Sam Stroud Photography Reviews
Reviews
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Haley Sent on 11/19/2020
The dreamiest photos!
We are beyond impressed with Sam Stroud and his team, particularly RJ and Tyler. We hired them as our wedding photographers for our Sept 26 wedding and we would recommend them to anyone and everyone. We just got the photo album back and we are truly blown away. Sam really listened to what we wanted- traditional shots mixed with some dramatic shots (b & w film, cropped, candid) and wow did his team execute. RJ and Tyler were so much fun to work with and were giving off the best energy from the moment we stepped foot at the venue through our final farewell. You could tell that they were both eager to capture our special day perfectly, and their passion and talent really come out in the photos. They were so easy to work with and I wish we had the opportunity to do it again! The picture quality/ lighting/ angles in each and every picture are incredible, and we truly feel like we get to relive the day over and over again just looking at them. I really can’t express how amazing this team is and how in love we are with the wedding album. There are a ton of photographers out there but I’m telling you these guys are insanely talented and will exceed all of your expectations. Thank you for your kindness, professionalism, and for the beautiful photos that we will treasure for a lifetime. -Haley & Jeff -
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Nicole Sent on 04/13/2020
Sam & his team are rockstars
Hands. Down. Sam and RJ are the best photographers EVER. They perfectly captured our big day and are 100% worth every penny. My husband and I cannot get over just how amazing our photos are - they truly capture the joy and love that you felt on our wedding day. We have already framed multiple photos and are getting an album to display because there are just too many great shots to look over. Sam was a dream to work with on the wedding day, keeping us on track, and knowing just which shots to capture wonderful moments. Our wedding day was overcast for much of the day and we didn't think we'd have time to get a sunset shoot in, so Sam spent extra time with us at our first look ceremony to make up for it. However, at just the right time, the clouds broke and Sam pulled us outside during the sunset - only to capture the most breathtaking images I've ever seen. His work is second to none and you will not regret hiring him. Thank you, Sam! -
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Anna Sent on 10/07/2019
Absolutely incredible team!
Sam Stroud and his team RJ and Adam were absolutely fantastic! Not only was Sam an amazing photographer he also stepped in on many occasions and helped in the moment. When I was running behind he simply came up and informed me we were running just a few minutes late and told me exactly what to do and how we would make everything work. He was there whenever we needed him and went above and beyond. His team was super flexible and easy to work with. They were there every time we turned around capturing every moment. They were extremely nice, approachable, professional, and just overall a great group of guys to work with. I would HIGHLY recommend their services. -
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Emily Sent on 05/09/2016Fabulous! We had Lindsey Hinkley as our photographer for our big day. She is just THE BEST. It was like my sister was taking our picture--speaking to us like we were old friends and getting the shots she knew we would want. Other than Lindsey, the greatest thing about booking with Sam Stroud Photography is that you have two shooters for the day of your wedding and they are with you while you're getting ready and there until you leave your party! There's no hourly rate you need to worry about or shots that you risk missing because you booked 4 hours instead of 6. We were really happy and are planning on using them for any professional photos in the future! -
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Jessica Sent on 12/18/2011Sam Stroud Photgraphy is wonderful!!!!! The time and effort these guys put into their pictures is amazing! Daryl Calfee was our specific photographer and we connected with him right away!!!! Definitely would recommend him and any of the other photographers to any future bride! Thanks so much for making our wedding day so special and beautiful! -
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Amber Sent on 09/22/2010We actually heard of Sam because he took photos at some of my friend's weddings. I had never met him, but really admired his work. My husband and I really enjoyed working with Sam. He was very easy to work with, a lot of fun to work with, and very professional. He was creative with photos, but also traditional when it came to the family portraits. He has a very creative eye and catches the scene when it is most perfect. He even pulled us away to take a photo during the time the sun was setting and it was beautiful. The photographer was one of the main things I looked for right away when we were engaged, and I couldn't be MORE pleased that I was with Sam Stroud. I would definitely recommend him to anyone looking for a photographer. -
