Nico Garibay Photography Reports & Reviews

Nico Garibay Photography Reports & Reviews (2)

In May 2020, this photographer posted an ad in my college's Class of 2020 Facebook group for senior portrait photography. His photos looked good, so I signed up for a photo session with him. The day of the photoshoot, everything went great and he was very friendly. At the end of the shoot, he told me that it would take about 3 weeks for him to get the photos back to me. This was a major red flag for me, because no photographers take that long to get photos back to their clients, but I went ahead and paid him anyways. Fast forward about a month later, and I still had not received the photos from him. He ignored my numerous cordial and friendly attempts to contact him on social media, via phone, and via email, despite still actively posting on social media. I was extremely nice and understanding about it at first. I just politely asked him if he could send me the raw, un-edited photos if he wasn't finished editing yet because I really needed them for my graduation announcements. However, he continued to ignore me and blocked me on Instagram. I finally reached a point where I had no choice but to threaten him. I took the first steps in filing a small claims suit against him. It was only at this point that he finally replied and sent me the unedited photos. I've noticed this pattern in reading some of his other reviews: he only returns photos to his clients after they threaten legal action. He has been exposed numerous times and many people have caught on about this scam, yet I have seen that he is still actively booking photoshoots. I cannot believe this scammer still continues to get business. His two Instagram accounts are @heynico and @heydarlingstudio. He also goes by the name Nico Santillan or Nico Garibay. Please avoid him at all costs and report him immediately if you see him pop up in your college's Facebook group.

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- Pasadena, CA, USA

Scammer's phone +1 (209) 914-5567
Scammer's website www.nicogaribay.com
Scammer's email [email protected]
Country United States
Total money lost $90
Type of a scam Online Purchase

Nico posted in the Occidental College Class of 2019 group on Facebook advertising his graduation photography services. I messaged him on Facebook, and we then spoke on the phone to schedule a photography session. I signed a digital contract and sent him a deposit on Google Pay ($90, a 50% retainer). We were in contact by text fairly regularly until the shoot on April 21. He was late to the shoot, but he was friendly and professional throughout. At the end of the session, he told me he’d have the photos edited and sent to me within one to two weeks. He also posted a Boomerang on his Instagram story of my friend and me to advertise his grad photo services (without our consent). After two weeks had passed, I texted him to ask for an update. I didn’t receive a response, so I texted him again — and it appeared that I had been blocked. I messaged him on Facebook and, again, received no response. Finally, I sent him a Facebook message threatening to report him and file a dispute with my bank to get my money back. He responded and told me he’d get my photos to me in a couple of days. I never received my photos or heard from him again, despite repeatedly reaching out via Facebook and email. I see that he’s still working with models and posting on Instagram (@heynico), so I want to make sure that he doesn’t defraud anyone else.

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