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Kelly Wheeler Photographer

Kelly Wheeler Photographer review: Sexual Harassment 15

J
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6:12 pm EDT
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I was sexually harassed by a local photographer here in Reno, Nevada by the name of Kelly Wheeler.

This was my very first time taking fprofessional pictures. I wanted to obtain photos to accompany my acting resume.

I went alone which was a huge mistake.

During the shoots he made remarks that I overlooked and took as compliments at the time. One of the remarks that stood out most was when he stated " I'm getting turned on just by looking at you".

The photographer (Mr. Wheeler), spent a short time shooting me in the outfits that I brought. He spent way more time shooting me in my lingerie. As I proceeded to get dressed, he asked me how comftortable I was with nudity, I made it clear that I don't mind as long as it is of an artistic nature and not sexual in any way.

He spent an enormous amount of time shooting me nude. I was taking direction from him and he was trying to get me to be more sexual but my mind was focused on artistic poses, so there was a huge difference in photographic vision. At one point he started taking breast shots.

He instructed me to tilt my head and close my eyes. He guided me to place my hand on my breast and then put his hand on it as if he were guiding my hand. He then moved my hand and started touching my breast himself. I looked up to see what he was doing and he instructed me to keep my eyes closed. I assumed that he was capturing shots of my breast as a reason for him touching them, but then he continued to touch it and fondle it and started asking me if I liked it and if it felt good, then I felt his tongue glide across.

I looked up and saw his camera sitting on the floor and so I questioned him then he immediately grabbed his camera, took a couple of more shots, and said "We're done".

He then had the nerve to joke about what he did to me as if he did it with everyone (like it was ok). He made it seem like he somehow helped me prepare for future photo shoots by touching my breast!

I felt used, violated and very uncomfortable immediately after. As I left he said I would have my pictures on a cd in about a week, and asked me for a hug. I gave him one and left.

I did not sleep that night. As I replayed the whole incident in my mind it became more clear as to what happened to me. It made me sick to my stomach the more I thought about it. I felt uncomfortable touching my own breasts following that event.

A police report was filed the very next day. He was arrested but then bailed out.

I never got my pictures from him as he promised. So not only did he violate me, but I don't even have my own pictures.

At this present time my goal is to bring more awareness of this issue to the public and to get other victims to come forward.

Update by Justice Jane
Dec 30, 2008 3:18 pm EST

I sent you an email, thanks.

Update by Justice Jane
Jul 13, 2009 6:12 pm EDT

You darn right Mr. Truth and Consequences for liars/ aka Kelly Wheeler that I complain and share my experiences over the internet. Don't like it? Too bad! Eat your own words "Truth and Consequences for liars" because you will face consequences for your actions sooner or later, you liar!

Update by Justice Jane
Jul 14, 2009 2:32 pm EDT

Oh and yes I did meet with Kelly Wheeler's wife and she informed me of how he physically abused her and his own children! Criminals like him won't stay off the hook for long. He will slip again and the law will catch up with him. I look forward to it!

Update by Justice Jane
Jun 14, 2010 11:17 pm EDT

To: woman against rape (war), your screen name should be "Woman Who Supports Sexual Predators" because that is exactly the type of person you sound like. No one deserves to be sexually harassed and for you to say that is stupid. Perhaps you need to experience what happened to me yourself and have someone tell you that you deserve it and call you stupid, maybe then you could understand my point of view. Go give Kelly a call and take some pictures.

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The complaint has been investigated and resolved to the customer’s satisfaction.

15 comments
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Travis0427
Reno, US
Nov 21, 2008 11:49 am EST

Hi, I am hoping you still check on this article.
Please contact me if you can about Kelly Wheeler.

I am currently going to take him to court and I will need your testimony if possible.

Email me xdorciax@hotmail.com

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Redline
84770, US
Feb 15, 2009 3:32 am EST
Verified customer This complaint was posted by a verified customer. Learn more

This kinda thing can happen and does happen.
you should always bring an escort with you.
especially if you are shooting nudes.
I don't think he was a photographer just a pervert with a camera.

This kinda thing would never happen in my studio
I make sure to have an assistant (female)
arround and I have a professional MUA on Staff also.
Just to protect me from the reverse sort of thing..

