My group had a 5:30 pm appointment and our experience was awful because of the store manager, Sara. We arrived early just to check in and wait, but she immediately gave us attitude and told us we couldn't sit in the waiting room because it would "make her staff feel behind." We weren't asking to be taken early at all. When we returned closer to our appointment, we waited almost an hour. Sara came over with more sass, and when we were finally brought into the studio around 6:30 pm, she made comments blaming us for the long wait because we sat in the back waiting area, even though she had walked by us multiple times. When we calmly told her she needed to relax with the attitude, she escalated it and said she could kick us out of "her" studio. Completely unprofessional for a manager. The only positive part was Kalia, who was kind and handled everything well. This location needs serious attention from corporate. Sara's behavior is toxic and ruins the customer experience. read more

We came in as a group of five girls for holiday photos and honestly had the best time ever with Kalia. She made the whole session so fun and relaxed -- we were laughing nonstop. She knew exactly how to pose us, gave great direction without making anything awkward, and somehow got perfect shots of all five of us (which never happens!). You can tell she really loves what she does because her energy is just so positive and genuine. She was patient, creative, and honestly felt like part of our friend group by the end of the shoot. JCPenney is lucky to have someone like her. If you're booking photos, definitely ask for Kalia. She made our whole day! read more

We do yearly xmas photos here. With a baby, now toddler, the quality depends on how good the photographer is with kids. We've had 3 out of 4 photo sessions since having a kid be great. 1 photographer had no idea how to engage my daughter or make her smile. But the other 3 were great. This yr we had Thomas and he was really good w her and made her smile a few times. Def do holiday photos early in Nov as it does get busy after November. Overall recommend. There is a bit of wait time to get photos taken, look at photos, etc. But overall not too bad. When we get bored we can look around the store. read more

Rebecca was amazing! She guided us for poses and answered all questions and pricing. I highly recommend coming here and asking for her. The guy at the front was super friendly and helpful as well. I am super impressed hallway go to photographers that are outdoor and are super expensive!!! I loved all the photos and the price was reasonable read more

Priscilla is the ring leader in rude customer service. She tries nice nasty but you can tell her life is just miserable. ZERO customer service, places blame on customer and very discouraging. Zen also should learn to mind his business as he escalated the situation. No worries I will spend my money elsewhere !!!!! read more

Another great session in the books! If you have little ones I HIGHLY recommend doing their themed shoots! Went today for their Mermaids and Pirates and the photos came out so cute with my 5year old daughter and 3 year old son! I already booked for the July fairies and fishers! The girl who did ours was amazing! Every time we go in the staff is awesome and it's a very comfortable environment and great pictures as well read more

Terrible experience. my photos were rushed. long wait times. rude, know it all photographer. some photos were blurry. never will come back.

I got family pictures taken here. They were great and the price was very reasonable. The photographer made sure she took all the different pictures I wanted. read more

The pictures were nice, sure. However. The service was absolutely terrible. My family had a scheduled appointment, and came a few minutes early only to be taken in for photos about 45 minutes late. We have a baby in the family who was getting fussy, and around the half hour mark my sister got up to ask Priscilla how much time left. All she said was "excuse me how much longer?" And Priscilla was very rude and curt in tone. read more

I had scheduled newborn photos and when I arrived to JCPennys I couldn't find the location of the portrait studio. After 5 minutes of looking for it I called them and asked. The lady on the phone told me where to go. Once I was able to locate the studio, I went to check in and after I gave my name the woman working the counter asked me when I would like to reschedule. I asked why I would need to reschedule and she said because I was 10 minutes late. I told her I had just called and was looking for the studio. She rudely said that they had over 100 appointments for the day and just looked at me like she honestly hated her job. I understand it's the holidays and that they have rules. But there is a way to conduct yourself. She asked again "so when would you like to reschedule." The way she asked made me no longer want to do business with them. I asked that she just cancel everything and that she should be kinder to people. All I can say is don't go here. Take your business somewhere else! read more

