Questions and Answers
Is this good for only one person in the portrait sitting or could it be for siblings or a family?
I have the same question as Jaime B. but also wonder if the session could be used for the ‘pin up’ style portraits?
Hi Jaime and Jonelle,
This portrait is good for up to 4 people. So you can include any friends, family, etc as long as it’s a minimum of 4. Thanks..
Traci
Groupon Seattle
I am confused about how many people can be in the photo? Can a couple be in the photo?
Yes, I think so. I am guessing the reply above should have said maximum instead of minimum. I was also wondering do we do the printin ourselves because we get the pictures on CD or do we have to purchase that from her additionally?
Dogs? If my “kids” are dogs?
Hi All..
Sorry, correction above there is no minimum but there is a max of 4… I am sure she will allow animals as well…
Also this Groupon includes 1 hour portrait session, pictures on CD, and 5 re-touched digital images. Hopefully that answers your questions..
Traci
This sounds like a great deal!
What is the average number of shots in a one hour session?
Doesn’t it take some time to set up lighting and stuff?
Does she have an assistant for that?
Does she have a studio or do we have to come up with an idea of where the shoot will be and at only 1 location?
I tried to print this coupon and I don’t have the right format on my computer and suggestions?
shirley
What locations does Debra normally like to shot, are there particular areas that she loves? I’d love suggestions of where in Seattle to go (that is 10 miles radius) looking for an outdoor spot with interesting background/skylines for a family shot. Thanks!
hi, quick question. if i buy this for my brother and in-laws (2 people only), and we each have a family of 4, is there any way we can schedule the shoot for all of us to be in a big picture together??
thanks.
Sounds like she comes to your location, as long as it is within ten miles. What if it is further, can you do you pay more money to have her come to your home or whatnot?
Does she work with babies? They are a different kind of model, so many photographers either specialize in babies or don’t work with them. Also, how long is the coupon good for?
I am concerned that there are a lot of packages purchased, but this expires in one year. I realize she can do more than one hour long shoot per day, but I don’t want to struggle to get an appointment on a weekend since I will be driving from south of Olympia. Will scheduling be a problem?
Q- can the photos be taken in studio?
It looks like a studio rental is required for pics in the studio from looking at her website.
Sounds like a good deal (though I think the starting price is inflated). Her samples seem to be of a very high quality. However, I don’t think her politics belong on the page — she’s bound to offend half her potential audience regardless of which way she leans.
just 2 questions:
-Will the CD contain full-size, high-resolution images?
-Can the shoot be done in her studio or is there an extra charge for that?
Thanks!
I also am wondering if she does babies.
Does anyone know what happens if you book your appointment and it rains?
Can you use this coupon for the pin up picture session?
Wondering
-if the shoot can be done in her studio?
-if this is good for photography for a couple? Would she take picture for a single person on all the shots and then allow upto 4 person for a single shot?
I want to buy this but wondering how to choose a location and if it will be just good for my wife and I can be in one shot or for both of us.
Megan asks a great question about scheduling. There have already been 450 coupons sold and it’s only halfway through the day. Is there a limit to the number that will be sold? Also, what happens if a bunch of people hold off until November then try and book a session because they want to get family photos prior to Christmas?
Hi it’s Debora!
I have a great studio in Pioneer Square that is right next to the ferry dock and tons of beautiful spaces! This way I can fit everyone in, the Seattle rain is not a problem plus I have professional lighting that I use on models in my studio! Also if we do the photos there I can fit everyone in!
Pin up sessions do involve more time so there would be an additional $100 that we can make arrangements on.
The CD is high res. The time includes the CD burning, and touch ups.
When doing a family it is a picture of up to 4 in one shot. Please families only.
My specialty when I worked for Nordstrom and Macy’s was directing the children’s shoots. So yes I love children.
Thank you Debora for the response. I am taking a chance and getting this Groupon. See you soon!
Any answer on the dogs? Can we use the package for photos of them?
Be sure to actually look at her website to see the quality that you are receiving and the fact that she is selling this as custom photography but not really giving you custom photography. She gives you unedited images on a CD. Digital photography requires images to be processed to have the same quality as film at the very minimum to take off the digital haze. She is selling this package too low to offer a quality (forget about even high quality) product. Run, don’t walk away from this and look at the the internet for other options. You DO get what you pay for people!! She tells you that this is good for within 10 miles of downtown and then says that since she took so many coupons that you will instead have to cram into her studio downtown instead. Real nice….real nice. Notice that she doesn’t even list her prices on her website so you don’t really know what she would charge for a session like this normally…
Is there a maximum on this? There are over 700 of these sold. I bought 2 of them. One for each of my children. I am thrilled at the idea of getting some good shots near the ferry docks. What are ‘pin up’ sessions?