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Julie Sent on 11/19/2009I cannot tell everyone enough how amazing Sam Stroud's is! He was by far the shining star in my wedding and made everything and everyone feel so relaxed and comfortable. The last thing I wanted for my wedding, was one of those weird photographers that got in the way, made people feel weird and took "posed" pictures (1990's style). Sam went above and beyond all of my expectations with his professionalism, skill, photos, responsiveness and excitement to be apart of our big day. I would HIGHLY recommend him and his company to anyone I know! All of the photos taken that day are absolutely breathtaking and one of a kind! -
Mary Sent on 11/14/2017This review is somewhat premature since we've only received early rushes on my daughter's recent Washington, DC wedding. However, our photographers from Sam Stroud, led by RJ, provided such an amazing experience that I didn't want to wait. The best part of working with them was that they were fun and fit in seamlessly with the guests, were everywhere they needed to be to capture the story, yet were never obstrusive. The wedding party was huge (9 bridesmaids + 9 groomsmen), plus family, parents, etc. and yet they managed to get through the required photographs quietly, efficiently, and comprehensively. At the reception, they seemed to be everywhere at once. I can't wait to see the proofs and the video! Highly recommend Sam Stroud...Thanks, photo team!
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Callie Sent on 06/13/2013I can't say enough positive things about the team at Sam Stroud Photography. They were absolutely a joy to work with and their photos are STUNNING. I was blown away by their creativity, laid back, fun attitudes and professionalism. Best of all they are just a great team of people that work hard and deliver for you. Your wedding photographer is probably the most important vendor you will choose for your wedding and I would recommend these guys to anyone and everyone. I am beyond thrilled with the photos they took at our wedding as are our family and friends. Many people have commented on how great the team was and how beautiful the pictures are. I can't say it enough-the team at Sam Stroud Photography is the best out there. -
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Megan Sent on 11/04/2014We contacted Sam about doing our engagement photos, bridal portraits, and wedding day. Sam was sometimes hard to get in touch with. He was unable to perform all of our events, so he recommended Derek, who worked for him. Derek was amazing! He showed up early on our wedding day (about 45 minutes) and stayed late (30-40 minutes). The pictures are gorgeous!! -
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Lauren Sent on 02/05/2019Non responsive
I didn’t get Sam, but his photographer Ellie who was amazing. She is talented in skill and her ability to make a personal connection. Loved her.
Sam still runs the business, however, and at every turn he was not very responsive and still hasn’t delivered on what was promised. I can download low quality versions of our photos, but not high resolution versions. I am supposed to own my images but Sam hasn’t delivered them to me in the quality expected and isn’t responsive.
Sam also missed deadlines for giving me photos. It felt like a struggle- like I had to beg.
Sam is literally the only disappointment in my wedding vendor experience. -
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Katya Sent on 11/01/2022Our wedding day was amazing but we have no memory of it!
Our Venue had Sam on the list and when I looked at his profile - it looked beautiful. I still think his work is beautiful. However on June 14, just four days before our wedding (!), he sent us this: " I also just realized that it will be one of our associate shooters at your wedding + Video. so it's a photographer on my team". Without giving us a chance to even look at the work of the new photographer we were stuck with someone whose work we've never seen before.
Long story short. We don't have any memory from our wedding. Photos and a short Video including the raw footage is a poor quality. Sam keeps defending himself and his team saying things like it was too much shade, or too much sun or, our DJ had too much light ... I'm not a photographer the reason why I don's have good pictures doesn't matter to me. What matters is that after $6500 bill - my husband and I left disappointed and also offended.