I am sorry you had such a bad experience
hope you don't judge all male photographers by this conduct.

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Redline
84770, US
Feb 15, 2009 3:34 am EST
Verified customer This complaint was posted by a verified customer. Learn more

CHeck this out!
http://www.merchantcircle.com/business/Kelly.Wheeler.775-827-5710

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pop
US
Mar 03, 2009 4:59 pm EST

So I can't believe someone would post on this page about a very horrible experience a weblink for a page glorifying the same man based on 4 count them 4 reviews. Very informative page. Glad that these four people out of the thousands he has helped had great experiences. As for the person who wrote this complaint, good for you. People should not have to take crap like that.

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KellyWheelerAware
Reno, US
Jun 12, 2009 6:23 pm EDT

This man is awful. Do not use. He will rip you off, or worse physically attack and hurt you. He isn't a man you want around your family.

Avoid Kelly Wheeler.

Check his BBB rating.

Check his arrest record.

This man is a criminal.

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Truth and Consequences for liars
US
Jun 24, 2009 12:23 am EDT

The statements made are completely untrue. And the people making them are only using this venue because thay lost in the legal system. And the photo is being used illegally, That photo is copyright protected and they will be sued for illegal use of that also. The man stating that he paid 200 for the use of the photos is lying, he signed a document stating he only wanted to VIEW the photos and did not want to pay the going rate because he is so cheap and it is him that is the rippoff. Travis and his girlfriend DID NOT pay, they canc elled the credit card payment so the photographer was never paid. As far as Mr. Wheeler being charged all charges were dropped once the case was reviewed by local authorities. It is too bad that anyone can say anything they want without having to answer to their statements while making harming and disparraging statements about people just to make up for their own problems. If you check out Justice Jane she has 5 other complaints against everybody she does business with and now these two people have even been seeking this mans clients to try to harm his business and personal life, even contacting his ex-wife. Travis Stewart is admitted to being on prescription Narcotics in court under testimony and he went to Wheelers house and threatened and physically attacked and caused thousands of dollars worth of damage to his vehicle while tresspassing and while Mr Wheeler's two young children were in the vehicle. He is in fact the dangerous one, His girlfriend Ashley Purtell was also banging on the vehicle and stood by while her boyfriend caused the damage. They are very scary, They continue to harrass Mr Wheeler writing to his clients and making untrue statements on the internet. That is such a childish way to make up for their losses that they created, Karma is a very powerful thing and people who play with fire will get burnt eventually.

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KellyWheelerAware
Reno, US
Jun 30, 2009 4:44 pm EDT

Kelly Wheeler is now has a criminal case against him for abusing his own daughters. He threw one of his little girls across a room. Yes, a criminal case. In this case, Wheeler's attorney is now smashing his own daughter. What father allows this? Collateral damage right, Kelly?

He is still in court over hitting a customer with a car.

No one has lost to him. The only thing that has been lost is Kelly's cheesey reputation. He is now a child abuser and a legal system favorite. If it walks like a duck, sounds like a duck, it is a duck.

He is a loser. You can see him at Burning Man getting high.

He is a loser. He is a snake who weasels his way out of things, but now it has all caught up to him.

You don't have to believe anything on the internet. Read the public records of his very own arrest record and court dates.

BBB even grades him at an F.

All the pictures posted were found on the internet.

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Ashliep
Reno, US
Jun 30, 2009 8:03 pm EDT

What is the definition of a narcotic? Because I am pretty sure that the medications that Travis admitted to were not narcotics, in fact, I know that they aren't. A narcotic is defined as "a drug (as opium or morphine) that in moderate doses dulls the senses, relieves pain, and induces profound sleep but in excessive doses causes stupor, coma, or convulsions ." (http://www.merriam-webster.com/). Specifically a narcotic is defined as not being a benzodiazepine (which is what Travis admitted to being prescribed). I suggest that before you slander someone and print their full name, you get the facts straight and put some effort into your own research. Travis never used narcotics, the type of drug that he did admit to using is a prescription drug, administered by his GP, and is specifically not considered NOT A NARCOTIC!

