Team 12 Investigates is getting results for brides after a monthslong investigation into Long Island wedding photographer Charles Eames.
Last year, Team 12 Investigates was alerted to mounting complaints against Charles Eames Photography and the wedding memories Eames is allegedly holding hostage. Brides showed News 12 their contracts with Eames that promised custom albums, edited photos and cinematic videos within 90 days of their weddings.
In the months since News 12 started the investigation, there are now 60 couples who say they have been waiting more than a year for their wedding videos, edited photos, or albums—despite collectively paying Eames at least $180,800 in cash.
Loose photos of Lilly Ackermann’s June 2021 wedding were supposed to be made into a custom 10x10 leather album. (Courtesy of Charles Eames)
HOW DID IT GET THIS FAR?
Eames simply had the charm. He won brides over with his big personality and made them feel like he was a close friend. In the end, they felt swindled.
He also had great testimonials online. Brides would write glowing reviews the day after their weddings, never expecting that Eames wouldn’t deliver their edited wedding video, photos or albums.
"BROKEN PROMISES AND BROKEN CONTRACTS"
Once the 90 days were up, the brides would call, email and text Eames daily asking for their products. He always appeared to have excuses and usually blamed the delays on a contracted editing company based out of state, and eventually stopped responding altogether.
The website for Charles Eames Photography no longer exists, and his storefront in Massapequa is shuttered. All that’s left inside is a fold-up chair and a desk, with some items scattered throughout.
After several phone calls, dozens of text messages and a trip to Eames’ home, Team 12 Investigates tracked him down to get answers for the dozens of brides who reached out to News 12. He refused to talk on camera but agreed to do an interview over the phone. He said he got too big too fast as a new business owner and could not keep up with all the weddings he was hired to work.
Shuttered Charles Eames Photography office (Courtesy of News 12)
"WE WANT WHAT WE PAID FOR"
Now, some of the brides are taking legal action against Eames. Several couples have sued him in small claims court and won. However, they are still struggling to collect what they are owed from Eames—even with a court judgment.
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In the above video, News 12's Rachel Yonkunas spoke with several brides, as well as Charles Eames in the first part of this investigation.
HELPING A BRIDE
After Team 12 Investigates brought the Charles Eames story to our viewers, it was shared across the country, eventually reaching a photographer in Utah. Daniel Pombonyo emailed Team 12 Investigates that Eames had hired him to help shoot a wedding in West Sayville in October 2021. Pombonyo said Eames asked him for his memory card after the wedding and recalled waiting months to get it back. He asked us for help locating the bride and groom on a hunch that Eames never gave them the photos he had taken.
Team 12 Investigates was able to connect Pombonyo with Smithtown couple Caitlin and Kyle Silverstein. He had hundreds of wedding photos the couple was missing.
Photos the Silversteins received almost two years after their wedding. (Courtesy of Daniel Pombonyo)
A GROWING LIST OF COMPLAINTS
Brides of Long Island founder Heather Cunningham first alerted Team 12 Investigates to the mounting complaints against Charles Eames Photography. She provided News 12 with the names of 47 brides who say they have been waiting more than a year for their wedding videos, edited photos, or albums.
Cunningham said she has been helping individual couples get what their owed since 2019, but complaints exploded after the pandemic. Cunningham eventually asked Eames to send her all the wedding videos that he still needs to edit. Days later, a box of hard drives arrived in the mail containing hundreds of hours’ worth of video clips. She worked with a local editor to organize the clips and found there are more than 200 weddings on these drives. She has been trying to track down as many brides as possible.
The hard drives that Eames sent to Cunningham, and her list of what's on them. (Courtesy of News 12)
MAKING A DIFFERENCE
The stories from brides across the island have compelled others in the industry to help. Richard Klamis, a videographer with 3 Elements Films & Photography, saw Megan Reiss’ story on News 12. The Wantagh bride, who got married in July 2021, received hundreds of quick, unedited video clips from Eames after months of back-and-forth. Klamis offered to edit those clips for free and used his personal time to create a five-minute trailer.
Megan and her husband Andrew said Klamis’ edited video was one of the greatest gifts they have ever received. Now, they will be able to share those memories with their daughter, who they welcomed in December.
Part of Megan Reiss' wedding trailer. (Courtesy of Richard Klamis)
STILL FIGHTING
Many other families are still fighting to get what they are owed from Eames. Nearly a dozen brides have told Team 12 Investigates that they filed a complaint with the New York State Attorney General’s Office, which confirmed it is looking into the issue. In addition, at least 10 couples have gone to court to try to get their money back from Eames. Despite a judge ruling in their favor, they have not been repaid.
In the above video, News 12's Rachel Yonkunas dives deeper into this investigation into Charles Eames, and speaks to people who are helping his former brides.
Credits:
Rachel Yonkunas - Investigative Reporter
Angela Cascarano - Investigative Producer
Brian Endres - Photographer/Editor
Dave Garden - Photographer
Brent Singleton - Photographer
Rob Rivas - News 12 Long Island News Director
Audrey Gruber - VP News & Assistant GM
Christine McGrath - Digital Executive Producer