She photographed my family in November of 2025. I was pregnant with my second child. I never got photos of me pregnant with my first, he was premature. I had purchased a special that included four photos, so a few weeks after our shoot I reached out to ask if they were ready by chance so I could do a Christmas card. That starts the months long adventure of trying to get her to give me my photos. On 12/6, after ignoring me for some time, she emailed me and said she had sent my gallery. I responded and said I didn't have them, and they weren't in my spam so please confirm my email was entered correctly. She never responded. I texted, emailed, emailed her husband... posted on FB. She never answered me and all I wanted was 4 photos, or an admission that she lost them and a refund. Horrible experience, I hope no one ever has to deal with her again! read more

I have worked with Melissa and her husband many times over the last 11 years and have had nothing but great experiences! Very informative and my photos turned out great! read more

Scheduled and paid for Christmas photos one year in advance and due to multiple reasons they had to cancel. I understand having to cancel however I have never been refunded even though I was told I would be. After multiple attempts and no response to email or requests in any way. This is not the way you handle a successful business. Save you time and money and choose to go elsewhere don't fall for paying in advance to secure a spot. They are scammers and are getting away with it. Very untrustworthy people. read more

Booked a senior session with her and date and time set. She wanted to do an early afternoon. I took a 1/2 day at work and pulled my daughter out of school early. Waited at scheduled location for over 30min and she never showed. Called her and she said she got the days mixed up and need to reschedule. Planned a Saturday and she was late. Then proceed to rush through the photo's like it was an inconvenience. She also is kind of rude to be honest. It took 2 months to get photo's back and needed them for her graduation announcement. Honestly there are a lot more professional photographers out there and I would stay away from her. My photographs of my daughter were not the best either. read more

Double booked a friends wedding. Made up the awful excuse of a friend dying so she could be elsewhere. Go elsewhere if your event matters to you. read more

Don't HIRE this DJ/photography business! Husband & Wife SCAMMERS!! I wish I could get my money back!! I sent $125 to Kyle months ago for a session, went back & forth with Melissa asking for a refund since I was never kept in touch of the details for the shoot based on "weather, temp & blooming flowers" conditions perfect for a photo shoot. I never even got a receipt. I wanted to celebrate my cancer recovery with a nice photoshoot and I got blocked after I had to repeatedly message/comment/email these people. In the end, Melissa blocked and ignored my requests because I was "untruthful" to her, despite all the screenshots & emails. This "business" isn't even found on the BBB. DO NOT ZELLE THEM YOUR MONEY!! read more

Not enough space to explain what we went through with her. Gets you to buy 'great deals' but then you find out the hidden details of blackout dates/times, etc. Deleted our session after saying she sent 'reminder' emails to download which we never received & became unresponsive when asked to show us proof. She seemed nice in person but the second I tried asking questions, it became snarky & defensive responses and that she would no longer be responding bc she doesn't have time. Not only did we not get the products we paid for but I had to pay extra in order to unlock our session to view the pictures and then pay again for any pictures I wanted. Very fake & cold-hearted and I'm sad she got away with it. read more

I told Melissa last minute I needed her for a small wedding. Melissa did amazing and the photos are perfect.

Please read the other negative reviews about this business as I am just one of many. As you can see even by her responses to these unhappy clients she is very unprofessional. Instead of trying to make things right she is very defensive and disregards your feelings. DO NOT share your money or any special moments of your life with her. She is not reliable and you risk losing those memories forever. I had a photo shoot with Melissa in July. After a month and a half of not hearing back or receiving my pictures I emailed multiple times with no response. I finally got back a group email saying all the pictures that were taken that day were messed up due to some formatting issues but not to worry because she still had all the originals. She was just hoping to solve the issue since she had spent many hours editing the photos. I was very sympathetic and understanding and was fine waiting as this obviously wasn't her fault. I reached out a few times in the last months asking for updates on the situation. She told me that some IT guy that was supposed to be helping her now had all the photos and she was taking legal action on him to get her work back. I made it very clear in multiple emails I wanted those photos and how special they were to me and my family. She then offered me another photo shoot or my money back while we wait. What she forgot to mention is, if she did eventually get my photos back making the choice she didn't like would forfeit me every getting my photos. Those who picked another photo shoot were still able to keep these photos. She told me that those were her older clients so I guess keeping new clients is not something she's interested in. I bought myself and my kids new coordinating outfits, got everyone haircuts and drove over an hour each way. I didn't have the money to do this all over again. I was extremely flexible when she changed the location last minute. Well here comes the good part. It's now the end of November, still no pictures. I finally after waiting patiently for mths asked for my money back. So, Waiting on my refund which I had not received yet she writes me that she could have gotten my photos back but since I asked for a refund (which I had not even received yet) she would not be giving me my photos.. I then ask her to keep the money, I would obviously rather have my photos and she REFUSED! When she found out she was able to recover my photos she should have come right to me asking how I wanted to proceed. Instead she made the decision to lose all my photos. I gave her the opportunity to fix this and she basically told me this is no longer her problem. . The back and forth I had with her through email is disturbing. I have all the proof saved in emails and am happy to share with anyone who reaches out. Whatever she decides to say if/when she responds to my review I have all the proof in the emails. Please please please stay away. Melissa- I am willing take down this review with the return of my photo shoot. If this review is still up this means Melissa did nothing to fix this and taking care of her clients is not a priority for her. read more