Woe! I am a professional photographer just up the street from Debra, and I have to agree with Sarah. I think you all should be really careful here…Over 700 of these have been sold for one hour sessions – unretouched images except for 5 … just be careful with your precious memories. :-)
I’d just like to point out that this is a great deal, whether the starting price is inflated or not. You can’t go to the Picture People (where you’d end up with portraits like EVERYONE one else out there) for under fifty bucks. I’m excited to give her a try and see what she can do with my three little babes.
Just remember the Groupon Promise, folks …..
“Nothing is more important to us than treating our customers well. If you ever feel like Groupon let you down, give us a call and we’ll return your purchase – simple as that.”
I too am a professional photog in the seattle area. I have to say that I am totally NOT jealous she has 800 sessions this year as that is insane! I would honestly perfer going to picture people over the images she has on her website. I hate to bad talk other photographers but I think she has really set herself up for this and is really going to disappoint a lot of “clients”.
I agree with Shellie~ Be careful who you are allowing to capture those fleeting moments.
Shawna, keep in mind that with nearly 800 buyers, you WILL end up with pics like everyone else ;)
Wow, I can’t believe there isn’t a cap on how many sessions she’s selling….how is it possible for one photographer (who works out of her home) to do 800+ sessions in a year? I’m so glad I didn’t purchase this since I don’t think there is anyway I would have got an appointment when I wanted one! It’s a good thing Groupon offers refunds!
she will have to do 2.5 a day, 7 days a week at this point to fit everyone in. Not gonna happen.
touche’ Suzanne…and that is IF people were to want to spread it out like that. NOT going to happen.
I too am a professional photographer. In looking at Debra’s website there are some outstanding commercial images as well as rather average portrait work. It’s almost like they were taken by two different photographers. To do the job right a SINGLE custom photographer can really on serve +/- 200 sessions in any one year. I feel for Debra because she is going to be so busy with work that she has not structured any way to make any money from. A “Deal” like this would put me out of business.
Buyer Beware!
Hey Shawna G – as someone who has actually worked with Debora professionally, I feel comfortable saying to you that you will get a great end product from Debora. She is someone who puts her heart into every shoot she does. She can see the beauty in people AND can capture it on film. She is one of the most nonjudgemental people I’ve ever met.
I would like to point out that half of the outcome of a photo shoot is the subject. NO ONE (not even the photographers with the “not jealous” comments here) can make an ugly duckling into a super model. If you would like better outcome from your shoot, I would recommend your children get plenty of sleep! For adults, consider hiring a professional hair/makeup artist and wear clothing that is understated – the point is you, not your wardrobe. Make sure you don’t feel rushed that day, and arrive with a clear idea of what you would like to capture during your shoot. Communication is very important for the outcome of your photos…and remember to smile! :)
half of the outcome of a photo shoot is the subject? What about things like exposure, composition, lighting, angles, white balance, posing, editing? I would say those things make up for more than half. If I wanted pictures straight out of a camera I would just have my friend who knows nothing about photography take the photos! I just don’t get how someone can do a photo shoot and burn the images to a disk on the spot and call themselves a custom portrait photographer! What’s so custom about that?
Wow! Give her a break guys! These comments are brutal and you haven’t even seen her results yet. Let’s break it down: 800 shoots. Most self empoyed people work at least 10 hr days. This is a 1 hour shoot, if she schedules 5 a day, that’s 8 months of photography. The coupon lasts for a year. AND you other photographers getting on here and talking crap about her…SHAME ON YOU!!!
I also know Debora and have for many years. She is a wonderful photographer and an incredibly honest, thoughtful and caring person. Be careful what you put out, it often comes back to bite you (the law of karma is alive and well). I was very pleased to see Debora offer this deal and I’m sure those who purchased this Groupon will be very happy they did.
I cant say anything good or bad beccause since we purchased this groupon we havent been able to get ahold of her. So I’m going to ask for a refund on this one. Really disappointed because sounded like she would of produced some great work.
I was also unable to contact Debora, despite multiple attempts via phone and email over the course of the last five months. Total radio silence except for one curt email that garnered no response after I replied. I ended up returning this Groupon. Extremely disappointing and frustrating.
I emailed called Debora and I also emailed her. She returned my email asking for my phone number in March. I sent that to her, but it looks like I should call back and leave another message and email her again as well. I was hoping for some spring or summer shots in a local park, but my year is now about half over. I am hoping I don’t need to ask for a refund.
