I have had extremely mixed experiences with Ace Photo for more than a decade. I'm a longtime film…read moreand digital photographer, and camera repair technician. Sometimes I've gotten good products for a good value; other times it's been really disappointing or even felt like being cheated or disrespected. I'll just tell a few stories from the years; you decide. About 5-6 years ago I bought a set of used lenses from their website. The items were well-priced and essentially new. I couldn't see any evidence of prior use. I've used them extensively and this was a great buy. In the past couple of years I bought a large format film camera from the website. It had a lens cone but no lens, and I emailed them prior to purchase to try to figure out what focal length the cone was made for, because it wasn't visible in the photos. A very basic question; the resulting emails proved that they a) had no clue what I was asking, b) had no idea of their ignorance, and c) were condescending, implying that I didn't know what I was shopping for. I gave up, bought it on faith, and as expected, the answer I needed was clearly engraved in large type on the cone. I assume the rep was looking at the website photos instead of the camera, and not seeing what I was asking for, tried to brush off what should have been a trivial question. But there was another problem. The camera was damaged after photographing for the website, in a visually obvious way, and they shipped it to me knowing it was broken (held together with a rubber band). I wrote back to ask for a discount, explaining that I was competent to machine a replacement part (this camera is out of production and there is no parts source, so that was the only option). The discount I received was insultingly small, but I kept the camera. Finally, in-person. I try to visit brick-and-mortar camera stores, and Ace had been on my list for years. It was so-so. First, I was greeted by the familiar claim that it's the largest camera store in the mid-Atlantic; I'd expected to spend 2-3 hours as I often do, but actually 20-30 minutes was plenty to browse everything. Definitely not the largest store in the mid-Atlantic, and I know firsthand. Still, I was interested in a couple of items. I asked about a discount on a vintage lens I would enjoy repairing, and was bluntly told they do not negotiate. I then explained that this lens had serious issues, and was told, again bluntly, that the shelf I got it from all had issues and was priced accordingly. That irritated me: the person was bluffing; they didn't know which shelf I'd gotten it from, and it was not a gear-with-issues shelf nor priced accordingly. They obviously thought it was in top condition and the price was delusionally high even if it'd been mint. Nonetheless, I mildly asked them to take a look at the glaring defects and see if they thought it was worth reconsidering. Two people tried to look at it, in clumsy ways that would never work; obviously totally inexperienced, but they kept squinting uselessly and then looking at me with scornful expressions like I was trying to scam them. I told them how to do it, but they condescendingly ignored me and kept doing it wrong, so I said more firmly, "let me show you." So I showed them something no reasonably competent person would have missed, and they took it back to ask the boss who said "no, price is firm." OK, fine; I asked about another item, whose tag listed a complete kit but half of the kit had obviously been sold off separately. The person looked on the website and said "that's how it is on the website so that's how it is." Again, just a blunt customer-is-wrong response, combined with customer-is-annoying tone. Despite this, two of the other staff members WERE really helpful and attentive, and seemed knowledgeable, hence why I call this a so-so experience. I've given a small but representative sample of many more stories I could tell here, and I think I'm done with Ace after the in-person visit. Life's too short to support people who run businesses like customers are just a money source to be sucked dry. I can't look past the 50/50 good-to-bad ratio anymore. Mistakes and occasional miscommunications etc are expected; a consistently higher than usual number of these kinds of bad interactions are symptomatic of something deeply wrong overall, and after reading other Yelp reviews I realize I'm not alone. (Update: Robert's response to this review really confirms my opinions.) I have more great options elsewhere than I can name here, and plan to give them my business in the future. Locally I recommend Pro Camera in Charlottesville, Southeastern Camera in Raleigh, Ball Camera in Asheville, KEH and PPR in Atlanta, among others. Online and further distant from this area, I recommend especially KEH, MPB, Roberts Used Photo Pro, National Camera, Midwest Photo, B&H, Adorama, Blue Moon Camera & Machine, Film Photography Project, Brooklyn Film Camera, and TheDarkroom film processing lab.

Be careful about what you are ordering. I ordered a camera online that CLEARLY had a photo of what…read moreI wanted (because I own one) and the correct model number. I clicked through to the site from Google Shopping and it did not say unavailable or anything, but the exact same photo (price, too) came up with a slightly different model number, so I didn't notice a missing 0. My receipt shows the same camera. Mo refuses to apologize. He said he would refund it if I send it back. I had the camera shipped out of the country at extra expense and sending it back will cost more than the purchase (taxes, shipping 2 ways) The product does not match the photo.

I had an old VHS recording that my brother and I loved watching growing up. I wanted to ensure it…read morewas saved for posterity, so I visited MyDVDTransfer. The service was fantastic. Chris was incredibly nice and communicative throughout the process. Everything was done seamlessly and the DVD / digital copy look great. I couldn't ask for more!

