sw3.studio - photography Reviews 1,871

I have deleted my previous review the asked us to write at the place as I don't believe 5 stars is accurate.

This place is nothing like what they say it is, definitely not the luxurious pamper day, but also not even what the pictures show. Overall the best part of my day was the photoshoot as Mateo was great and a fun guy making it a good time.

The worst part was the makeup as the lady used cross contaminated brushes she had used on everyone else and since then my face has broken out in acne all over and Ive never had acne before! Definitely beware of the makeup, the hair lady used no heat protection and only a straightener...I was happy with the result but definitely wasnt the top tier experience they said it would be.

Half of the photos were outside of the street beside the building...turned out ok but kinda random and not studio vibes at all.

If we hadnt let the people know we had afternoon tea as part of the package we would never have received it...although when it came it was nice.

They definitely subtly push to make you pay ridiculous money for the photos at the end...a lot of hidden costs involved

Its a shame because I think they could make it such an amazing experience from what they advertise its a great set up...in actual fact its literally a budget version of the advertisement which is queer considering the money people pay they wouldnt be short on cash to sort the experience out.

Overall, 3 stars for the photographers vibe, the amazing coffee and tbf the staff were friendly.

My friend and I came for a photoshoot experience for her birthday - mainly to get make up and hair tips!! The photographer (Panos) was excellent, made us feel very comfortable, and our resulting photos were beautiful - so hard to pick the best ones!! Make up artist (Steph) was brilliant - gave me top tips and made me look fabulous! Recommended.

We had a really special day and felt pampered from start to finish. Hair and make-up were curated to our palate and preference but our photographer Panos was next level - he made me feel years younger and our pictures were fabulous!

Save your money. The premise of this experience is centred around being pampered. To be honest it felt like they just needed to get their respective things done. We were not offered any snacks. The “unlimited” feature of this did not exist. Photos were mediocre to be honest and the prices they are asking. It was disguising! Not worth spending all that time getting hair, make up done and photographs to pay that much. It works out as £70 for one photo with the 5 photo package! Who has money like that to spend on photos! So shocked at the prices. Save yourself the trouble. Do hair and make up yourself and take your own photos for free yourself. My hair is still a little damaged from the high heat she used in the straightener. I wanted an updo but she just started styling my hair without asking what I wanted. They are scamming people in a way and they have to live with that karma.

Writing on behalf of a friend who’s review was unapproved -unfortunate experience, staff were clearly pressured by higher management to act a certain way, sadly caught onto the end of a conversation between a ‘manger’ and a clearly younger member of staff, I was shocked at how they were spoken to!! Do not waste your money on a cheap experience covered up by high end prices

I bought the experience for 2 of us for my friend's 60th birthday as she looks great, and from the description I was expecting it to be a fun pampering experience for her . On entering the premises I was dismayed to see a "conveyor belt" set up, with one person having their hands done , then hair with the same lady , someone else having their makeup done , and some just sitting around the same room. The piano used for the photos was also in this room. We were seated and offered a drink and brought a bowl of crisps while we waited. I expected a manicure with nail varnish done but was told they don't do that any more. The make-up station was just a complete jumble of half used products and brushes which didn't seem very hygienic. There was no skin preparation for makeup, and mine turned out very unflattering as a lot of powder was used which emphasised my wrinkles. We were then taken through into another room which was incredibly shabby with a "set" of a bed , some steps , and a chair . The changing area was a tiny area curtained off , with a splintery wooden floor . The photographer said we would go outside for some photos , which turned out to be into the car park ! We then had to wait ages to view the photos , and did have drink refills if we asked, but we were never offered the afternoon tea. I had also been told they would bring out a cake as it was a "big birthday" for my friend but this never happened either. By the time we got invited to view the photos the lady seemed to want to rush us through (there was no "fun" element to it as some reviews mention) and kept saying about how she would be late for the next people. I didn't buy any as mine weren't good, and I realised afterwards I wasn't even shown the ones of me by the piano. My friend spent £400 . When I asked about my deposit refund I was told a vague "the office will deal with that " and after making contact three times I still haven't received it. Overall I actually felt embarrassed about what a disappointing day I had "treated" my friend to .

Great day with my daughter x Make up and hair artists were fabulous and photos are so good we struggled to get it down! Over the moon with our photos xxx

Amazing experience! Super fun, professional and engaging day! We started with hair and make up make over by Stephanie and Jasmine - they made us feel super comfortable and at ease. Then followed up with a photo shot with Panos - he helped us with choosing our outfits, and prep for the session. Panos was absolutely fantastic - he directed the poses, changed backgrounds and made us feel like super models! I highly recommend how professional and smooth the experience was.... In fact it was a difficulty to choose our pics for print outs as there were so many great ones!

All the staff members that I came into contact with, were friendly and courteous.

