The 1 gold star is for the actual picture/digital quality I received from Magic Vintage Studios and…read morefor the 1 professional receptionist who attempted to make the process enjoyable for my child (unfortunately, we only saw her once). Everything else, I felt, was a fail. From the beginning, the selling tactics used were so high-pressure, Immediately, I was told that $10 would secure my "great" deal and hold a spot for the photo session. I looked around at the pictures on display and saw the cute set-up for the children's dressing area, the clothing choices and loved the idea of having old-fashioned looking pics for my child. Day-of, I was told that the photographer was not there and that the person I had spoken with previously to set up a re-schedule had mistakenly scheduled me at the wrong time. If you have little ones, you know the importance of scheduling everything out precisely. Basically, a wasted trip to Southridge and no apologies by the manager (never did get his name). The red flags were already waving. Next, on the day of our photo session, I was greeted warmly but realized quite quickly that the person taking the photos was the same person who was doing reception the first day I went there. The ladies working there were pleasant enough, but because the person taking the photos was clearly inexperienced working with children, she had a hard time getting my child to respond to her. What was funny was that the friendly receptionist knew what to do. Although the pictures turned out cute, the problem with many of them was that they were cut at such an angle, you could clearly see the backdrop/floor cut-offs. I'm not a professional, but I've had enough photo sessions myself to know that you're not supposed to see those lines unless they're clear, defined, smooth and the ground does not appear dirty. When ordering the pictures, I was given the schpeel of selecting the most expensive package there is ($400 is a bit much for milestone pictures) - oh, but I caught the "discount" because I signed up at "just the right time!" I decided to spend the $100 at that point. Prior to ordering the pictures though, I specified a few be "cleaned up" a bit as the overall images were not as professional as I'd like (and want to pay for). Again, these were things that a professional photographer should have and would have noticed upon taking the pictures. Upon picking up the photos though, I was ticked off to see that this had not been done. 2nd trip wasted here and upon asking what could be done about the error, was given a discount - no apology (some businesses truly don't know how far a simple apology goes). However, I did get to see the leopard print bra entirely exposed beneath the netted top of the receptionist? Wait, that wasn't for my eyes.... Overall, this was such a messy process, unbelievably unprofessional experience and one I would never seek to repeat again. Lesson learned. I would never recommend anyone I know nor can't stand to go there, either.