I recently used MyDVDTransfer to convert some old video tapes onto DVD. I'd been wanting to do it…read morefor a while and went looking for a vendor to do it. MyDVDTransfer is listed in Angie's List, so I had some confidence about the service going in because of that. They could not have been better to work with. I was a little nervous sending my tapes off to someone in another state. This particular set of tapes was over ten years old and we didn't even know what was on them anymore, we just knew there were memories there that we wanted to keep. Nick, the owner was easily available by phone and email and he responded promptly and directly to my communication, which was very reassuring. I asked him if he could expedite the transfer of my tapes because I wanted to have them back in time for our wedding anniversary which was coming up in just a couple of days. I sort of assumed it would not be possible when I asked because of volume, but they plucked mine out, transfered them and FedExed them back to me in time and just billed me for the FedEx shipping later via Paypal. I paid online for the service and for the expedited shipping afterward, so the transaction was very easy. As I told Nick afterward, what they do for people is just really wonderful. The tapes they converted for me? Footage of our children when they were toddlers, ballet recitals, holiday footage and totally priceless footage of a miraculous day on the beach in Ocean City MD with our little ones that we forgot we even took video of and didn't know that incredible day was recorded. It was so incredible to see the footage of the little people our children once were, how they sounded and moved, all the little things that you forget as time goes by. Having that to give to my wife on our 17th wedding anniversary was a slam dunk. MyDVDTransfer isn't really about converting one format to another. It's really about restoring and reclaiming your memories. Priceless stuff. I have several more tapes that need converting and I'll be using MyDVDTransfer for all of them. They do what they promise, the quality of the conversion work is very good and the owner is available and responsive to his customers. I recommend them without reservation.

I came here looking for 1 year old portraits for my daughter at a cheap price. The price is cheap,…read morebut so is everything else. The biggest problem is that the photographer was also working the front counter and helping customers select pictures after the shoot. Consequently, our session wound up being 45 minutes late - and when you're trying to hit that magical window of a happy 1 year old, 45 minutes of staring at a wall is a long time. By the time we got going, even though the photographer was nice, we were still rushed and baby girl was not happy. The studio felt very creepy and dirty - not very kid friendly. After 15 minutes my daughter was crying and we stopped trying to force it. There was one really great picture, but it was obvious in the rest of the shoot that she wasn't happy. Not to mention by the time we came out of the session to pick our photos, the next customers were ready and waiting, also with a baby. It's worth looking for a different studio.

I had a wonderful experience here. This morning I packed up my 2.5 month old son and took him to JC…read morePenney's at Dulles Town Center for holiday portraits. Daisy was our photographer, but all of the ladies were very friendly and nice. I expected it to be a madhouse since it's the day before Thanksgiving, but the process was orderly and quick. Daisy really knew what she was doing, and was able to coax smiles out of my very young son. I purchased all of the digital images from the JC Penney session, as well as a dozen prints, and still paid a mere 1/10 of the price (literally) that I paid a local freelance photographer for our newborn photos two months ago. And guess what? The photos from JC Penney are JUST AS GOOD! No question, I will be back.

After finding out that it would take 5 weeks to get my film developed through CVS, I was on the…read morehunt to find someone local. I was introduced to Image Ace and will now be a forever customer! He developed, scanned and emailed me my film within 2 hours! He said he would get it to me by the end of the day and I could not believe how fast he was. He is very friendly and the customer service is amazing. I highly recommend coming here for all your photo needs!!

I've used this business multiple times. I'm amazed at the bad reviews listed. The owner was patient…read morewith me while I tried to decide what I wanted. He also offered very helpful professional advice- which was invaluable to me. The outcome was wonderful canvas photos that direct my home and my family's homes. If he has closed- it is everyone's loss.

Just as I almost forgot how to use my 35mm SLR film camera (remember those??), I signed up for a…read moreBlack and White Darkroom class at the Reston Community Center Photo Lab with my boyfriend. I have had darkroom experience in the past, but my boyfriend was a complete newbie. As a resident of Reston (small district #5), the 4-session course was only $40 and included all chemicals and 4 additional hours of darkroom time. We had to purchase our own paper, film sleeves and provide our own cameras and film. The class was a great introduction to darkroom techniques, from developing your film, making/developing prints, and how to improve your final print. It did not, however, include instruction on proper exposure of your film or field techniques (though the RCC periodically offers such courses separately). The instructor, Sandra, was a sweetheart and did a fantastic job getting everyone started. I do have to warn all of you digital camera converts... you can only take 24-36 shots on a single roll of film... so point and shoot with care!!!! As for the lab, it's a great secret in Reston... Although tiny and beginning to show its age, it has everything you need to develop and print your BW and Color negatives. The Open Lab has hours on Saturdays, Sundays, Tuesdays and Thursdays (Color processing is not offered every day)... check out the website for an exact schedule. You must call ahead to make a reservation to ensure that Sandra is around and to make sure that it doesn't get too crowded. I've never had a problem reserving a spot for the same day. So here's what earned the lab a 5-star rating in my book... 4 hours at the open lab will only set you back $7!!!! That's less than a breakfast at starbucks!!!! Do note that if you don't live or work in small district #5 (Reston), the fees are a little more... $10. Still not bad!!! Happy printing!