 'lost' files and then you really might lose them permanently.
What operating system do you use? If you google it along with 'recover deleted files' you might get some info as well...