The reason that we first wrote a review is because we wanted to warn any other potential customers about Kelly’s behavior and lack of professionalism. In our eyes this has been the worst experience imaginable, and had we known about some of his charges we would have never used him as a photographer. Our case is still in appeals, and was not lost based on the fact that “Travis is a drug user” but rather that Kelly had a lawyer in small claims court and we did not. The fact that Kelly and whomever are speaking blatant lies is absurd and pathetic. To anyone interested in using him as a photographer BEWARE, not only will your pictures be mediocre but your experience may be a nightmare (like our experience). I highly suggest that you do the research yourself and see what others have said about him, not only on the internet but word of mouth. Reno is small enough and I can guarantee that the majority of locals will agree doing your business with another photographer will save you not only money but grief.

Kelly- I suggest that before you write a fake paragraph, pretending to be a fake person, you 1. Keep your facts straight, 2. Use spell/grammar check, and 3. Make sure that you know how to spell your victims names.

Sincerely,
Ashlie Purtell

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OTB
Reno, US
Aug 11, 2009 12:18 pm EDT

This is the same Kelly Wheeler I have seen at Burning Man painting naked people. I am pretty sure when I saw him there he was high on something, dancing around naked. Just disgusting. I wouldn't use him for photography. looks like you all got suckered.

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OTB
Reno, US
Aug 11, 2009 12:25 pm EDT

And really quickly, whoever that dork is who said they are gonna sue for picture usage on the internet, you're an idiot. If they are on the net anyone can use them. Facebook, myspace, your personal website, free to be accessed.

Like this:

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Travis0427
Reno, US
Aug 25, 2009 1:23 pm EDT

Since my case with Kelly Wheeler is finally over, and yes, my appeal did get denied, I will post my story on this site so everyone can read it and judge for themselves. Mr. Wheeler took pictures for my girlfriend and me in Oct or 2008. Mr. Wheeler assured us that he could do what we wanted because he had done them before for himself and a girlfriend at some point. We paid $96 for the sitting. Approx. a week later we went back to his studio/residence @ 235 Hillcrest Dr in Reno and looked at all the pictures. We looked at all of them, even the test shots where he was focusing, etc. After we asked how we can choose which ones we wanted. He would not let look at the pictures he took more than that one time. Meaning, we had to decide which ones we wanted right there, after seeing them once on a slideshow. He was really squirrely and child like at this point of the transaction. We convinced him, given a digital age, to print out thumb nails of all the pictures so we could pick out which ones we wanted. We did, found a few we liked, most were mediocre. We then realized he was one of those cheesy high school senior photo style photographers. More power to him, he found his niche.

We went back to Mr. Wheeler’s residence/studio and had him put the 10 we wanted on a CD. Getting him to do this was like pulling teeth. He is very archaic in his methods. I think this is his way to ensure you have to buy prints from him. He charged my credit card $106 for 10 pictures on a CD. We were so over Mr. Wheeler by this point, we just wanted to be done. We get home and look at the pictures we had just bought for $106 and they were 6 KB big. Small. Tiny. Worthless. He charged us $106 for thumb nails. I called Mr. Wheeler that day and he said “…Oh, well.” I asked for a refund, he declined. He said, I should have specified that I wanted them big enough to see. His defense is that if he makes them bigger, we could have printed them and he wouldn’t make any money. Fine, but then don’t charge someone over $100 for pictures they can’t use. Let’s just say he acted like a baby on the phone and hung up on me.

He immediately called my girlfriend and told her that he and I had gotten into a verbal fight and that she should call him or come over so he can make it right. So, we did. She called him twice and he didn’t answer. We went over to his studio/residence per his request. He didn’t answer his door and ran out the back of his house, got into his car and tried to drive away. Like a coward. He then hit me with his car. I slammed me fists into his car yelling at him for hitting me. We called the police and wrote out our reports (Mr. Wheeler did not write a report for some reason) while Mr. Wheeler all of sudden, got super tough. He was yelling at the officers, yelling at us. At one point the officer actually told him to calm down. Funny isn’t it? This is a photographer who does senior high school portraits! He wouldn’t get out of the car earlier to talk, but once the police arrived he was one hell of a “bad-###”. The police report of this incident is amazing, if anyone wants to read it, I suggest doing it. It is public record, just as Mr. Wheeler’s arrest record (Case #08-35850 ). Anyone can get copies of both from RPD.

