19/10/2026
So I guess it's time to set the record straight...
A few months ago, a lady booked me for a photoshoot with her and her kids.
Sadly, I had a family emergency and had to rush to Gauteng, so I had to cancel the appointment. I offered a big discount if she wanted to rebook later.
I didn't cancel at the last minute; I let her know as soon as I knew. It wasn't a big event such as a wedding or birthday. I had a family member who was ill and needed me to be there to look after my 84-year-old grandmother and the patient who had life-saving surgery.
When I returned, the lady rebooked with me. Regrettably, between all the travel and moving things around, I had the date/time wrong, but I was only 10 minutes late to the shoot. I showed up, gave an additional 30 minutes for free and offered the entire shoot free to make up for my mistake. An hour shoot usually yields 40-50 images. She got 74 - no extra charge.
A while later, she contacted me again. Her brother had gotten engaged and wanted a photoshoot, but didn't have the funds. We struck a deal: for a bit of social sharing, she'd share my work, and I'd do the shoot for free.
She insisted on paying me anyway, which I graciously accepted, but I still gave far more value than the quoted time/money. I didn't get the agreed-upon social exposure either.
A 30-min shoot usually gets 30 images; they got 41 edits and a discount on the fee when they paid anyway.
They added filters and edits on top of my work that didn't look great, and honestly, I should have said something then and there, but I decided to leave it and hopefully move on... I was wrong about moving on.
Stick with me here... I know this is a super long post.
A while later, another family member of this person contacted me again and wanted to book a solo shoot. It was a quick 30-minute shoot, and the family member was bubbly and friendly and loved her time with me. We had a blast.... The images show how happy she was. The WhatsApp messages prove it too. She also got a discount; she paid me what the brother paid, not the real fee. I said nothing. Choosing to just be kind.
A day or two later, I saw that someone had AI-edited horses into my work.
I try not to go on socials and blast people for things they may not know about, but I decided to write a post about what it feels like, as a photographer, to have your work AI-altered and posted. Not naming names. Not tagging anyone. I added a photo of an AI-generated unicorn for a laugh. It was gentle venting for me, gentle education for people on my socials, and then that was that.
Oooooh eh-eh! That was not that tjommies! 😳
It took all of 5 minutes for her to tag everyone she knows, write horrible comments, tag her mom, and blast my reputation into space and threaten to make videos and content about how horrible I am. I replied that, although I know she was upset, it's tough when you put in so much effort and people AI-edit, but it's a difference of opinion, not a total failure of service delivery.
I just got a call from a very lovely person who told me my client is still spewing stuff all over Facebook for everyone to see. I had to block the client back then because she was being abusive whenever I was being recommended by other clients.
So here I am... this is my version. I have WhatsApp messages to show she got the service she paid for, with added value across 3 photoshoots, and it was just a difference of opinion about adding AI to a photographer's work. I did my job - I did it well.
I don't cancel shoots unless someone is near death and there's no alternative, and I absolutely cannot stand that there are people out there who get to besmirch my reputation because they didn't like my opinion! So here's my version of events.
Next time you see someone talking trash about a small business, back them up with your own experience; don't just rely on Karen-the-keyboard-warrior to tell you who to support. JBay is a very small town, and anyone who has met me knows I am kind, patient, and try my best to give way more than I ever take.
To all my incredible clients, friends, supporters and even the kind stranger who just called me, thank you so much. It means the world. 💖
