A family's photo shoot went horribly wrong. But there's something not quite right here.

There’s always a risk, hiring professionals online. And, when it comes to photography, who’s to say their portfolio is their own?

One family in the US has learnt this the hard way. The results of their “family photo shoot” are so hilariously amateur, the album has gone viral. And… Well, they swear it’s not a joke.

“We paid a photographer, who claimed to be a professional, $200 to $250 for a family photo shoot,” Pam and Dave Zaring posted to Facebook.

“Please see these FOR REAL photos she delivered to us… She said the shadows were really bad on the beautiful, clear, sunny day and that her professor never taught her to retouch photos. Feel free to share. I literally have not laughed this hard in YEARS!!!!! You can’t make this stuff up… Again, this is NOT a joke – final product.”

A little digging, however, and it’s all most likely a spoof.

The photos are credited to one Lesa Hall. There is a Facebook page for Imagery by Lesa Hall and the site’s administrator is thanking “new fans for their interest in her photography”, following Zaring’s images going viral.

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The reviews on Hall’s Facebook page are littered with humour and sarcasm.

“Before my family and I had our pictures done by Lesa, life was terrible,” one supposed customer wrote. “I was selling bathroom tiles in Nova Scotia. My wife was running a cat smuggling ring out of our basement. And our daughter was caught up in gang life. Every night we sat down for dinner, it would end in a chainsaw fight. Then came this golden angel Lesa. Through her artistry as a photographer, she taught us to love again. We felt…right.”

One person claims the ‘angel’ Hall had helped improve her dating life.

“Before my session with Lesa I went months on my eHarmony without a single match,” she wrote. “Almost immediately, my inbox flooded faster than my body after having a bacon egg and cheese nestled between two glazed donuts. I have since had to hire three personal assistants, a wedding planner and a doula to sort through my potential mates. Lesa in a word, is an angel.”

One person who was running from the Mexican mafia… You guessed it, Hall helped him get away.

Some are saying that her photographs are “magical”.

Everyone is applauding her “creativity” and labelling her a “genius”.

One professional photographer posted to Hall’s page saying her own work “doesn’t come close to being as good as Lesa’s”.

Yet all Hall’s ‘work’ looks like this…

According to her LinkedIn profile, Hall has been a photographer since age 10 and is skilled in Photoshop.

“My cat has and continues to serve as my model and for a cat, poses very well,” her professional profile reads. “I also enjoyed photographing aspects of architectural interiors and exteriors; and over the past ten years I have found a niche with classic cars as well.”

It appears the whole thing, the family portraits, the saving people from the mafia, is a clever viral joke.

If the Zarings really thought the photos were “for real”, they didn’t do their research. And, if they’re in on the game, then well played. Very well played.

Oh, and for all those wondering, Hall’s prices start at $200 for a solo photo shoot, and range up to $500 for a family photo shoot bonanza.