I am overall happy with my experience at JCP Portrait Studio. I took two kids- ages 13 and 10 for a 5:20 p.m. appointment on a Friday evening. We arrived 20 minutes early, but were not initally checked in until around 5:25. After an initial check in, we had to wait until 5:35 to actually take the photos. The photographer, Erin, was very nice and professional and great with the kids. The first couple poses were sort of young so I had to remind her the of the kids' ages and ask for something less cuddly. She corrected and the photos were great. Within five minutes we could view the photos. Although I already knew the exact packages and photos I wanted to purchase, I still had to listen to the 20 minute schpeel about what they offered. She specifically said, I still need to tell you all of this. I didn't appreciate that. I felt like I was being sold a used car. She would put vingettes and color saturation changes on the photos and say "Oh, do you like that?". I said no to everyone because I have photoshop at home. I wanted portraits, not scrapbook projects. I was super clear on this point and I felt like she wasn't listening to me by going through all the other options I did not want. There was a lot of hurry up and wait. For a company that makes you schedule your appointment online with a preset time schedule, you'd think the appointments would be spaced accordingly. I will return for super affordably priced kid photos but they were great quality and fast. But as a result, I will be even more forceful about being seen on time for my preset appointment time and not having to listen to the upsell schpeel. I hate to be upsold. read more

JCPenney Portrait Studio - Photography Stores & Services Near Me - Citrus Heights, California

Every year we schedule Santa pictures at JCPenney at the Arden Mall location. It's always a wonderful experience and we leave super happy. Due to the Santa schedule we had to schedule our pictures at sunrise mall this year and I regret it 100%. Everything seemed to be going very smoothly until suddenly the photographer Jessica told us in a very rude way that we couldn't take pictures while she was taking pictures. We totally understand and we stopped. One of our kids started crying when it was time to take Santa pictures and she started commenting and saying "That's on you if you let your kid cry" and then we said nicely "you want to see previous santa pictures? She always cries" she used a super rude tone and attitude to say "No, I don't want to see anything." She kept making faces as if she was very annoyed with us and she was not pleasant at all. Thanks to Jessica we will not be selecting to take pictures at JCPenney any longer. It's her job to take pictures only, not to sit there and give us parenting classes 101 because our little one is scared of Santa. I understand they had about 70 appointments that day but it's their responsibility to make sure they give their best with every single appointment and if she can't handle it, she shouldn't work there. Jessica needs to be retrained or fired. We went to take pictures with Santa but apparently the grinch was there too. read more

One word: UNPROFESSIONAL (photographer) I'm not going to put the photographer on FULL BLAST. I wonder how do they hire photographer?? I'm guessing if you know how to hold a camera your hire?? Lol. I have high hope for JCP portrait. But I was wrong. Never coming back for professional photo. read more

We originally booked the outdoor session but because of the recent rains, we had to reschedule twice. Rather than be stuck with a possible 3rd reschedule and no holiday picture, we decided to change it to a studio session. We got lucky and got a same day appointment. Lizzie, the photographer who had been calling me for reminders and rescheduling, credited as the $25 back for the inconvenience. Check in was seamless and was also done by Lizzie. Unfortunately, the photographer who was initially about to take a picture was not Lizzie. I don't know her name because she never introduced herself but I think it was Jaclyn or something (she had short black hair, I think). Anyway, she was terrible! I'm not sure if she was sick or was having a long awful day but she did not look happy. Okay, that's fine as long as she does her job well. My 2-year old daughter started freaking out (new place, stranger w/a strange device, 2 bright lights shining on her) and started crying. To calm her down, we tried to distract her by touching the background behind us. Next thing I know, the photographer firmly told us to "please do not pull the [curtain/background, can't remember which word she used] because it will cause wrinkles. I barely touched the damn thing and I was trying to calm down a freaked out toddler! She then made a half-bum attempt to distract my daughter before leaving the room to get another photographer, stating "maybe it's me." This is the only good thing she has done in the 10 minutes we were there. To my relief, Lizzie came in & did she save the day! They were probably having a hectic day (18 days til Christmas) but Lizzie was patient with my daughter, did not rush creating a rapport, & caught some amazing pictures in the process. Even though the 15 minute session took 30 minutes, Lizzie did not rush us or made us feel bad. This 1 star review just turned to 4 stars (sorry, still have to substract one star for that crappy photographer). Lizzie also took her time going over the photos with us, explaining the different options, & getting us the best deal for our specific wants/needs. I know that was quite a novel, but to sum it up, I would totally return for future sessions, but only if it's with Lizzie. Book with Lizzie! Lizzie saved our day! Thank you so much! read more