Oh, one more thing that I forgot to mention. My hubbies name was written as DONELL on all of the wedding portfolios while he's been Lonny for 40 years prior. I'll try to attach the ones that sam didn't seem to think there is something wrong with it. Anyways, if you hire Sam - just make sure it's SAM who is shooting your wedding. Pay attention to the contract and don't make a mistake that we made. Happy wedding and happy wedding memories! -
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Michelle Sent on 07/08/2024Everything fell apart for actual delivery of photos.
Our wedding was June 3, 2023 and we still don't have everything that was supposed to be delivered as part of the contract. We had to follow up several times just to even get a preview of our photos and now have sent several messages directly to Sam about the print quality issues with our photos and lack of delivery of our photo album. We don't want to select photos for the album until we have a resolution on the image quality. We've sent several emails since the start of the year and no response. This is absolutely horrible customer service. -
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Mary Sent on 11/26/2023I don't even know where to begin regarding the unprofessionalism of Sam Straud. I hired Sam as my wedding photographer and another photographer and videographer from his team. When I had the initial phone call with him, I was excited to have him as my photographer. Little did I know his unresponsiveness, inconsistency, and lack of regard for his clients would all appear after I signed a contract and made all the payments. It started about a month before my wedding, and I had been emailing him to find a time to discuss a photo shot list and other logistics regarding the wedding. (Mind you, the only communication we had before this was our initial call and payment logistics.) We'd email back and forth to pick a time to meet, and on multiple occasions, he'd wait until after the date of our meeting had passed to respond to me. Finally, the week before my wedding, we agreed on a time and had a meeting set for 1 pm. The time came and went; I tried reaching out, and he answered 2 hours later. After repeatedly reaching out, I was finally able to get in contact with him two days before my wedding to discuss details for the day of and photo shot list with him. After our phone call, I was still concerned about his ability to perform but decided to trust that his photography abilities would make up for his lack of professionalism. Fast forward to the wedding day, I had to keep telling Sam which people we needed pictures with or what photos I wanted. I was disappointed how we had no direction as far as positioning for group photos, and it seemed like he wasn't even aware of my photo shot list. Multiple family members and friends commented on how unorganized, disengaged, and for some odd reason, how cocky he was during our wedding. Despite all of this, I was still so excited to see our sneak peeks.
Three days after our wedding I had emailed Sam asking about the next steps to get sneak peeks and a more detailed timeline about what to expect after the wedding. Two days later, I still had not heard anything from him, so I sent a follow-up email. After one more day of no response, my husband finally emailed him, asking for at least a response to my emails. He responded with excuses about it being their busiest season and not checking his emails on Mondays and Tuesdays. He then added in his email that sneak peeks were not a part of our contract. This was extremely frustrating since I chose him to be our photographer because, in our initial meeting, he said, "it would be no problem" to get us sneak peeks within 48 hours of the wedding. I attempted to remind him of this conversation, and a week later, he sent six photos that clearly had no thought or effort put towards them. Sam had no regard for what he chose to be the only six professional photos we'd receive for three months. I didn't save any of them, and I didn't share them with family or friends because they were so bad. In fact, the pictures I received from family and friends were significantly better than any of the photos he sent. Fast forward to about two months after our wedding. I had come to terms with the fact that I wouldn't receive any of my photos or videos till probably the last day of the 12 weeks contract. Suddenly, my sister sent me two pictures that were nicely edited of my husband and I featured on his instagram story. These were different, nicely edited photos from our wedding that he never shared with us. He had enough time to post them to his instagram but couldn't even send them to us via email or just let us know that they were on his instagram. (We had to ask multiple times to get the photos from his instagram that were never shared with us even after receiving all our photos)
We waited 14 weeks after our wedding (my contract said 12 weeks) to receive any photos or videos from him outside of the 6 he sent us a week and a half after the wedding. I sobbed after receiving my photos. I was in disbelief that so many important pictures weren't even captured, like photos with my mom and portraits with my husband, in addition to the horrible editing that removed the sunsets from pictures and changed the colors of my bridesmaid dresses and other decor items. When I asked Sam about the edits and colors, he lied, claiming we didn't take photos during the sunset when I had the exact poses captured on iPhones with the sunset in the background. He also went back on his word and said, "there is no guarantee of getting everything on a photo shot list," even though he had written in an email, "That should be totally fine" when I emailed him the hard copy of my photo shot list and asked to confirm that the list was reasonable. I received 530 photos from my entire wedding, with 40 of them being pictures of my tables with horrible edits that made my Cabernet tablecloths look orange. I asked Sam for photos without the filters, and he said he does not provide original raw proofs. Not only do I wish I had more pictures of me and my family, but I can only get the photos with his awful filters.
