Thornton Studio

When I ordered my pictures it took over 7 weeks for me to receive them. When I decide to call the (212 #) the women give me attitude. She said «Well first of all…», completely unprofessional. The only person who was of any help was the manager, whom I spoke to and emailed with. This is frustrating since I payed first class mail. unfortunately they are unorganized but if you have issues speak to a manager and they will solve them.

Still bummed that I felt rushed for a special occasion, although I did find a few pictures I liked. I hope they plan to book less people for colleges so we’re not rushed. Maybe the photographer was just going too fast. Who knows lol. But they did edit my picture to my needs which shows good customer service.

I truly recommend this studio. They did Graduation pictures for my daughters high school. After selecting our pictures online I realized I made a mistake with my order 3 weeks after placing it. I went into panic mode as the total was almost $ 1000. I thought since it was 3 weeks after placing the order it was too late but I called and was helped by Mr Carpenter, I explained the situation and he couldn’t have been more helpful. Not only did he resolve my issues but he stayed on the phone with me and helped me get my order just right. We are very happy with the quality of photos. Thank you once again. My son graduates next year and I’m hoping their school chooses them to do their photos.

Went here for passport photos. Tons of people working, place was totally empty. Photographer dude was nice and the quality of their photos is of course way better than you’d get in CVS (and if you have to stare at that stupid picture of yourself in your passport for the next ten years, worth it to go to an actual studio).
BUT
like others have mentioned, what should have taken 15 minutes took over 40 minutes. And this place was quite literally empty. When I asked what the issue was, one woman was very nice and said they she didn’t know. The other woman was rude and said she was really busy and I could leave and come back later if I wanted to. When I finally got the photos and left, I realized they weren’t cut. Had to go back and have them properly cut to standard size.
So I agree with the other reviewer: be upfront about wait times! If I had any idea one photo would take nearly an hour to print, I would have gone elsewhere. Overall it seems like this place doesn’t have competent management, which is too bad because the quality of their work is great.

This place is a joke. I rarely give out one star, but these guys really earned it.
A couple weeks ago, I called to check how long passport photos would take. I was told «30 min.» I asked if I could be done sooner since I had to rush to the consulate before it closed. The guy said yes, 10 – 15 min. I asked him if he was sure, because time was really important and if they couldn’t do it quickly that was okay I just needed to know – he said no problem, under 15 min. Just to be sure I called them again on the way over, to confirm timing. Again, was told no problem.
Arrived in a cab and got my photos snapped. Went to pay and asked how long it would take. You already know where this story us going, right?
30 minutes. I won’t go into the rest of the story but I basically threw them the coldest glare of my life and ran out to CVS across the way which took 7 min but at that point it was too late and I missed the consulate opening hours.
Here’s a tip, Thorton studios; if you cannot deliver, DON’T LIE. Trying to swindle your customers is bad for your businesses. It earns you one star reviews.

I just wanted to give 3 stars. They photographed at our school for grad. I took it and got my proofs within 2 weeks. That was really fast. But only several photos that I was satisfied. So I ordered online! Found that my package costed $ 70. Quite pricy but I thought this is New York!
Several weeks later, I called to pick up, they said I didn’t ordered successfully. I got speechless.
I left quite and furious.

Fast, friendly, highly professional. I was really happy with my passport photos after trying several other places. My photographer knew what he was doing. Also a great value — $ 16 for 6 pictures, and the whole process took around 20 minutes.

I’ve used their services twice now, against my will and have found it to be very successful. My brothers high school and my college utilize their services for grad pics. The staff is equally as nice all through the process, starting from the photographer and ending with the staff at the actual location. The process is also very clear and efficient. After, taking pictures they make sure to send you the negatives through mail so you can pick and choose your package options. When you are ready to order, you can decide to do everything by mail, internet or in person as I did. After placing my order they assured me it would be ready in 4 – 8 wks and within the 6^th wk my pics were ready for pickup.
I do have to say this process it is not cheap, as my brother and I had to pay around $ 110-​$ 130 for our packages. Also, I really believe that the prices are chosen based on the institution, or maybe even the year you are graduating. Regardless, we are extremely happy with our pictures and can not wait to put them up for display in our living room!