The furniture, apart from the piano and photography steps, let the company down.
The Chesterfield style chairs and sofa were cracked and shabby.
The flooring, not sure if it was real wood or laminate, had gaps and some holes in the joins. When we wore our heels, they did go into the holes/gaps. The floor and most of the seats definitely need replacing.
The changing area was tiny.
We were given a welcome drink and 2 small bowls with pretzels and tortillas chips.
After the photoshoot (about 3-4 hours later) another drink and more of the same snacks were given.
The makeup and hair ladies were lovely and did the best they could do.
The photographer was great (I think her name was Tai).
The photos were lovely and the young ma helping with the selection, was friendly and funny and made us feel relaxed.
The photos are expensive (cheapest package, giving 5 photos, cost £350)!

Overall, the surroundings let the experience down. The place needs a revamp.

What was promised when I purchased the experience and what was delivered were wildly different.

We were told to arrive on time, in fact we were told to arrive 10 minutes early and warned that if we were 15 minutes or more late then there would not be time to complete the experience. Our appointment time had already been pushed back by an hour from 1pm to 2pm for their convenience. We arrived on time. We were then kept waiting before we were even properly greeted for over 20 minutes. We were then offered a drink, but what drinks were available was not explained, thus we ended up with a glass of water each in a plastic cup. We then waited again before we were told to complete a form, this member of staff never introduced themselves to us. Following completion of the form we waited again. On their website it says that we would have the opportunity to review their portfolio to see what we might like to get out of the day – this never happened.

One of our party were then called to have her hair done. This consisted of brushing it. The hair and makeup ladies were very friendly, introduced themselves and started to make us think the occasion could be saved. However, my friend was very disappointed that nothing at all was done with her hair. After having her make up done, she had to wait for over an hour for me. During this time, she was only offered another drink because the lady doing our hair organised it. When I purchased the experience, I was also told our nails would be done, this didn’t happen.

Hair and make up done, we then waited again. When we had waited for 20 minutes we were offered snacks for the first time; when I booked it, I was told that snacks and drinks would be freely available all afternoon. The snacks consisted of a small bowl of crisps and pretzels. We were not offered another drink to go along with the snacks. After 30 minutes of waiting (so nearly 90 minutes for my friend), I went and asked how much long it would be; we were then told it would be another 20-30 minutes. At this stage we were utterly fed up and elected to leave.

We were told that the experience could take multiple hours, but we were not told that the vast majority of that time would be spent being totally ignored without any refreshments. It was a very boring way to spend an afternoon. It was so long that the curls had already started falling out of my hair!

They offer dog photos. I cannot think of a more unfriendly experience for a dog to endure.

Our impression was that they were short staffed and over booked. The staff (not hair and makeup) were totally inadequate and did nothing to make our experience special, they didn’t even introduce themselves to us.

The studio is also very tatty.

They sell an afternoon of being pampered and made to feel special, what you actually get is hours of waiting, a single drink and boredom.

They also don't reply to complaint emails.

Lovely hair and make up and the photos were beautiful. Highly recommend.

Stephan was thoughtful and kind. We had a fabulous day. Florian was amazing brought my friend a cake to celebrate her birthday. Hair artist was solage so friendly and very kind. Matao the photographer took his time thought about all the things we were saying to him. Overall a fantastic experience.

What a fantastic day, the staff were all so friendly, they made us feel really comfortable, we would like to say a big thank you to Stefan for being so patient with us and helping us choose from all the incredible photos , also to Florian for the surprise birthday cake ( so thoughtful), Solage for transforming my hair, Chrissy for my beautiful 50s style make up and Matteo for the stunning photos and making us feel so at ease , also great tips for poses, I would thoroughly recommend this studio

Wonderful day from drinks to make up hand massage and hair styling - photographer was great with giving directions - 4 hrs of fun and stefan viewing and choosing photos - was great with editing the fat bits. Great girlie day out. overall will come again. Amazing day

What a fabulous day.
5🌟 treatment from all involved from make up to photography Stefan viewed the photos with us. So many beautiful shots to choose from.
Thanks to all for a truly amazing day.
You are all great

What a brilliant day. We had prosecco, hair and make up done and the photoshoot lasted over 4 hours.
We all had a fantastic day and will definitely come back again. Stephan was immense with the editing of the photos. Very happy ladies.

Had a great session. Make up was perfect!, with touch up throughout my photo session. The hair stylist was amazing!, styled my hair twice for different outfits. I loved my complimentary drinks throughout the day as well as my hand massage. The photographer was 100% pro!, my photos came out mind blowing. The host for the day was very friendly and encouraging. The image consultant was very helpful and patient with my photo selection i am extremely pleased. 10/10!👌🏽. Will definitely return!!

Relaxing atmosphere.. great day.

I had such a great day here with my mum and sister. Lovely relaxed atmosphere, and a couple of glasses of fizz to help ease into our photoshoot! The hair stylist Awet and makeup artist Gabby made us look fab. I was worried that we’d feel awkward posing, but the photographers Abi and Tae were superb at guiding us through with ease. We ended up with so many photos we loved- some family shots of the 3 of us, some individual shots we can use for work.
I highly recommend.

Had a lovely day here with my two daughters. Felt quite pampered with a hand massage followed by hair and make-up and a glass of fizz. The photo session with the three of us was great fun and, needless to say the photos were very hard to choose between.