I wish that was my final complaint about Sam, but unfortunately, I'm still waiting 13 months later for the wedding album that was supposed to be included in my wedding package. I'm still in shock that we paid over $7,000 for his services, and this is what shows for it. My wedding day was perfect, and I wouldn't have changed anything except for having Sam Straud as my wedding photographer. -
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Casie Sent on 06/19/2023Updated review - nightmare experience
My husband and I were sorely disappointed with the services provided by Sam Stroud Photography for our wedding and our experience with this photographer was riddled with frustration and regret from start to finish.
Two main points, Sam stole from us and provided us with such bad pictures, CVS wouldn't even print them without a warning.
Throughout our wedding day, Sam and his team were unprepared and disorganized, missing key moments and failing to capture important shots despite a detailed shot list provided beforehand. Crucial moments like my husband getting ready, my dress and jewelry details, and individual/couples’ portraits after the ceremony were completely overlooked.
The quality of the photographs delivered to us (originally in November 2023 - 5 months after the wedding) was abysmal, with images poorly composed, blurry, and over-edited to the point of people in them being unrecognizable. It was clear minimal effort was put into pre/post-processing.
He did not bring appropriate equipment to capture our wedding day and did not provide the services that we discussed, even with a detailed shot list.
Sam's lack of professionalism became very evident after the wedding when we attempted to set up our second photoshoot. He was completely disinterested and unengaged, offering little creative input or enthusiasm to work with us, and taking weeks to respond to texts and emails.
To exacerbate matters, Sam's customer service following the wedding was atrocious. He was dismissive and uncooperative when we addressed our concerns and requested revisions. Despite our contract stipulating two photographers, a second shoot, and a leather-bound coffee table book, we received none of these promised services.
Our final pictures weren't delivered until March 2024, nine months after the wedding, and we never received the promised coffee table book or a refund for it. To make matters worse, when he finally sent us our RAW photos, we also received embedded in the file an entire engagement shoot from ANOTHER COUPLE, who we presume to be a separate client of his, mixed into our account. That is a total breach of contract and now feel that he has shared our pictures with other people.
Hiring Sam Stroud Photography for any occasion is strongly advised against. He'll take your money, deliver poor-quality work, and provide dismal customer service. Save yourself the money and headache, seek a photographer who values their clients and takes pride in their craft.
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Sam and his team were helpful from the jump. He was willing to meet with us one-on-one to review what pictures we wanted on the day of the wedding. Can't wait for our pics!! -
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Carly Sent on 04/16/2023"Forgot" to take our Wedding Video that we paid for
We hired Sam Stroud Photography for our engagement pictures, wedding photos, and videography. We asked Sam multiple times for a "sneak peak" of our wedding photos. He even responded to one of our emails and said he would send them to us by a certain date.... nothing. To top it off, he "forgot" to take any videos of our wedding, even though it was included in the contract. Once we finally got our wedding photos back 14+ weeks later, we asked when we should expect to receive the video. Sam responded with, "What video?" A brief 3-5 minute highlight video is something my husband and I really wanted for our wedding and were looking forward to watching every year on our anniversary.
The photos look great online, but the quality is very poor when you try to print them on anything other than a 4x6 photo. You only have one wedding and unfortunately, the video is something we will never be able to get back.
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