Horsepower Photography. I am FUMING!!!!!

[Jul]

I have been competing for as long as event photographers have been on the scene and I welcome their presence. My OH tries to come along and take pics and he does a bloody good job but can't always be there and, when he is, can't be in the ring with me. So very often I find myself buying a couple of pics from the resident photographer, although they are often extraordinarily expensive.

Some time ago (ie a couple of years) I had reason to return a pic from SF Digital. They totally agreed with my gripe, apologised, re-did the pic, gave me back the first one anyway, and also gave me a discount voucher for my next purchase

More recently I ordered a couple of prints from Horsepower photography. I should say at this point that I've bought from them before and the pics have been fine. However, when these arrived I could immediately see that the colour was totally out. It didn't match what I'd seen on the website. They were rubbish and the whole thing was just shades of grey bascially. It was indoors but OH was there too and the pics he took were absolutely fine, colour-wise. He just couldn't get close enough to get as good a shot as they did.

So I returned the pics with a nice letter explaining why, ie the colour in the pics didn't vaguely resemble the colour of the horse in question or what I'd seen on the proof. I asked if they could re-do the pics with a more accurate colour representation or, failing that, I would just settle for a refund.

They sent back the same pics with an insolent letter telling me that it was indoors and that was why it was such a 'cold tonal range' and therefore no refund was possible.

I am fuming - what happened to customer service and goodwill and all the rest of it. These photos are crap and I paid through the nose for them! Now what?! Enter into a big debate with them or swallow my loss and put the pics in the bin (they really are that bad). They were £8.50 a go for a 7x5 print and I really think the least I could expect is a decent colour photo!!

OK, rant over, but I really am fuming

 

[clipclop]

Send them what your OH took?
Don't back down now.

 

[tye_bo]

That's so disappointing. I think I would give them a call and try and explain the situation to them and then take it from there.

 

[piebaldsparkle]

Agree with Bonza. What about trading standards??

 

[PapaFrita]

What a load of bollocks. It takes very little effort to adjust colours on photoshop, and costs pennies to re-print a photo. Cheap barstewards! I´d be fuming too!!

 

[moodiestmare]

Totally agree with last post. Customer service seems to have gone to pot everywhere!

 

[PennyJ]

Don't talk to me about them! Their marquee blew over in the wind at the New Forest Show last year, collapsing onto my daughter and her pony in the warm up ring before their class. Absolutely foul weather, marquee should have been tied down properly etc etc. Luckily daughter and pony OK but understandably both were very upset by the incident and performed badly in their class coming last in the line up.

I went to see the woman the next day, noted that the replacement marquee was secured with heavy duty strops to a Discovery. I thought I was very polite considering and suggested that a couple of free photos as a gesture of goodwill would be nice. I went back to get them later and she was incredibly rude to me. The photos weren't very good anyway but she accused me of going in with a tent full of people and shouting at her which I most certainly did not. She was only slightly more respectful when I pointed out that I could have been coming after her with a £4,000 vet bill rather than just asking for a couple of poxy photos.

I won't buy anything from them ever again. I'm actually thinking about expressly forbidding them from even taking photos of my daughters at events they cover, more to wind them up than anything else.

 

[Twizzel]

Oh dear

I work for an event photographer, and he treats his customers extremely well. As for the marquee that blew over, it should have been secured, and if the weather was that bad, I'm surprised they had them up anyway- if I was them I would have not risked taking my high spec expensive equipment out of the house in such bad weather!!

 

[Happytohack]

From their behaviour and attitude to their customers, I am surprised they are still in business. Shame you are not in East Anglia - we have Eastern Light Photography cover some of our local long distance rides, and they are absolutely fabulous people. Their photos are brilliant, reasonably priced and they are happy to take some special pictures if anyone requests them. Perhaps Horsepower should get in touch with them to learn how customer relations work.

 

[Taboo1968]

Well I'm on the other side of the fence on this one.... I have never had a problem with any pictures I've had from Horsepower Photography.... and I have always had excellent customer service from them!

 

[pamchom]

SF digital - we are still having problems with photos, the show in question was beg of Feb!!

 

[amabelscott]

yes i agree with Ovidius, horsepower photography have always seemed the most customer friendly and provided good service, this seems a bit out of character for them!

 

[freckles22uk]

I would deffo return it with your OH photo, saying if he coul take a good photo then so should they,

 

[dieseldog]

Can you print a screenshot of the proof on the web and send tht back saying that on a normal printer it still looks better than theirs.

 

[Jul]

Thanks for your comments all. I'm sure there are lots of happy customers as I have had no problems in the past with them. Its not until you have a problem that you really find out what a company's customer service is like!

I can't believe that about the marquee falling over, that's awful and they should have been devastated about it. That was a disappointing response from them too, perhaps there's a bit of attitude there when things don't go according to plan?

Those are good ideas about sending a copy of OH's pics and/or a print from their website proofs. Will def do one of those and I'll let you know how it goes

 

[Shilasdair]

According to the law, if you buy something you are entitled to return it within 14 days and ask for a refund. You need not have a reason.
I'd contact your trading standards for your area - they will also tell you this, and you can legally demand your cash back.
S

 

[FMM]

Are you sure they were at New Forest? I thought it was someone else (although I am probably wrong).

I have always found them really helpful and they have taken some lovely pics. But they should be more customer friendly and offer you a refund.

 

[PennyJ]

FMM - Yes it was definitely them at the NF Show last year. I think you're right though, in previous years it used to be someone else whose name escapes me.


Jul - Oh, the lady was devastated - about the thought that her business was about to be destroyed when all the photographic equipment was at risk of being ruined by the pouring rain it was exposed to after the marquee blew over into the collecting ring...