LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — A wedding is supposed to be every couple's picture-perfect day, but for more than 10 brides in Kentucky, Ohio, and Indiana, it became their worst nightmare after they said a photographer scammed them.
Sarah Jackson, a Lexington resident, hired photographer Miranda Rose Hancock to capture both her engagement and wedding photos.
"I looked through her stuff and everything seemed normal. Everything seemed legitimate," explains Jackson when searching for a photographer. Jackson says Hancock had been published in magazines with great reviews.
Jackson bought the package from Hancock that consisted of both engagement and wedding photos. “We had a little bit of trouble, you know, trying to find the right date and everything. And then she had to like cancel a few times. I was like, oh this is no big deal like it life happens."
In August 2023, Hancock took Jackson's engagement photos. She says Hancock told her the pictures would be ready in a month.
After four months, Jackson says she tried contacting Hancock about when she'd receive the photos but never got a response. "So December rolls by and I still haven't gotten my photos, and I'm starting to freak out a little bit because every time I had messaged her, she, she ghosted me."
Jackson says she called, texted and emailed Hancock only to be met with no response. Jackson paid $3,500 for the package. With no response on Hancock's end, Jackson canceled her payment plan.
"She says that she threatens to give me a $15 late fee every single day that I don't pay, that I'm late for my payment on my monthly payment plans. Like she's going to just keep increasing the late fee or something every single day," explains Jackson.
In May 2024, nine months after the engagement shoot and two weeks before her wedding, Jackson contacted Hancock to confirm her presence at the wedding. She says Hancock never showed.
Jackson says Hancock's reasoning for not being at the wedding was because she was in the hospital.
Court records show Hancock was arrested in Boyle County the same day as Jackson's wedding.
"Like it just really hurt. That's somebody that's supposed to capture the emotions of your wedding. Like just be such an important part of your wedding, and she just did not care," Jackson recalls somberly.
Jackson isn't the only bride who claims they were scammed. Jessica Beamer, a Cincinnati resident, hired Hancock to take her engagement photos in October 2023.
“We scheduled it for March. The day of she ended up canceling it and pushing it. I think we then went towards the beginning of April. We did finally have the photo shoot, and again everything was great. We had great communication," explains Beamer.
Just like Jackson, Beamer was promised her photos in a month. Three to four weeks passed and Beamer messaged her looking for answers. She says Hancock kept making excuses for not sending the engagement photos yet.
By May 2024, Beamer was told by Hancock's fiance that she had been in the hospital because of a stroke. By July 2024, Beamer says Hancock responded and told her "she had no legal rights to send me anything because the engagement photos were a gift."
Beamer fired Hancock in August 2024 and canceled her payment plan. Losing the $2,000 she had paid for the pictures.
In both Jackson and Beamer's situations, where Hancock had told them she was in the hospital. Kentucky CourtNet records show Hancock was arrested in both situations for traffic violations.
“Oh, I still don't have my money or my photos. I ended up reaching out again to her late last year in 2024 because even though she kept saying that I canceled contracts and she wasn't obligated to give me any money back. That's fine but she never canceled the contract. It was active. So in December, I got a notification that I had an upcoming payment," explains Beamer. Who had more than $800 of late payments that continued to build up after she canceled her contract.
Beamer says Hancock has blocked her on every social media platform and still refuses to refund her money.
13 other brides across Indiana, Ohio, and Kentucky say Hancock conned them out of money and photos as well.
A 'Support and Advice Group (Miranda Scam)' Facebook group was created to discuss similar experiences. Here are some of the other women's stories:
"My husband and I chatted with her at the end of 2022 and officially booked her at the beginning of 2023 for our December 2023 wedding. Back then her reviews and communication were great. During our engagement session, she was a little scattered but apologized profusely due to being on a new medication and we totally understood and she still did a great job. We received those photos two weeks after and were pleased with the turnaround time. I also booked her a month before my wedding for a portrait session to gift my husband. That session went great! I had zero concerns leading into the wedding. Fast forward a month after the wedding (beginning of Jan. 2024) I had not received a sneak peek (although she promised 2-3 weeks), still had not seen any of my portrait session (taken in the beginning of November and promised before Christmas).
I decided to dispute the portrait charge from my credit card in March of 2024. I received a response quickly from her, and of course she was not pleased since the money was being held from her account. She stated I would not get my images until I reversed the dispute.
I offered to reverse the dispute if she would at least send me a sneak peek of the portrait session and the wedding. After getting ghosted again and blocked through Instagram we had an attorney reach out and gave her one month to provide us with at least our raw images. I finally received the raw images of my portrait session, and she promised the wedding photos a month from her response to our attorney. That date came and went, with guess what, zero response.
72 hours came and went, and then, finally, a few days later, I received my raw images for the wedding. I asked for a partial refund since they were still not the full promised product I had paid for. I got no response. I contacted her again in June and July and finally got a response in the middle of July. Miranda told me she still planned to edit them so she would not be doing a partial refund."
We were married on June 3, 2023. I have not received anything but 20 sneak peek pics. I didn’t receive those until October 2023, after many attempts to contact her. She ghosted me in October 2023 after sending me the sneak peeks. We paid her roughly $1400. She has been rude and disrespectful to all of us."
"Our wedding was Sept. 4, 2022. What should have been the most magical moment of our lives has instead been met with heartbreak and frustration due to the experience Miranda has put us through. Weeks passed before I was even made aware that our wedding photos were lost—first because she irresponsibly formatted the SD card before securing the files, and then due to a hard drive malfunction. Even after finally informing me, communication was minimal, and any updates were met with passive-aggressive behavior.
Rather than taking responsibility, she made me feel guilty for the financial burden of attempting to recover the files, as well as for her own mental and personal struggles—all while we had already paid over $2,000 for photos we will never receive. She ignored multiple attempts to reach her, never offered a refund, and continuously made excuses. Instead of looking back on our wedding day with joy, we are left with nothing but regret and sadness, knowing that the precious memories we trusted her to capture are gone forever."
"In November 2022, we contracted Miranda to photograph our October 2023 Missouri wedding. Following the wedding, she reported computer issues and promised updates, which were not forthcoming. After months of delayed responses, she pledged delivery of our photos by the end of March 2024. In April, I was included in an email with ten other brides experiencing similar delays. We were promised raw photos within three days, but I did not receive them until late July 2024. Miranda stated she would not provide a refund and still intended to edit the photos. Since then, she has ceased communication despite my numerous attempts to contact her. Her repeated excuses, often citing mental health challenges, demonstrate a disregard for the emotional distress she has caused. I hope this account prevents future couples from experiencing similar hardship.
"Like you're scamming these women. These women do not have their photos. She didn't even show up to my wedding, like, and there have been women in this group that have been waiting for over 2 years, and no refunds," said Jackson.
Several of the women plan to file a lawsuit against Hancock.
We did hear from Miranda Rose Thursday morning. She disputes the brides' claims. We've also heard from several other brides who told us similar stories to the women we interviewed.
