Okay, so the photos were very nice when we got them. That's really the only positive thing I can say about this place. Like the other reviewer, we waited quite a while past our appointment time before we were able to be seen. It was extremely overcrowded inside. I'm not sure why the make appointments if it's going to take so long to actually be served. It's especially annoying when you have a baby who also has to wait and only has a certain amount of time before he's going to need a nap. By the time we got called back the baby was already tired and fussy. We somehow got some good photos anyway but then had to spend hours going through each photo and listening to sales pitches. The guy made it seem like the only option to get pictures was to spend $599 on a package. It was frustrating and took forever. I think the whole experience lasted over 3 hours. read more

I hadn't visited Portrait Innovations for years but when a $9.99 special came across my email, I thought it would be nice to get a studio shot of my two boys. To put it in perspective, my youngest is 5 yrs old and the last time we were there, he couldn't sit up fully on his own. Needless to say, he loved getting his photo snapped! I loved being able to book my appointment online, which you can do up to 2 weeks in advance. Pick you date, pick your time and you're done. I got an email and text confirmation as well as reminders. It's also easy to cancel or reschedule. Because I didn't have time to shop for a last minute details, I rescheduled online as easily as my initial booking. My boys were booked for a Wednesday at 5:30pm, their latest appointment. This was a big deal! I avoided the wait people experience on a weekend. Waiting to get your kids' picture is terrible - don't mess up your outfit, don't touch your hair, don't have a meltdown and begin crying ... all of that. We walked in early and the photographer took us back right away. The photographer snapped individual and group shots of the boys on several backgrounds - sitting, standing, etc. Quick and painless. And, he asked if there was another type of shot I wanted before ending the session. After the photo session, we sat in front of a large TV screen and he pulled up the pictures. We went through approx 60 pictures, in groups of 3, picking our favorite of each pose. This helps you to narrow down what you do or do not like. It also gives the photographer an opportunity to sell bigger picture sets above and beyond what you came in for. Some people find great pressure in this ... me, not really. It's easy to fall in love with shots of your kids, but I only want what I really love. At the end, I only loved a handful of shots and it was easy for me to walk away with my 1-pose promotion. The studio prints your photos there and it takes about 15 minutes. Photography is an art. You aren't going to get the type of portraits you see advertised for weddings, family sessions, etc. For that you need to contract with a photographer that takes you onsite. But, for a studio session, like I remember as a kid, Portrait Innovations does the trick, getting you a decent sized package so that you can share a picture with several family members and friends. read more

We made an appointment on Thursday for Friday pictures. Kind of last minute, so I did not go to the usual person that does our pictures. Friday we got there about 15 minutes early, so that I could get the kids dressed. I went in with a coupon for the $23.99 package. It is only one pose, but they wanted $30.00 per pose sheet after that! Or $100.00 If I just wanted to buy 6 photos on a CD. That is their price. OK. I chose the package that fit my budget. However, it needs to go here, and the reason for the 1 star review; My 9 year old and I could smell the alcohol on the photographers breath. We asked him if he had been drinking and he said no, but I could smell the alcohol, and so could my son. I told him twice that my baby does not want some stranger nibbling on his toes. He is 10 months old and doesn't like that. Maybe some babies are cool with that, but my baby is not and he did it twice after I told him not to. read more

Absolutely a disaster!!!!!!! My husband went today to have my kids photos taken for my birthday which i had no idea of, was a surprise and when i saw the photos i was livid. After he got suckered out of 370$!!!!!!!! its absolutely ridiculous. I need a refund or a reshoot. Not to mention the photographer yelled at my children, which resulted in pics of my children not smiling. There are pictures that are off center, blurry, Im completely devastated. My husband was swindled out of a large amount of money, he didnt know better as for he had never been to a portrait innovations. I spoke to the photographer on the phone who continued to express how he had the best prices and was terribly rude. Im heartbroken and upset. Theres not a single photo im in love with. read more

Portrait Innovations on Hurstbourne Pkwy in Louisville, KY scammed me for an undisclosed $15 handling fee.

