Hayes Fine Art — Local services in Raleigh

We completed a new born photoshoot. We did not have a good experience from start to finish. We were so excited based on all the good reviews too!

The pricing seemed a great deal higher than other places we had looked at for what we got and our photos were just okay. It does seem like a very nice place but the experience is lacking.

The location is very clean. They gave us time to feed our baby before the shoot so she would have a full belly. The photo room is dark for the photos and they keep a shhh sound going to help lull babies. There is a sofa to sit on while they take photos. You can give request at booking on themes an/or colors (sort of).

When we arrived, the assistant who helped with the photos was quite rude throughout the shoot. We did not get to give input on what we wanted in photos beyond the “theme” we chose which was also disappointing. We tried several times and were shut down each time so we gave up. She was often telling us we should not look or talk to our newborn because she believes it makes them fussier (which regardless, we are the client and its our baby!). Several of the comments made to our family and baby I felt were inappropriate as well. But Anyway -

Final products, there wasn't any that we loved (not terrible, not great photos - just average. I could of done these same types at home and changed backgrounds with an AI app on my phone for similar photos to what we received and probably been happier). We voiced that when looking at the finals we were NOT happy with them - but they had moved on to the next group and we were stuck with what they took. They didn't give us any additional or retake options just showed us their AI backgrounds we could use for a cost. The packages for photos and session were over $1200-1300 minimum for 5-6 photos and digital copies (for us the pricing was roughly $500 for the session fee plus 100 for a booking fee plus the packages to be able to take your photos which started at another $800). Our order was not correct at first but after a few errors we did get them corrected and received the final product but again - nothing we were excited about.

I did explain our perspective to them, but of course they were defensive and it didn't really resolve any of our concerns. We had to agree to disagree and for us, our experience regrettably remained subpar. I am sure they will disagree with this review in the comments as well.

But Overall - we settled for what we got but we regretted going here. You make your own decision of course but wanted to leave our honest review because reviews do...

Melissa & her team are top notch. Everyone we worked with was kind & helpful. Melissa's photos of my family came out amazing. I won one of the contests on Facebook for a free "fine art print" session including a family portrait printed on 14" canvas & mounted with masonite worth $1,000. I had to pay a $100 deposit to hold the appt. They told us to dress our best & my husband should wear a suit. He bought a suit & I bought new dresses for my twin daughters & I. I'm glad we did. We looked great all in black against the dark back drop she used. During scheduling I asked if we would be able to buy the digital images & how much it would cost and she said it should be fine but we would have to discuss it with Melissa. It was my understanding that the portrait I won would be printed on special heirloom canvas (that would last 100 years), mounted on masonite & would then be painted on by an artist. We went in for the shoot & it was great. Everyone was super nice & efficient. We were offered complimentary drinks & snacks while waiting for the photos to be ready for selecting. A staff member watched our kids while we went in a room with another staff member to select our image. There was a hard sell to purchase additional portraits and paint options. We viewed the photos on a large wall with a projector. Unfortunately, the images were a bit blurry when blown up that way. We had a hard time choosing. We were told about the different options in the amount of paint the artist adds. We didn't opt for additional paint beyond what was included in our prize. When asking how long it would take to be ready the staff member mentioned the painter only takes a few a month and our wait time was dependent on that (6-8 weeks.) It was then we were told they don't sell the digital images. If we wanted an additional photo it was available for purchase printed on canvas starting at $800.00. That's eight hundred dollars we couldn't spare. We were extremely disappointed because all the photos were so good. My portrait was ready in the estimated time frame. I picked up the canvas print and I didn't see any paint on it. I asked Melissa about this & she said our free prize (14" canvas art print) was not supposed to be painted. That was a option we didn't pay the extra money for. That was a little disappointing but the canvas print is beautiful and will be displayed in my home for many...

DO NOT BELIEVE THE SOCIAL MEDIA ADS!!! Absolutely CROOKED studio!!! Predatory sales practices!!! This is not an Art studio, it’s a bait and switch chop shop! This studio auto-targets ads to soon to be mothers and offers a “giveaway” photo shoot. They require a $100 deposit, which made me skeptical, but my wife wanted to do it because it is such a precious gift to be able to have these moments forever. THIS IS WHAT THEY DO! It is NOT a giveaway, everyone who enters gets a sales call from a rep to set the appointment a week or so after birth and they collect the $100 “deposit.”

We took advantage of the opportunity and paid the deposit. After our son was born we called to confirm that we would be there and when we showed up we were originally very impressed. Scenery and photography seemed to be very legit. This is the game they are playing.

The photo shoot was fun and they convince you to take a sales call with Jennifer the same day. She is 100% a commission sales person. After she shows the picture options and gets you sentimental about your favorite pictures of your new born, she tells you about the price! No joke, they have the nerve to charge $3,000 for a canvas print PER CANVAS and a small picture album with 10 6x8 wooden pictures for $3,500!!!!

You read that right, as a multi-business owner, including a print shop in N.C., the cost to print these including materials is sub-$15 for the canvas and roughly $5-$20 per wooden print.

That said, I appreciate art and the time it takes to create it, so I reached back out to the owner, Jennifer and the front desk to request the pdf of the photos we “won.” I even offered for them to keep the $100 deposit if they would edit the photos. (They tell you on all of the calls how this session is a $500 value we won)

Needless to say, we didn’t even get a response. 3 emails, 3 voice mails, spoke to the front desk and nothing but crickets! We have filed complaints with the BBB and the consumer justice department to seek repercussions for this poor excuse for service. It’s a shame to see not only how they prey on new parents hearts but also that they misrepresent art like this. Honestly this business is...