The family and I always go to JCPenney Portrait Studio during the holidays to get pictures taken to hand out as gifts and this year was no exception. It was our first time at the Citrus Heights location and we had a pleasant experience! Our appointment was on a Saturday at 11:40 and as expected, it was super crowded. Definitely allow extra time on the weekends and during the holiday season because they tend to run behind, which they were on this day because we weren't taken into the studio to take pictures until 12:20. Our photographer was Ciara and she was super nice and accommodating. We wanted a bunch of different arrangements with all four of us and she got them all, we ended up with some good pictures! After we were done taking pictures, I waited another 15 minutes to look at them and choose the ones to order. This was expected since it was a weekend before a holiday and they were really busy. No stars off. Our sales associate was Michelle who was super patient with me and helpful in choosing the right pictures. I probably took another 45 minutes just to choose which ones to order and I never felt rushed. I also didn't feel pressured to order their "enhanced" portraits which she had to create to move to the next screen. Overall we had a really great experience and would come back here again to have our portraits taken next year. The whole trip took about two hours. We used a Groupon and ended up spending $100 for a 3 picture photo cd, no sitting fees, two free portrait sheets and about 12 other portrait sheets. read more

I will never waste my time or money there ever again! They made us wait 1hr &45 mins for our appointment. They only have 1 tiny studio & they were extremely behind. The whole store felt like it was 90 degrees and after sweating for an hour and 45 minutes in Christmas gear it started to make you feel physically sick. It was so hot that everyone was starting to feel physically sick even all of the employees. We were rushed by the time we had our turn and I was not happy with the pictures at all. Here is your warning. It was the worst experience I have ever had for a photo session and especially for the money! (JCPENNEY Please do yourself a favor and buy an air conditioner & another studio). read more

It's hard to write a review for the portrait studio at JCPenney as my feelings are very mixed. To be honest, I dread taking our daughter to get her pictures done. And she is a pretty sweet, agreeable kid. I feel like the photographers miss many opportunities to take authentic pics of my daughter as they wait for her to pose perfectly. She is not yet two and we tend to get pictures taken of her quite often (five times so far), and the situation has been the same so far. With a little person, the photographer needs to be flexible and follow the kid's lead and just start taking shots. Instead, the photographers seem to want to wait until my daughter is perfectly seated in a specific pose. That rarely happens with a toddler! Because of this, the session drags on far too long for a youngster to handle, and she starts to cry. So we've lost the opportunity to get good pics. At the end of each session, there haven't been very many shots to choose from. Having said all this, the picture quality is great and I always still find pictures I love because - who am I kidding - she's my little girl and she's absolutely precious! read more

The worst experience ever! They overbooked their day even if you have an appointment you will still end up waiting an hour to take your photos and then the photographer only spent 5 mins taking terrible pictures my family and I were not satisfied with any of the photos yet they still charge a $30 session fee. Let me tell you no one in this place was happy. I waited 30 mins just to see the photos and it took another hour just to order them. I will never go back to jcpenney portraits again and I don't recommend you do either read more

I first came here in March right after my son was born for newborn photos. The manager, Rachal, took our photos and they came out perfect. I loved them all and treasure them on my wall, absolutely perfect! Since then we've come back every month, sometimes twice a month, to get photos of our little boy. I always order a few prints and the featured product, a 10x10 with three images, and I'm usually always happy. I won't lie, we've been here over 15 times and things don't always go perfectly... sometimes they do run behind and we've had two bad experiences. But to be quite honest all of the good experiences out weigh the bad... it's a great place for affordable portraits. read more

Awesome job by Jennifer. I needed a new headshot for work, and she did fantastic work and quickly! Highly recommended for a great price. Check Groupon for deals. read more

Aubrey was my photographer, I had a Groupon and needed to quickly get some new promotional shots done for my 2017 album and performance season. You can see, I've used one of the photos she got as my Yelp profile photo. She did a fantastic job to say the least and the price for getting my images in digital high resolution format so I can do my own flyers and other promotional materials was a tiny fraction of what I've had to pay in the past, which forced me to do my own shoots for years. This was the second time I've been extremely satisfied with the JC Penney Portrait Studio at Sunrise Mall. The first time, we had a family photo session and I cherish the photos we got. I'm going to be back, I plan on doing this on a regular basis because for anyone out there who is a professional, it's imperative that your headshot is professionally done. Don't skimp out and "DIY" your photography, or you can expect the image you get to underestimate your worth. read more