I came here for passport photos and they are like THE INLY studio in NYC that makes you a digital copy of the picture!!! For 25 $ I got a cd and am finally done walking to and calling studios about whether they do digital copies or not! They were nice and professional, absolutely nothing to criticize

I read the negative reviews here. This is where my daughter’s HS is doing grad photos. I don’t know what people expect. They had a lot of people come through, seemed OK. It’s not like I’m a stranger to photo studios, having various studios take pics of my kids over the last 19 years. The prices seem a little high, but this is New York, they have high rents. The proofs should arrive in two weeks. I’m sure they’ll be OK

Amazing passport photo deal: $ 15 for 6 pics. I was looking at other professional photo studios in Manhattan, and they were all charging the same price, but for only 2 photos. I needed 8 photos, so I came here anyway in spite of the low Unilocal rating. I had to pay for two sets (12 photos total) because they didn’t sell them in singles. Still a good deal to me, so I paid for it. Well, the photos came out fast (about 20 minutes) and the right size, but the picture didn’t look professional at all. FYI, I came in well dressed with makeup on, and even went through the trouble to get an awesome blow-​out in a near by salon. The problem was, the photographer didn’t bother to adjust me in any way shape or form before he snapped two shots of me. I did check with the mirror before I sat down for the photo, but I was then told to tuck my hair behind my ears right before he took the shots. Well, I must not have done a good job tucking my hair because my hair in the photo not only look completely unsymmetrical, it looked like some crazy wind that happened to blow my hair when the photo was taken. Also, my skin color looked much darker than my actual color. I’ve had photos taken in a local Rite Aid that came out better than this so-​called «portrait specialist» photo studio. What a joke… guess I got what I paid for…

This studio did senior/​graduation portraits for my college. I read another reviewer here that at her college they were charged a $ 5 sitting fee and the cheapest package was in the $ 100s. Not cool that we were charged a $ 20 sitting fee and the cheapest package was in the $ 200s. I suppose they price discriminate based on what college you go to…
The pictures were okay, the photographer was okay, but nothing was stellar. I suppose that’s what to expect when the photographer has to photograph like 2,000 students. It was just like middle school pictures.

I went here today to get passport /​ID photos. Everyone here was nice and i got my photos in 20 minutes. The photo itself was only ok. I did get to see photos before they were printed — i looked like a deer in the headlights in all the photos so just chose the best of the lot.
I came here about 4 years ago and the photos came out much better then. But the overall experience otherwise here was pretty good and i would go there again if i needed photos

Great, cheap, fast, friendly and efficient. They easily accommodated the unusual photo size I needed for my Australian driver’s licence.

I have decided to write this review while I am waiting for my package. The graduate photos were taken through our college. We paid $ 5 sitting fee. I assumed the packages would have a fair cost since it is done through college. However I was very disappointing when I saw the actual prices of the photographs. And although I still ordered the cheapest package (that came out to $ 130) I can’t believe our college invited Thornton Studio that charges very high prices for students that can barely afford buying books. I only ordered these pictures for my memories. Otherwise, I wish I knew the prices before I went to do business with them.

These guys use a somewhat wide angle lens to take portraits. Not great for portraits. They also take pictures where the face is a small part of the portrait. Weird! However, they seem to take graduation pictures for many/​most schools in the NY area. They seem to be able to handle volume but that is the ONLY positive thing I can say about them. The entire experience was terrible. The results were pretty terrible as well. If this is where you have to get your grad pics done, show up for a redo until you are happy with what you get. Don’t settle for terrible or even mediocre. If you are getting a portrait done or even a passport pic, go elsewhere.

The experience of taking college pictures was actually nice, and receiving proofs was on time. Nothing else is good about this company. I am waiting for 2 months to get my photo package, which was supposed to be mailed long ago. And I was charged May 30. Now these ppl don’t pick up the phone. Worst customer service ever!

