Business
Clients are rushing to find new photographers and hoping to recover thousands of dollars in deposits already paid to Yours Truly Media.
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With her wedding day fast approaching, Kelsey Brenner of Holden was surprised when her photographer reached out a few weeks ago, warning her that the company she had secured and paid more than a $3,000 deposit to was out of business.
Brenner scrambled to reach out to the company, Yours Truly Media, based in California, to get her security deposit back and help pay for another photographer. But, she says, she has yet to hear back.
Her wedding is taking place on May 8 in East Bridgewater, leaving her scant time to find a replacement.
“I’m doing what I can,” said Brenner, who is working extra to make up for the lost funds. “I’m devastated, and I think it’s really awful what they did.”
Even so, Brenner considers herself lucky to have found a replacement photographer and videographer on such short notice.
After posting what happened to her on Facebook, Brenner has heard horror stories of the company not paying photographers and brides who have no photos or videos from their weddings.
“It’s gross,” she said.
According to documents in the Northern District of Texas U.S. Bankruptcy Court, the owners of Yours Truly Media, Paul and Amy Bolton, filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy on Feb. 26.
The couple listed their debts as primarily business-related, with liabilities of over $2 million.
The creditors’ list includes photographers and videographers the couple still owed thousands of dollars to, along with 478 couples from more than 10 states. More than 100 of those couples live in Massachusetts.
According to the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office, between May 2020 and March 2026, they received 10 consumer-related complaints against Yours Truly Media.
Online, brides in New England warned each other about the abrupt closure of the company, which paired couples with photographers in their area. Others put out a last-minute call asking for replacements.
Aline Montiel of Chicago, who is getting married on March 28, learned of the news only two weeks ago.
Montiel, like many of the other brides, chose the company because they had fantastic online reviews, showcased beautiful photos, and initially communicated well with her.
Little did she know that they were going out of business.
“There were no red flags,” she said.
Now, she only hopes to get her $3,000 deposit back one day.
Beth Treffeisen is a general assignment reporter for Boston.com, focusing on local news, crime, and business in the New England region.
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