Well, I am on my third, maybe fourth email to get a refund. I lost count. This has been a nightmare. Offered a deal, then kept telling me she didn't see my responses to HER emails. I asked for a refund, told me sure. Yet almost two weeks now I have nothing!! No responses to my emails. I don't care unless a family memeber has died, least try to make contact. Wondering how soon I will get me refund after posting this. Next step, disputing the charge with my bank. Beyond mad.... sadly this isn't the first nightmare I have had with this company. Recommended to a friend a few months back. Company totally blew her off. This is a more pricey photographer, and she sure doesn't deliver what she promises. Stay away , you can find cheaper and get someone to actually respond to you and get better pictures Edit: Well she wasn't interested in helping me at all. Basically in words said " here's proof I sent the refund" well got with my bank and filed a dispute. Looking at another review doesn't seem like this is a new issue with this photographer. Don't use her!! She is over priced anyways!! There are tons of other photographers in Mchenry County you can go to that is cheaper and same great work!! read more

Melissa took my daughter's senior pictures and was fantastic to work with! So fun and friendly which put my daughter at ease. I'm completely in love with the pictures!! She'll be our family photographer from now on! read more

Melissa is a super talented photographer. She has a fantastic eye for details and is great to work with. She's been photographing my family for over 8 years and each session I am impression and extremely happy with our photos. She's patient with the kids and always knows how to get everyone to smile, even a husband who hates photos. read more

If I could give a zero I would!! We booked for our wedding and then Covid hit. We had to cancel and we did within the 60 days. She said that she would have to talk to her accountant. I didn't understand why since it was within the contracted time frame. Then had done multiple follow up emails. She basically said she spent the money and didn't have it to refund. Then she all together stopped responding to emails. This is completely unprofessional and wouldn't recommend her business to anyone. read more

is it possible to give less than 1 star? I had a photo-shoot with Melissa in May after many emails that she did not reply to. I guess that should have been the first red flag, but Melissa said she was better with correspondence via texting. Melissa knew there was a time constraint as I was putting together a 50th birthday present for my husband and promised it all would work out. Picture proofs were beautiful. Ordered and paid for a book as soon as I received the proofs. Was promised a book for 6/4. I texted, I emailed, I left voice messages. At one point I received a terse email saying she did not work in the evenings nor weekends and she would not correspond to me during those times. Just because that was when I sent the email or text, did not mean she had to respond at that time....JUST RESPOND. I did get an email on 9/4 saying the book was being mailed to her within 24 hours and she would hand deliver to me. Today is 11/5 and book has still not been received. I have emailed and texted. Nothing.... when I email, no response. Asked for my money back and she agreed....never received the refund. Actually had to email her again to find out that because it had been so long she couldn't refund the normal way and could she do through PayPal (why did she not contact me, there are plenty of emails she could have gotten my email address from?) As of this afternoon finally received a refund via paypal. As I said, picture proofs were beautiful. But after many promises, my husband never got his 50th birthday gift. read more

Terrible customer service!!! I got married in June, got a few of my pics in Sept and am now having to press charges against Melissa!! I've begged her to send the complete file many times and she refused. Melissa said she put them in Dropbox a few times but never were there (I have 2 files from her with a couple pics so I know it works). She had me running to her black box twice for pics that weren't there. I ran to Walgreens because she said she sent the file there, nope! She said she mailed it, I got nothing. Finally, 10 months later, she admitted that she wasn't sending them and if I wanted them, I'd have to sue her, if she still had them. I have all the texts and emails saved. Is anyone else out there looking to press charges or wanting to sue for $ back?! Please email me at teriottinger@att.net. I will put my whole story out here soon. read more

Just and fyi on a photographer dancing in the rain: HORRIBLE!!! Don't EVER use! I bought my sister a maternity package and after photos were done she went into early labor after battleing gestational diabetes. Then I message to get a picture for my sister to focus on during delivery, she beat around the bush and didn't want to share not 1 photo for my sister during the delivery of her FIRST child!!!!! After birth my sister had a son with serious medical conditions on top of collic, this photographer didn't give a damn! I as the sister paid for all images no need to choose which ones were wanted (I have the receipt) she didn't care she lied saying her flash drive was sent out to be archived and refused images then said the drive was damaged! This is bull she STOLE memories from a first time no, that were pre paid for!!! Don't use her if you want your images. I will be taking all messages to my lawyer and while it won't get my sister her maternity photos back it will make her think twice about taking advantage of a NEW mother!!!!!! read more

We highly recommend DITR Photography! Melissa has photographed our family since our daughter was born. She treats her like one of her very own and us like we are family. She's incredibly flexible and works with babies better than anyone I know. We've loved every session from her! read more

I have had melissa take our pictures over 15 times and they are always fabulous! Her Santa pictures are my favorite and worth every penny!!! Awesome to work with and awesome results! Don't trust any of the poor reviews on here!! read more

