Complaint Review: 818 Concepts - Photography - Sherman Oaks/ Los Angles, CA Internet

On April 29, 2012 Melanie Caudillo and Tony Hernandez, the owners of 818 Concepts photography company specializing in dogs, came to Arizona for a public photo shoot. Their flyer posted on Facebook said to contact them for details. I initially contacted both Melanie and Tony over 15 times to get information on the time and location. They never answered my calls. I found the location from someone else. I should have known to not even waste my time and money going to the photo shoot after they did not answer any of my calls.

Considering they focus on the American Bully, I still went to help and support their company. When I met them after they arrived 30 minutes late, I told them I called them numerous times but they only laughed and said they never answer their phone. Although they brushed it off, I did not think anything was funny. I was disappointed in their tardiness. They did not even apologize for not answering my calls or returning my messages (both voicemail & text messages).

I specifically told them that I needed pictures for a magazine cover. They explained they have taken several pictures for the magazine so I assumed they knew what they were doing. Later even before I received the pictures I called back the magazine company to advise them I had some pictures taken by 818 Concepts to say the least they did not sound happy. The magazine company told me the pictures must be taken in the RAW format not JPEG but so again 818 Concepts failed to listen to a simple request knowing the pictures should have been taken in RAW. The photos I received were nasty. The dog had snot around his eyes and they were blood shot red. Both Melanie and Tony told me they knew how to use Photoshop. They said they had previously added a leg to a bully in a picture. I simply asked that they clean up my dogs face and remove the red from his eyes, which he had from them chocking him. They promised to clean up the pictures but only removed the leash from the background and were too lazy to clean his face or make the pictures clearer after I brought it to their attention that they were chocking him which made his eyes bloodshot red.

After contacting them with my concerns regarding the unclear and nasty pictures they sent me, I gave them a second chance to correct their mistake and resolve the issue. However, they chose not to.  

Therefore, I clearly asked them to not post the pictures anywhere on the Internet including Facebook, bully boards, or their website because I was disappointed with their horrible quality of work. I explained to them that I would clean some of the pictures up and they would not get credit for the pictures because they did not finish the job. They also failed to comply with this simple request.

Melanie Caudillo and Tony Hernandez did not provide the services or deliver the product they were paid for in cash to do. The companys professionalism and work craftsmanship is horrible.  

They do not demonstrate a willingness to understand a customer's feelings and situation. The demonstration of empathic understanding goes a long, long way towards soothing a customer's frustration and disappointment, even if they are unable to provide a response, which fully meets the customers expectations or their initial demands, they should still try to work something out with the customer. However, Melanie and Tony were fixed on how they conduct their business and unwilling to listen to my requests. I did not receive any credit for the cash I spent or a receipt. In addition, they did not take any action to resolve the issue/complaint and they disrespectfully went against my request to not post the
nasty photos on the Internet.

Bottomline: Anyone could have taken the pictures but I thought I hired a professional photography company and my expectations were to receive some crystal, clean, clear photos of my dog. I am extremely disappointed with 818 Concepts customer service, lack of professionalism/ethics, and poor craftsmanship. They did not take one step in resolving the discrepancies or did not clean up any of the photos.

I strongly advice everyone to NOT conduct business with Melanie Caudillo and Tony Hernandez or their business 818 Concepts. Please save your time, money, frustration, and embarrassment. I have continued to email, call, and text 818 Concepts but they continue to ignore my calls and do not respond by email or text.