The pictures were okay. The male photographer was very creepy and his baby talk (to get our son's attention) was that of a creepy British puppet show actor. At the end of the session he carelessly dropped his camera hitting our baby in the face. Not wanting to take any blame, he offered no apologies and just said oops . Although we did not have to wait long to start our session, the picture selection session was unbearable. Not only was there a high pressure sales tactic, as we try to move the session along, our picture selection was criticized. Overall, if it were not for my wife, I would have walked out. read more

Portrait Innovations - This is our baby after he was hit in the face by a careless photographer. His babyvoice was thatof a creepy British puppet show. - Photography Stores & Services Near Me - Louisville, Kentucky

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This review is a little overdue, but putting it out there nonetheless. My family made an appointment a couple weeks before Christmas. We had a pretty large group! 10 of us. Our appointment was scheduled for 4pm. I arrived about 3:45 to check in and asked if they were on schedule. I was told that they were running a little behind. I took a seat and waited for the rest of my party to get there. About 4:30, I asked again about the wait and was told by another individual that they were running 2 1/2 hours behind!! I understand that it is a process getting pics taken and then choosing what you want, etc, however when I checked in I was told they were only running a little behind schedule. 2 1/2 hours is not a little!! We walked out and told them to cancel our appointment. There was no room for anyone to sit anymore either because the waiting area was extremely crowded with all the groups that were waiting for their promised appointment times. This isn't the first time I have run into this type of problem at this location. The staff is not informative at all and unprofessional at times. We will not be returning!! read more

I am so angry! Had an appointment at 1:40 today. They told me they would be right with me when checked in. After a few minutes I checked at the desk and they told me it could be a 2 Hour wait!!! What is the point of making an appointment?!? I had 3 kids there with me. They told me they have to schedule appointments every 10 minutes. Never will I go there again! read more

Hands down the worst experience ever. The photographer didn't want to do anything we wanted and had a direction of his own. I cannot tell you enough how important it is that you absolutely go somewhere else. The photographer was the weirdest guy I have ever met and the whole family felt very uncomfortable. Bottom line is. Nothing we wanted was done. Not to mention the place was dirty. Go to Jc Penny's. Unbelievable!!!! read more

I can't comment on the photography because we never made it that far. Let's just say that customer accommodation is not their first priority. It's our fault for running ten minutes late, but they sure could have handled it in a way that wasn't aggravating and insulting. My marine nephew was in town for one day and our appointment.was at 5:40. We got stuck in traffic on Shelbyville Road. My niece called them and told them we were running 10 minutes late. They said that was fine, but that they close at 6:00. At 5:50, we were walking up to the glass doors in full view of the two women working there, when they called my niece on her phone and told her that she was more than 10 minutes late and they cancelled the appointment. She waved at them and said that was us just outside and that she and her husband were only in town that day. They said that they "didn't care, bye." There are other studios, so why bother with Portrait Innovations? Thank you JCP at the Mall St Matthews for working us in half an hour later. read more

Today will be the last time we ever step foot back into Portrait Innovations. My scheduled picture time was 11:40am. I arrived with my 5 children at 11:30 on the dot. There were only 2 photographers in the building and both were busy which was fine. I sat down and waited. 30 minutes passed and we were still waiting to be called to have my 6 month olds pictures done. I finally just walked out without having her picture taken. I made the appt for a Tuesday morning mid July I hope at have better services than you get at holiday times. I was wrong. Never again! read more

Horrific service. They were not on time for out appointment. We waited over and hour and a half for our appointment. The place was extremely over crowded and poorly managed. There was a horrific smell of feces permeating the entire area. We stood outside in the cold to escape the stench, it was like a sewage line was open in the building. The photographer was a complete hack and extremely unprofessional and annoying. They did not seem to have anything together at all. I would not recommend this studio to anyone. Stay far far away. read more

I gave 1 star because zero isn't an option. Worst studio experience ever. Over 40 minutes late for a 10 am appointment ,while they were taking an employees pictures with several clothing changes. Photographer was rude and pictures were not available for 5 days. There ad says money back guarantee, but they will not refund , only give a $50 gift certificate for a future visit. Who would want to go back? Called their home office they were equally ridiculous. read more

We made an appointment for a Friday afternoon with a member of the Portrait Innovation staff. We do this every year for my parents' Christmas present. When we arrived on site, an older gentleman held the door for my daughter and I as we approached. Before we entered, the kindly gentleman leaned over, so my daughter couldn't hear, and said "I hope you don't have anything going on this evening, because these idiots have kept us here for 3 hours." I attributed it to an angry customer, despite the man's otherwise calm appearance, and signed in for our family. We then proceeded to wait for 45 minutes past our appointment time while our technician post-processed another family's photos. I'm not talking about sat with the family and selected which photos, etc.. I mean the family had left, and he continued to work on their order while we waited...with 3 small children. This while 2 additional team members simply sat behind the desk and didn't do anything. We were almost to the point of walking out when he finally called us back. The only reason we hadn't is that multiple relatives were in from out of town and it would be difficult to reschedule. During the photo shoot, the technician (whose name I know, but am refraining from posting) was more interested in his own agenda than what we requested shot-wise. He refused to take the shots with the children first, but we insisted and eventually he acquiesced. He missed multiple opportunities for good, smiling children shots (2 1-year-olds and a 4-year-old don't coordinate easily!) because they weren't completely positioned to his liking. These are digital shots and easily deleted, so what's the problem? Just keep taking shots until you get something! All of his efforts to make the children smile were beyond ridiculous (not in a good, child-pleasing way), and he has no place being a family photographer. Finally, we were able to capture serviceable photos. Not great, but acceptable. Again, we had a few select shots in mind prior to arriving, but he continued to push his agenda instead of listening to what we wanted until I finally started to become belligerent. All I can figure is that they must be paid on some sort of commission schedule. We proceeded to finalize our order, all the while arguing about what shots we actually wanted and what we didn't. At one point, a random $50 charge appeared as a "handling charge" for the canvas we ordered, even though the shipping for the item was supposed to be free. FYI, the "handling charge" appears regardless of whether it is "shipped for free" or sent to the store for pickup. He "helped me out" by waving PART of it, but I suspect it's more about the fact that I actually noticed than anything. By the time we left, it was coming up on 7:30pm. Our original appointment was for 4:30pm. It seems that the older gentleman's words were prophetic. We won't be going back to Portrait Innovations. We had one good experience there, only to be followed by 2 subsequent horrible experiences 1 and 2 years later, respectively. read more