I have used Melissa for the last 2 years for my family photos and I have so many great family memories that i will cherish forever! She knows how to bring the best out of you and capture you in the moment. She is incredibly sweet and she is great with my 2 young daughters! Would def recommend! read more

I did a mini session of my kids this past summer. Based on that session, I'd give her 5 stars. The pictures turned out great and Melissa works great with children. She's good at what she does. However, we had a session scheduled this past fall and she was a no show to the session. I couldn't even get a hold of her for a while to see why she didn't show up. We were going to reschedule, but she didn't return my emails for several days. I requested a refund and there were issues with that too. I did finally get the money back after filing a claim with the credit card. read more

Melissa is an amazing photographer and always goes out of her way to make her clients happy. Would definitely recommend her!!!

Very Unprofessional! Have been waiting over 5 months for pics. We have our own business/domain & can accept almost any sized file no matter how large, so that is not the problem. Should've have been no problem, unless on her side for sending.(her excuse for not sending) But really 6 pics, the resolution could've been minimized to the point of nothing. I have sent (& been received even in yahoo email) 30+ high resolution pics with no problem, but she can't send 6 pics. Then according to her a "dropbox" account needs to be set up to share them. Done... Still NOTHING!!!!!!... Got every excuse in the book, not sure what is going on with this person. Takes babies pics & doesn't want to show or sell them to the parents.... THINK! The so called professional is "done". 5 months later, has no prints takes pics of ur kids but won't show you the prints or sell them to you. SO WHO IS SHE SELLING THEM TO? ***People keep this in mind if u are thinking of ever using this person.*** read more

Honestly wish I could give zero stars. I've never experienced worse customer service. I booked with Melissa when she had a promotion going on and she required I pay in full to receive the promotion. So I did and when she gave me all the details it stated you have 90 days to receive a full refund. I cancelled with in 5 days and my nightmare began. All of a sudden if she was impossible to get through to. She refused to refund my money unless I paid for the refund fees which I understand.. IF that was written in the initial agreement. A full refund in 90 days is a full refund in 90 days.. not part of a refund AND I Pay for YOUR fees. I ended up having to file a claim through paypal and had to wait over a month but I finally got my money back and I'm just relieved I NEVER have to deal with her again. So unprofessional and I hope she never treats a bride like this again. She did a great job turning a special moment in my life into a negative experience. read more

Poor customer service. Horrible at communication. Took 6 weeks to email me back about only making an appointment for my daughters pictures, and that was after sending 3 emails! Took another 6 weeks to get photos back. Very unprofessional. After following DITR Facebook page, I found it very inappropriate that the photographer would complain and rant about her customers on her page. She has a lot to learn about owning a business. read more

Horrible customer service. I purchased a newborn photo shoot ahead of time. When it got closer to the birth I tried to setup an appointment. Had a hard time getting Melissa to return my phone calls or emails. Finally got a hold of her through a FB message. She ended up cancelling on me 3 times; all on the day of the scheduled shoot. She did offer me another session which I turned down because at that point I couldn't rely on her and wanted to get my son's session done while he was still a newborn. Melissa still owes me a printed 8x10 of the family shots I was able to get her to commit to. That supposedly was ordered 2 months ago but it never arrived and she hasn't returned any of my phone calls, FB messages or emails inquiring on where it is. Its a shame because she is very talented but it is apparent she picks and chooses who to deliver professional experiences to. read more

Awful. Never received my photos from four months ago and still awaiting a refund. Won't EVER recommend her awful customer service. It's a shame because she does take lovely pictures, but I will never get to see any of my family. read more

Melissa is great! Her pictures are AMAZING and it is so hard to choose which pictures to get! She is professional, kind, and great with little kids. Can't wait for the next session! read more

We have been using Melissa for the past three years. I have bought my pictures ahead of time using her deals she posts on her FB site. We have had many great photo shoots. Then the past two shoots were horrible. We felt like there was somewhere else Melissa needed to be. She encouraged funny faces from my boys, and I was told we are good and got great shoots and if we didn't she would head swap. When we got the photos my kids were sticking out there tongues, there were heads in the background of the photos. During the shoot she kept saying don't worry I got it but in reality she didn't. The one shoot I asked for a special picture w me and my mom. She didn't get that picture. I have twin four year old boys and and 7 year old boy. This is a hard age to get pictures of as a photographer you should have tricks up your sleeve to get the kids to look your way and smile. The last two shoots were a waste of my money. I purchased other sessions I will not even be using. I informed Melissa I will not be using these and she blamed the pictures on my kids, even told me she didn't feel a connection anymore so she didn't try to edit or get great pic!!!! Really you had no issues collecting my money. Unfortunately, Melissa has become very unprofessional she complains about clients on a personal page that most of her clients are on. She doesn't use names on this page, however will write about specific things that have happened or are happening. Many people are friends with each other so know exactly who she's referring too. We took my kids two months later to a different photographer and amazingly she was able to get great photos of my boys and my family. The "kids that are difficult". Once I started buying photos at a discounted rate it seemed like she didn't do the same quality of work she had in the past. read more