I’ve actually worked with Debora before, and her work is great. However … I have real concerns about her professionalism at this point. After several messages, we finally arranged a shoot in June. I had to cancel, and she promised she would shortly get back to me with some alternate dates. It’s August, and I have yet to hear from her. And when I try to call her business number, all I hear is a message that her mailbox is full. I understand being busy, but there is no excuse for a complete lack of communication.
I emailed and called with no answer (this is months after the groupon was featured, so I was hoping to get some sort of response). I ended up returning this groupon and didn’t even get the full refund for some reason. I find this to be very disappointing. Thankful this is an isolated event.
I email Debora and get a shoot time on Aug 22nd 5pm. will let you know if all worked out.
We got our one hour photo session this 5pm Sunday August 21st, 2010. Exactly, only half hour photo session in her studio, and other half hour was spent selecting the retouch and her time to burn the cd and retouch the 5 photos. communication was none before the photo session, but very nice in person working with my kids. She was so busy with clients back to back every hour even on Sunday with no breaks for herself. We even had a hard time getting into the building. I still felt money well spent as photos turn out good for my family of four.
I called the week before the shoot – to ask if there were any last minute cancellations for a specific date – August 23rd – and lucked out. The photo shoot was at Golden Gardens (decided by others; great choice by us) and I don’t know whether the girls chose the photos or delegated the choosing to Deborah. I will have to ask my daughter next time I talk to her. Deborah seemed very nice and is, judging by the one image I looked at, good at what she does.
She won’t return my emails either. Diana, your incident is not isolated.
I don’t why the heck “sarah” is even posting…what is the point of showing up to spit on another business? We did our session with Debora a couple of weeks ago, the 200 shots she took were magnificent, and the experience of watching my daughter light up like that for the hour long shoot was worth a thousand bucks (which I did not have, so am thankful for the Groupon!). We are now waiting on the final retouched photos, but the other 195 are amazing as well. This was a great deal and helped me out of a pinch trying to get my daughter a Senior picture she would love when money is just too tight to bear the brunt of a full-blown studio session. THANK YOU DEBORA!
Boo to “sarah” for showing up and playing the Grinch! Let us know the name of your studio so I can be sure to avoid it….
I too would love to know who Sarah is. How incredibly unprofessional and just uncalled for. We met with Debora today at Golden Gardens. She was absolutely amazing. She was friendly, sweet, funny, and super easy to work with! The photos she showed us there today were GREAT. I will definately be using her in the future and will recommend her.
And to those of you who claim to have never heard back… I called her and didn’t even leave a message because I figured I would just email her and she called me right back anyway. She was even able to fit us in for an appt the following day!!! Did I expect that? NO!!! People have to take into consideration that she is in high demand due to this Groupon and her current clients already. Unless you want the work of amatures such as JcPenny, Sears, etc then be patient. I expected to not be able to get in for a month or so. To those who are complaining… You got a great deal for an awesome photographer so just be patient and polite if she can’t fit you in immediately because with any goog photographer this is just how it is!!!!
i contacted Debora several times to try and set up a session. very poor response. clearly she shouldn’t have sold 800 sessions, can’t groupon’s have a cap? I ended up getting a refund due to her lack of response.
Brooke – How patient should a person be? Is two weeks or a month a reasonable amount of time to wait for someone to return a call or email? Seems a bit much and it is not a “claim” for some of us, it is a fact.
How do we get a refund? I called her up numerous times and sent her email nowher voicemail is full. She may do a good job with photos but clearly no business sense or simply – does not care. She should post something on her web or karma will bite her one of these days! Groupon – how do I get my money back???
Used our Groupon yesterday for Debora Spencer photography. We had a GREAT session, and will definitely go back to her again for any photo needs. She responded right away to our request to set up appointment, was totally accommodating with our location requests (and even changed them with no problem at last minute due to weather) and was so great with us and our young kids. Poo on all those folks here are talking trash. —Thanks for everything Debora!!
Called multiple times, emailed multiple times…NEVER got a response. Today when I called, her VM just stated “the person at this number is not accepting calls at this time”. I gave up and called Groupon to get my money back. Sorry guys….Sarah was right!
I try to reach Debora since November 2010. Same auto reply on e-mail and no reply by phone. Any recomendations? Arina
We’ve had some photos done by Debora, this is a STEAL of a deal. She captured so many amazing shots of my family of 4 for our Holiday card- we got more compliments on that card than any we’ve ever done at other studios.
She also does amazing ‘pin up’ style photography- I say release your inner Diva and get some beautiful photos of yourself done for your significant other or just for your self…. you’re worth it!