Complaint Review: Michele Celentano Photographic Artist

Michele Celentano was the photographer at our wedding in NY in August 1998. We received our album without incident, but had told her that we would be ordering some portraits at a later time. I had contacted her several times and did not receive a response. A while later, we received a letter from Michele asking if we wanted to buy the negatives.

I left her a voice message indicating that we would like the portraits first and then we would get the negatives, and would get back to her with the information about which pictures we wanted. Her response was that we needed not to worry, that she would get us the portraits when we gave her the picture details. When I tried calling her with the information, her phones had been disconnected. We never received any notification that she was moving from Staten Island, NY to Arizona. It took me a long time before I was able to locate her again through the internet.

Starting in late October 2004 I started trying to contact her both by phone and by e-mail. I never received a response until I left her a message stating that I would resort to other measures if I did not receive a response. She then had her assistant contact me stating that it was the first time they had received any voice messages and that my e-mails (although never returned to me undeliverable) were also never received.

Her assistant indicated that they would not process the portraits but given the circumstances, they would send me the negatives at no cost and I could have someone else process the pictures. I waited several weeks and when I didn't receive anything I called again, to no avail. It took another message stating that I would resort to other measures before I got another response.

The response was that I was to receive the negatives (which were in storage) in a few weeks. That was in June 2005, since, I have left messages that have gone unanswered. To date I have yet to receive a response or the negatives.

Marta
Cranford, New Jersey
U.S.A.