Too bad I can’t channel Dante while writing this review, since Thornton Studio’s the most purgatorial pseudo-​upscale photo booth I’ve ever had the misfortune to enter.
When you first walk through the door, you’re deceived by the trappings of serious photography — hanging equipment and black walls make you thankful you’re not at Walgreen’s. But then the disturbing details sink in. You notice the place feels like a joyless assembly line, and that customers are guided to the slaughter like chickens on a conveyor belt. Weary photographers punch cards in a time clock while matronly bullies command you to stand at counter after counter, triggering memories of that time you were stuck at the DMV trying to get an expired license replaced.
But enough about your pain. Let’s talk about mine.
Arriving at the front counter, I found myself banished to a more remote counter by «the printer» (as everyone there called her), where a nicer woman had me fill out a little card and directed me to yet another counter. The gentleman at the third counter directed me toward «the photographer,» a tired grinning fellow in a cramped space behind a black curtain. He sat me down and told me to turn my head this way and that, but none of it was convincing. I’ve been around lots of photographers and his directions were clearly purposeless: They had less to do with the actual shot and more with sounding professional in order to impress me, the random customer, so that I would surrender to all this professionalism, be docile and leave as quickly as possible.
I wanted to tilt my head down, as that’s the angle I know is the most flattering. He wanted another angle and took that shot first. He then asked me to check the pictures on his camera’s display: The shots both looked ghastly. I asked if he could do something to make the photos less harshly detailed. He told me to tell «the printer» to take care of it, and to tell her to print the photo with my head tilted down. He said this as if none of it would be a problem and I believed him. But I wanted one more try.
Reluctantly, he agreed to take a last shot. Things seemed to be going well. Just as he was telling me not to move, and that the shot was perfect, an impatient employee muscled his way behind him, upsetting the black curtain, jostling the photographer and kicking away one of the legs of his tripod.
That last shot was never taken. The photographer assured me the others were good enough.
I was told to go to the printer’s counter and did, where I found the woman behind it struggling with a large black object. She wore an expression of resentment that never went away for the entire time I was there.
«Sorry you have to carry that,» I joked in an attempt to be sympathetic. «It’s the biggest toner cartridge I’ve ever seen.» She set it down, shook her head and scolded me: «It’s *paper*, not a toner. It’s *paper*!»
«OK, it’s paper,» I said. «Here’s my envelope. The photographer told me you could fade some of the photo’s harsh detail.»
She scowled at me. «The photographers know what they’re doing. They do the lighting. It’s fine just like it is.» She said this punishingly, as if the idea had been mine and not the photographer’s. It seemed clear the photographer had simply made whatever false promises might allow him to return to his office downstairs.
«He also told me to have you print the photo of me with my head turned slightly down, not the other one.»
She scowled at me again. «I’ll print the one that looks best. That meets the requirements.»
«But I want the one with my head down,» I said.
«I’ll print the one that meets the requirements,» she fairly snarled. «We’re closing. You’ll have to come back.»
I returned a few days later. Sure enough, the photo I hated had been chosen. I stuck around and insisted I’d like to see the other photo, if only on a computer screen. No one could find it, even though I’d seen the photographer save it to the very SD card that was still in the envelope with my name on it. «The printer» had actually deleted the photo so that I couldn’t request it later.
So to recap: These were the ghastliest photos I’ve ever taken in my life, passport or otherwise. «The printer’s» rudeness was even worse than other negative Unilocal reviews had indicated. The work was cold and uncaring and there was no tolerance for my dissatisfaction at any stage in the process.
I’d rather set fire to my own pelvis than ever go back to that place.

*** CAUTION *** I URGE YOU IN THE STRONGEST OF TERMS TO AVOID THIS BUSINESS. THEY ACT LIKE UNPROFESSIONAL AMATEURS. THEY LOST MINE AND SEVERAL OF MY COLLEAGUES PORTRAITS. AVOID AT ALL COSTS!
I only rated this place one star since zero-​star ratings are not possible on Unilocal.They lost mine and several of my colleagues photographs. When I went down to re-​take my portraits, my portrait wasn’t aligned properly (I had to call them up to crop the proof) and the staff was rude (photographer was BSing with another employee and kept me waiting, even after someone that looked like the owner told him to take my picture!).

I needed a passport photo and someone mentioned this place in Unilocal.He was right. They really cared to make sure you look good even it’s just a passport photo. I should have checked with Unilocal before I waste $ 15 in Doi Camera with a mean Asian woman — my photo came out looking like a mugshot. Thanks to very friendly photographer at Thornton Studio, I get to carry around a good photo of me for next 10 years.