Avoid at all costs!!!
DO NOT GO HERE FOR GRAD PHOTOS!!!…read moreEven though UBC recommends this place, you can still have your photos taken elsewhere. If UBC forces you to take your graduate composite photo here for free, go ahead and do it, but DO NOT TAKE EXTRA PHOTOS WITH THEM! THIS IS A SCAM TO RIP YOU OFF! The photos are unprofessional and overpriced. TRUST ME! If you want photos with UBC regalia (Grad gowns), you will have the opportunity to get professional photos at your graduation ceremony! UBC has its own PROFESSIONAL photographers who will take a few photos of you on stage during the ceremony. They will email you later and you can purchase them for MUCH LESS than Evangelos, with better quality and a more professional look! If you're not sure, check with your department! I WISH I had known this before falling into Evangelos' trap and spending $500 on photos that I now hate looking at! I only show people the ones I took with my cell phone at the ceremony--not the awful ones from Evangelos!
SUPER overpriced (1 digital photo for $45, which doesn't even include a printed version!), low-quality photos with zero retouching or refinement! The photographers do not seem to be professional; they just tell you to try a few poses, and you'd definitely get better photos with your own cell phone, because they will not spend any time on retouching your photos after they take them. DO NOT WASTE YOUR MONEY HERE!! I was so disappointed after waiting so long to get my photos, only to find that even my 8-year-old nephew could have done a better job!!!
I was forced by UBC to come here for my grad photo. They took a $45 cash deposit, and their shady policy requires you to go in person to reclaim your deposit within 60 days. Even if you are a few days past the deadline, they will NOT return it--even if you've already purchased their overpriced packages! This actually happened to me. Evangelos put me through months of begging to get my deposit back, even after I had paid $500 for a photo package! I was 6 days late in asking for my deposit back because I assumed they would deduct it from the package price, but they didn't. I paid online and had to go to their store several times to explain the situation. Each time, they told me their main manager wasn't there and promised to follow up via email to see if they can return my deposit--but they NEVER did.
After a few in-person visits and emailing them, I called the store to follow up. A woman with an accent answered the phone and was extremely rude. She told me that because I was 6 days late for asking my deposit back, it was their policy not to return deposits, and there's nothing she can do. I explained that I just made a mistake and I was only 6 days late, had already paid them $500, and that I'm just a student in a tough financial situation. She was SO rude and patronizing, saying, "Doesn't matter; everybody here is a student, ma'am." I said this was terrible customer service and told her I would share my experience with other students. She replied, "Doesn't matter; go tell whoever you want!"
I couldn't believe how rude she was. Then I went to the store the day after, and confronted them in the store in front of another customer, explaining how tired I was of all the back-and-forth, the poor service, and the stress. The staff member at the counter said she would "try her best." A day later, I finally got my deposit back, but only after months of stress, being patronized by their staff, and wasting $500 on photos I'll never show anyone!
