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Forum -> Household Management -> Budgeting & Bargains
Family Portraits on a Budget



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queenert




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Sep 01 2014, 11:51 am
Which place gives the best value for family/baby portraits on a budget?

I know everyone has different experiences/tastes but where did you go that you really liked/didn't like?

Thanks!
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heidi




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Sep 01 2014, 11:54 am
Uhh, where??
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mandr




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Sep 01 2014, 11:55 am
JC Penney Portraits. They always have coupons, plus if you buy their membership you get free sitting fees. The membership is I think $25 for two years and it comes with freebies, aside from free sitting fees. It's very worth it.

http://www.jcpportraits.com/of.....ffers
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busydev




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Sep 01 2014, 12:00 pm
I got the membership at JC penney and it was 29.99 and includes over $30 of free pics to be used over the 2 year membership. They always have coupons for a portrait sheet for $3.99 plus more and there are no sitting fees with the membership (otherwise its 9.99/person so we were able to pay ourselves back the first time we went as 4 ppl at 9.99 is more then $30)

I have been happy with the quality and the photographers so far and you can use the membership at any jcp.
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out-of-towner




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Sep 01 2014, 12:38 pm
busydev wrote:
I got the membership at JC penney and it was 29.99 and includes over $30 of free pics to be used over the 2 year membership. They always have coupons for a portrait sheet for $3.99 plus more and there are no sitting fees with the membership (otherwise its 9.99/person so we were able to pay ourselves back the first time we went as 4 ppl at 9.99 is more then $30)

I have been happy with the quality and the photographers so far and you can use the membership at any jcp.


Thanks for this info. I've been meaning to schedule a photo shoot for the family, and you have just motivated me to do so! Knowing what price range we were looking at was useful in convincing my husband, as he thinks professional pictures are a waste of time and money Rolling Eyes
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busydev




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Sep 01 2014, 12:46 pm
out-of-towner wrote:
Thanks for this info. I've been meaning to schedule a photo shoot for the family, and you have just motivated me to do so! Knowing what price range we were looking at was useful in convincing my husband, as he thinks professional pictures are a waste of time and money Rolling Eyes


my husband feels the same way esp since he has a nice camera and takes amazing pics... but we just have to do it and get a good set up with good light etc etc.... so it doesnt happen as often as I would like so I finally put down my foot and said im getting the membership. they always have perfect lighting set up so its not an issue to find a good location and then it changes at diff times of the day based on the sun.... so much easier and you come out with printed pics a few days later (instead of figuring out which ones are good, and how to crop it and having to go and print it which always took us WAY longer)

Last time I went I got an amzing coupon for $25 off your purchase and I got 6 different sheets of pics for $5.14 including tax. they say that they are not paid on commission so I didnt even feel bad about spending that little. plus I think im ordering more online from that shoot (they always send coupons and offers to my email, plus you can find online)
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mandr




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Sep 01 2014, 12:52 pm
Also kids tend to behave better at photoshoots when the photographer is a stranger.
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SRS




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Sep 01 2014, 1:02 pm
Another vote for JC Penny or Sears. I'm not one of these people though that needs life story photography, just some nice shots that everyone smiles in and look nice on the wall.
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mandr




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Sep 01 2014, 1:08 pm
OP, if you're in Monsey I can do them for you maybe.
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queenert




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Sep 03 2014, 12:26 pm
Wow! Thanks for the membership info; that does sound really worth it! It's the sitting fees that are killer…

Mandr, we could do Monsey…but aren't private photographers $$$? I'd hate to be all cheap on you! Smile
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little_mage




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Sep 03 2014, 2:13 pm
I'll had my voice to JC Penny. We've been very happy with our pictures there. Last year I was able to get a deal on one of the deal sites (I think amazon local, but I don't actually remember) for a set for $19. Especially as the non-Jewish holidays are approaching, watch the deal sites, and you might be able to get a good deal.
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mandr




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Sep 03 2014, 2:14 pm
little_mage wrote:
I'll had my voice to JC Penny. We've been very happy with our pictures there. Last year I was able to get a deal on one of the deal sites (I think amazon local, but I don't actually remember) for a set for $19. Especially as the non-Jewish holidays are approaching, watch the deal sites, and you might be able to get a good deal.

Are you sure that was JC Penney? As far as I've seen on Groupon and Living Social, they always had deals for $19 at Picture People, not JC Penney.
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Amelia Bedelia




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, Sep 03 2014, 2:24 pm
SRS wrote:
Another vote for JC Penny or Sears. I'm not one of these people though that needs life story photography, just some nice shots that everyone smiles in and look nice on the wall.
AFAIK, Sears no longer does portraits.
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shirtsandskirts




 
 
    
 

Post Tue, May 05 2015, 10:23 am
Bumping this up, to find out if anyone has had good experience at target for portraits
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Chayalle




 
 
    
 

Post Tue, May 05 2015, 10:59 am
Amelia Bedelia wrote:
AFAIK, Sears no longer does portraits.


Depends where. Just a year ago, my sis took a bunch of her nieces and nephews (including my girls) to sears and they took amazing cousins pictures. Great job, funny and different poses.....
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lfab




 
 
    
 

Post Tue, May 05 2015, 1:04 pm
I've gotten portraits at JC Penny and have not been happy with the experience. I didn't feel that they gave us the time needed to get good pics, especially if taking more than 1 child. Both times I used them they were rushing us and when 1 of my kids got upset about something they didn't want to give us time to calm her down=bad pics of crying toddler! Of course it will vary by location depending who the photographer is. Also they only used plain white or black backgrounds and didn't try to different poses.

I will give a resounding vote to a place called portrait innovations. They are really great. They gave us lots of time, no rushing, allowed us to change outfits in the middle, took many different poses, had cute backgrounds... They are very very reasonably priced 19.99 for a package that includes loads of pics (43 I believe, much more than jc penney's package). Also, they often have coupons making the package only 14.99 and often have coupons for a free product. They have no sitting fee ever so great if taking family pics. They print the pics for you on the spot so no need to shlep back to pick them up. If you want various poses they offer many different package options ( a 3 pose, 4 pose,...). The only problem is that they don't have so many locations so it's not so convenient to get there but definitely worth it!
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mandr




 
 
    
 

Post Tue, May 05 2015, 4:49 pm
There's a coupon now at JCP for a free 10x20 canvas! Free sitting fees if you're a portrait perks member. Excellent deal. I have never seen this size canvas for free there. Or anywhere. Must be done by Monday next week. See their site for coupons
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passaicmom




 
 
    
 

Post Wed, May 06 2015, 2:49 pm
Portriat Inovations puts a lot of pressure on you to buy more then you want. They also don't have their prices in writing anywhere. When I go I just buy the package they have on special but the photographers are very aggressive with their sales pitch.
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