My MIL likes taking photos at JCP of her grandkids. So we go twice a year so she can have her posed photos of them. Normally we request Aubrey-- she's really great. Well yesterday she was sick and we got a different girl-- Amber. This girl was HORRIBLE. She was rude and snobby. She had ZERO ideas and gave ZERO direction other than sitting the kids down on the red dot without any props. My MIL wanted props and she kept asking Amber to incorporate some but the girl kept huffing and puffing and rolling her eyes. Eventually my sister in law and I just stepped up to the plate and started pulling props and posing the kids. What seriously infuriated me was she did get up once to grab a crate that my MIL kept requesting and Amber stood up all pissy and grabbed it, swung it around and almost hit my 4 year old daughter in the head!!! If I wasn't there strictly for my MIL to have a good experience I would have blew up on this girl. I probably should have but I didn't want to completely ruin my MIL's experience-- do you know how hard it is to bite your tongue after someone almost hit your child? I wish I could give every experience its own review-- if so every experience with Aubrey would be 5 star and this Amber would receive 0. So my review is in the middle. Do not use Amber. read more

I give up on J.C. Penney portrait studios. We tried to get family portraits done in a studio and My babies 6 months. We came here for his newborn photos as well and both times we got someone who either didn't know what they were doing, or were new. I used to work there so I know how it all works! They would photo over the line, go from a weird angle, the background looked sideways, too much space in the photos, you could see beyond the background and flooring, and more. plus the girl was all sniffling and wiping her nose and she was breathing all over My baby!! I'm feeling so bummed, cuz we got all ready, and had to keep the baby awake! We only got a few family photos to choose from that we weren't even positioned for, my hair looks messed up, our faces looked horrible like in mid movement or blinked. The majority were of My baby, which is fine cuz he's so cute, but we were there for family photos and we didn't even leave with one. I do not recommend them anymore, at least the Citrus Heights one. Don't go!! Managers need to review photos I think. read more

Just got finished taking the worst pics in history. Kept asking if they looked bad and they kept telling me how good they were. Awful. Hideous. I specifically told them I wanted head shots and the majority were full body. I look like an ax murderer and they thought they looked great. Waste of a Groupon. Don't bother with these people if you want something good. They are terrible, will make sure you look awful in pictures, won't listen to what you want, and then they shove them down your throat. read more

Won't be back. I had a 10:20 appt for a 2yo and a 3month old. We got there 15 minutes early and had we been walked back to the studio on time I feel we probably would have had more quality pictures to choose from. However we weren't seen until THIRTY minutes after our appointment time- an eternity for children this age. My 2 yo was over it after the first 3 times we asked him to say cheese. The photographer was useless in trying to capture the few good shots there were since he was waiting for them to strike the perfect pose and hold it before he would take any pictures. Seriously? Then the photographer offered a box to prop my 3 mo up against. Riiiiight. Then suggested we try to put him in a tiny box with no padding. His one trick to try to get their attention was shaking a stuffed animal and when that didn't work he pretty much gave up. After capturing an "amazing" shot of my toddlers half closed eyes, missing the smile once again, the photographer commented on how my 2 yo looked high in that one. Really? Although it may have beem true, I found it inappropriate. They have what looked to be 3 studios but only 2 photographers and they were slammed. Then they want to review (read: up sell) your photos with you so we had to wait another 30 minutes for that . We didn't have that many shots and were only in getting pictures taken maybe 10 minutes yet this whole stupid experience managed to take more than 90 minutes. The guy "reviewing" our pictures with us was not pleased when I cut him off saying we would not be purchasing anything extra after arranging what our groupon included. Luckily he realized the momma isn't taking any more $#!+ tone in my voice and didn't push the issue because I didn't have any more polite left. read more

I have been to the JCPenney Portrait Studios three times and each time the photographer worked to the best of their ability to make my experience as pleasant and satisfying as possible. They work with you to make sure you get the best poses for your look. We will definitely be going back for any further portraits. read more

I think this studio was great the person we had was nice,helpful,gentle.I put four stars because I think it deserves it .I highly do recommend it for anybody!! It's fun and easy. read more