Been a customer since 2013 & the last time I went the photographer didn't want to change back grounds nor use any props and to top that I spent over $500 & my extra photos that I ordered was trashed and no one is returning my calls. I will from here on out strongly suggest people to get their pictures taken elsewhere to avoid the same mess I'm going through. This place has went down hill bad!!!!! read more

Our photographer was fantastic with our children! They loved him, and he had them laughing the entire time. Our pictures turned out fantastic! read more

This place does not even deserve the one star that I am forced to give it. They are truly awful. It does not matter if you make an appointment because you will have to sit and wait for 1-2 hours. They will look at you like you're crazy when you seem shocked about the wait time, even though you show up on time just like they suggest. read more

The worst experience!!! I set up an appointment to get pictures of my two young boys. When we got there they said it would be a two hour wait! Exactly what is the point of setting an appointment? There were several families there complaining about how they also set appointments and had been waiting for well over an hour. Needless to say we walked out and will NOT be returning. read more

We went on Monday 12/21/15, it was a great experience with a great photographer. He was able to make my 2 year old grandson smile and he was very pleasant and informative. Great experience and the time was pretty swift. Kim D read more

Worst experience ever! I had an appointment scheduled and still had to wait over 2 hours just to be photographed! The photographer was horrible! Took several pics on the black background of our family and the photos were way too dark! Not good quality photos at all! As a professional photographer you should know which backgrounds work best. Clearly he did not! Only had a few photos of our family to chose from and this was also the very first family picture we've ever had done so it was very disappointing. We were to receive a free coffee cup as well as a free ornament with our package that was suppose to be in a couple of weeks ago and were told they would contact us when they came in and still haven't heard from anyone. I've called and still no idea where my items are. Christmas is in less than a week so i may not even be able to use the ornament this year! Horrible experience! read more

DO NOT GO!!! Booked an appt online, two weeks ahead of date, and as soon as they would let me. Got there early with my 2 year old grandson and had to wait 50 minutes before CJ started taking pictures. Older kids behind us were going first. I told CJ which poses I wanted so he could get good shots before my grandson got impatient and he said he had to do a whole shoot. He did not work with him to get shots and seemed to be going slower after I told him that we had another appointment at 1:30. The pictures were not good quality at all but I did not want to put the baby through anymore. CJ told me that the special package, that I made the appointment through, was expired and would not sell it to me, even though I had a picture to prove it, on my phone. He told me there were NO specials. I was patient because I thought he was just an employee, working for an awful business. It was after I had to negotiate a refund for two weeks that I found out that he is the manager. This place needs an overhaul. The Portrait Innovation in Lexington is professional, friendly, and have great photos. read more

We have been waiting 2 hours past our appointment time. With 3 small kids, this has been a nightmare. Never coming back.

I used to love Portrait Innovations, but not anymore. I specifically scheduled an appointment with this place 2 weeks in advance for Christmas photos. I received text message follow ups, with no other concerns. On the day of our family's photo time, I showed up right on time as suggested. When I walked in, the place was loud, and filthy (kids bouncing, cups, toys in the air) . I felt like I was in an amusement park. Then, I walked over to the CSR, and she could barely smile, and immediately said, just fyi, you will have an hour and a half wait. Wait a minute...I scheduled this appointment. I have kids with special needs, and can't just sit there for hours either. I left, and our family will not return to this gross place. Not sure what happened to the store, but it is really not what it used to be:( And for the record, this place which used to claim it is "no pressure on the sales" is absolutely pushy to the customer. If you ask for a package that is 20.00 as advertised, the photographers make sure you leave with 100 plus packages, while your kids are sitting there crying, or fidgeting. This place stinks! read more

