I initially felt confident booking with Olga after our phone conversations. She seemed very thorough and walked me through how she and her company operate. I appreciated that she p...rovided a detailed timeline and seemed to take charge of knowing which shots to capture, so I wouldn't have to stress. She assured me that, with only 100 guests, one photographer (herself) would be more than enough. Unfortunately, that turned out not to be the case.
There are significant gaps in the coverage of my wedding day. There are no photos of key details like my hair, my dress, bar signs, or sweetheart table (so many more to name). Many photos are poorly framed — images are cut off, people’s heads or bodies missing, making them unusable. In some photos, my dad and I are dancing, and he's entirely cut out of the frame. What’s most upsetting is that there are SO MANY photos of me from behind. I literally cried looking through them. The space where we were dancing outside had PLENTY of room to back up and get 2 people in a picture and she had excuse after excuse when I asked her why she did that.
We emphasized how important it was to capture the energy of the party, yet she missed major moments: no photos of me and my husband being lifted in the chairs, barely any photos of the dancing after we extended our reception by an hour (which still fell within the timeframe I paid for). We even offered to Venmo her her on the spot to take more pictures. Instead, she told me she “had enough photos” and sat out the rest of the event, disconnected from the celebration.
During the family portraits, we had to move indoors due to rain. The room had a pool table in it, and rather than instructing us to move or reposition, she left it as-is, cutting off people’s legs in all the group shots with the corner of the table. Completely unacceptable.
Another issue was her communication style. Every time I called, it turned into a long-winded conversation filled with excuses and strange analogies where I could barely get a word in. I switched to texting just to avoid these overwhelming calls. She went on and on saying how her company is different because she provides "EVERY photo she takes to us." When I noticed there were no photos of my husband and me reacting to my dad’s speech, she admitted she left them out due to “facial expressions” — which is not her decision to make. She did send them when I asked, but it made me question how many other moments were excluded based on her personal preferences.
Additionally, she wore a black shirt with her company’s logo, "Scribbled Moments Photography," written in huge bold white letters across the entire back. My wedding wasn’t the time or place to be advertising, and now there are photos taken by friends and family with her prominently visible in the background, logo and all. I expected a photographer to be more discreet.
While the few photos we do like are beautiful, I can’t ignore the disappointment, stress, and regret I’ve felt. I can’t help but wonder if hiring a second photographer would have filled in the many missed moments. I lost sleep over this and feel heartbroken by how many memories were overlooked due to her lack of attention and care.