We took him to small claims court where he had a lawyer (remember this, because I was unaware lawyers were even allowed in small claims court). I did not. His lawyer beat the ### out of me. No joke. Tore me apart. Kelly sat there. Cowardly. Lied to the Judge about even hitting me, despite admitting it (see the police report), saying how scared he was of me and my girlfriend, and how he was trying to be a good father and leave (funny, since he is on trial now for beating his daughters) even though he left a message on my girl friend’s phone telling us to come over and fix it if needed. His lawyer did her job. She beat up someone without any legal experience at all. I am truly proud of her. She attacked the Xanax is take for anxiety (which is ironic, because the Xanax should have kept me calm), she attacked everything she could. I was literally defenseless. Of course, like Mr. Wheeler does, he sits and hides. Like a coward. He knows it and now hopefully more people do as well. The Judge ruled that my medical bills from Mr. Wheeler hitting me were my problem; his damaged car, my problem. He got lucky and had a lawyer when I did not. He won, because I w as naïve to think that morality, honesty, and integrity are still qualities people possess.

We, of course appealed. We lost. We found out after the fact about the sexual harassment, the arrests, and the child abuse Mr. Wheeler has all been guilty of. He is not a good man and everyone needs to know. His business will suffer. All these things are starting to catch up to him. My only comfort is knowing that I can write this and he will read it. I hope other people will not even take the risk of using him. I am hoping he can’t hurt his children anymore and that he won’t have any more clients to sexually harass or creep out.

Mr. Wheeler and Photoz by Kelly are awful. I have had a nightmare that almost lasted a year. I lost a lot of money dealing with one of the biggest ### in Reno. Don’t make the same mistakes I did. The only thing I regret is not doing my research first. All I had to do was google his name and I would have seen a bunch of horrible things about him; enough to detour me from even using him. Even the simple task of asking around would have been so useful. After the original incident, when I would tell people about it the minute I said the name “Kelly Wheeler”, a look would always come over their faces. It was truly amazing.

This is not slander. Check sites like Reno Justice Court for a confirmation of all court, trials, and other records pertaining to Mr. Wheeler. Go to the Reno Police Dept and obtain a copy of Mr. Wheeler’s arrest record and the police report I refer to in my statement.

Feel free to email me with any questions:
xdorciax@hotmail.com

Travis Stewart

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Stragaxer2008
Reno, US
Dec 17, 2009 10:42 am EST

Funny, I was walking through a grocery store the other day and saw this flyer hanging up. I will try and post it here. So, I googled his name and came across this website, and a couple others actually.

I have actually told a couple of my friends with kids to not use him for their children's high school pictures.

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woman against rape (war)
Reno, US
Apr 28, 2010 4:03 pm EDT

Seriously? To the woman who claims to be 'sexually harassed' by Kelly Wheeler. I am a female and will be the first to stand up to and protect women against rape or abuse, but your story I do not get.
1. You say he fondled your breats and licked them and you assumed he was taking photos? Well, a sure clue he was not would be the fact that suddenly you did not HEAR the camera.

2. You brought clothes, changed into lingerie and then agreed to have nude pictures taken? The man did not RAPE you, Thank God. How stupid are you to agree to all of this with no one in the room? The moment you opened your eyes and asked a question about it, he supposedly stopped?

I think that Kelly Wheeler got a cheap shot in this. If he really had a problem with sex and photos, I do believe there would be a file full of complaints and his liscense would be pulled. Not ONE woman accusing him and having him arrested. The police have to arrest on such accusations.

I think that this was a raw deal and for those of us who really have been raped, you give us a bad name. I am ashamed.

I am sorry to say, but your stupidity deserves what you got...if any of what you say is true. We are not stupid woman...but some sure do stand out in a crowd.

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How Stupid can You Be?
US
Apr 28, 2010 4:15 pm EDT

That's crazy! You all would have been better getting pictures at JC Pennys. That guy needs to be jailed for life! Perve!

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RenoPhotographer
Carson City, US
Dec 06, 2014 2:54 pm EST

This is a great example how how people should take care and research who they work with, there's lots of shady folks in the industry these days... and also good people... sadly, more bad than good. Just do your homework, check references and qualifications of who you choose to capture any photos, especially intimate ones...