I was very confused about other reviews I have read about this location because I've had positive experiences except this morning which is all I needed to NEVER go back. I had an appointment at 9am but the door was locked and not a soul inside. Finally at 9:15 my photographer Jaime showed up. I was very understanding and told him to take his time to get settled in. Once we started with my 1 yr olds bday pictures although he was demanding and aggressive with what I needed and not needed to do, i had no problem because he was the expert. After pictures, he began to run down the packages and with my understanding that time is valuable, I did noIt want to waste his time. I informed him that I was only using the coupon. That's when my experience became hell. He became upset and said that he had to go through the packages. I said ok no worrries. As I listen patiently to his spill on each package, each time I said no thank you he became more upset. He eventually shadowed all of the favorites that I picked so it was hard to see them and told me he couldn't bring them up and I needed to pick one. After 15 minutes of him refusing to bring them up he finally did and told me that "you can't spend a lot of time looking at them. You need to hurry up and pick one." Within 10 minutes of him bringing the pictures up I was able to pick my favorite. I don't think that's unreasonable. After I picked one it took him 25min to tell me the machine is "broke do you want to come back and can't promise me when it would be fix". I knew another family was almost done choosing their pictures, so I waited to see if it was still "broke" when they printed their pictures. Of course when they were ready for their pictures to be printed , the machine began working again. Once I finally received my pictures, it was obvious that he changed the zoom which led to my 1yr old fingers cut off in the picture. He refused to go back on the computer and reprint the picture and said "you have to make another appointment". I'm Not sure what expectations the business owner of Portrait Innovations are for their employees but this is below anyone's standard! Don't worry about my business again Jaime. You will not have to see me again. Thank You read more

I apologize in advance for not being able to leave a rating lower than '1 star'. Extremely unpleasant experience. As soon as our session started the photographer (Jaime?) was creepy. He was clearly on his own plan and didn't need any input from the customer to get the desired shots we wanted. My four year old little boy wanted to wear a superhero mask in one of his pictures. Denied. He told a toddler that we would get back to it if we could do the shits he wanted and never did. Wow. Integrity at it's finest. The session was odd and he wasn't pleasant. That's what I thought anyway, until it was time to review our generic-ass poor quality pictures. He then decided to try to pressure is into a high priced package. I get it and it's not a big deal to try to sell. The problem came with deception and vaguely avoiding our questions to find out what we could actually get. We wanted a few simple options and we asked many different ways how we could see the different package options. Nope. So he gets up to go advance his disgusting cigarette breath and another person comes over. He's nearly as irritating. At this point my wife is visibly frustrated and wants to speak to a manger. Nope. Can I get your name? Missy. Can I get your last name to reference to customer service? Nope. I can't explain what a terrible overall customer service experience it was. And for plain white background, fuzzy pictures. Wow. Doing some real artistic work, Warhol. I hate this place. read more

They don't even deserve 1 star. My wife had a 9:10 AM appointment for our 9 month old and when she got there at 9:05 AM and signed in, they were already running behind and had 2 people ahead of her. So in order to keep the 9 month old happy, she ran to a store just down from there to get some baby food and when she got back there was another family in line. The workers there told her that she would have to go to the back of the line because they couldn't verify she was there on time for her 9:10 appointment time. Even though she spoke with them when she arrived at 9:05. The family was nice enough to offer to let her go in front of them, but my wife declined as she didn't want to cause a family with 4 kids to have to wait even longer. The workers were rude and they could care less about appointment times. We will NEVER be back to this sad excuse of a portrait studio and we will be letting everyone we know to stay clear of them. read more

Pathetic... we called well in advance, specifically asked for earliest appointment and were promised there would only be 2 people ahead of us. When we arrived, there were 2 families in the process of being photographed, 2 more picking out photos that had already been done, 3 more families ahead of us waiting to be photographed, and the place was completely packed full of people waiting. We were called back about 45 minutes after our appointment by a kid who looked like he was 17. I would swear he had never interacted with a human child before. My 3 year old was crying and my 7 year old daughter was telling the photographer, "you need to make him laugh, you need to get a toy and do funny things." He looked like this was the first time he had ever heard this suggestion. He had no clue how to organize a family photo. After a few attempts we gave up and took a look at the photos he did manage to take. They would have been fine, as long as no one asked us to pay for them. The manager was about as concerned as a prison guard, hearing a complaint from a death row inmate. If an asteroid was hurtling toward the earth and Portrait Innovations was the only possible shelter to avoid certain doom, I would stand outside in the parking lot and welcome the end with open arms. Sears was great, but their studio went out of business. read more