San Diego moms say quinceañera photos fall short after long wait

Two San Diego mothers say the long-awaited quinceañera photos they recently received are not what they paid for after spending thousands of dollars on photography and limousine services.

Nearly nine months after her daughter’s quinceañera, Jackie Alarid said she finally received images from the event. But instead of professionally edited photos, she described the results as “a mix of emotions.”

Alarid said she paid nearly $2,000 through Zelle to Isai Ruiz, who operates Deluxe Events Rentals SD, for limo services and professional photos and videos.

“When he called me, he said he had the photos, so I was expecting something else,” Alarid said.

Instead, she said many of the images appeared blurry, poorly lit or included distracting backgrounds.

“I don’t think the photos I got are worth not even a penny,” Alarid said. “They don’t look professional to me … They’re blurred. They need some light. They need to be edited.”

Alarid said only about 10 out of nearly 200 images met her expectations, and she has not shown them to her daughter.

“I would have taken better photos with my phone,” she said. “I feel sad, angry, disappointed.”

Maricarmen Almanza said she had a similar experience. She also paid nearly $2,000 for limousine services and quinceañera photography and received her photos the same day as Alarid.

“I didn’t like them,” Almanza said. “There are people who were not part of the event.”

Almanza said the quinceañera was an important milestone she had hoped would be captured properly.

“She is my only daughter, so ever since she was little, she dreamed of her quinceañera,” Almanza said. “And well — since she is my only one — I thought, ‘Sure, let’s create some beautiful memories, maybe a video.’ But … well, no.”

Both mothers said they never received a video from Ruiz.

 “We don’t know anything about the video,” Almanza said.

They also said that for months, Ruiz gave repeated excuses for the delays. After the story first aired, they said he sent the photos within days.

NBC 7 Responds reached out to Ruiz for an update but did not receive a response. His social media accounts have since been deleted.

Alarid believes the media attention played a role in finally receiving the images.

“I think the reason why is because of you. And I want to thank you and all your team because otherwise we wouldn’t even have, not even this,” she said. “So many people have reached out to me after the story went live. We have people who offer free photoshoots for my daughter. I also have a venue offer.”

Both mothers said they have received similar community support. While they say the photos provided some closure, they no longer want the video and are now asking for refunds. If they do not receive their money back, they say they plan to take the matter to small claims court.

This story was originally reported for broadcast by NBC San Diego. AI tools helped convert the story to a digital article, and an NBC San Diego journalist edited the article for publication.