Frequently Asked Questions

Studio Information

Where is your studio located?: New for 2008 we've opened two different locations - a Gallery and a Studio. The Studio is by appointment only and the Gallery is best by appointment, but also by chance :) Depending on the season, we'll be open for drop in's at the Gallery approximatley 15 hours a week. The answering machine at 262-2234 will keep you updated with this....; THE GALLERY The gallery is located at the Soldotna Blazy Mall, right next door to Donna's Victorian Gifts. Here you'll be doing all the viewing and choosing/ordering on the big screen with our new projector. There are tons of products available to touch and see such as our line of Gina Alexander handbags, Silkscreened wall hangings, Fine Art Panels, Gallery Wrap Canvases, Story Book Albums, etc... Jennifer or Tasha will be available at your scheduled time to help you make final decisions based on which products you like and which images you like. This also houses our production office so you can pick up all your finished orders here as well - when they are ready we'll give you a call along with the week's pick up schedule.; THE STUDIO The new shooting studio is 900 square feet of fun! We've got tons of backgrounds and we're always changing and adding to our arsenal of colors and textures! You can bring your pets and we can shoot up to a family of 25 indoors! We also have lots of new things coming for outdoor work in the summer and fall... The new studio is also an extension of the Grossl home so please respect our privacy by coming only when scheduled... As you leave Soldotna, heading towards Sterling, pass Fred Meyer. Continue past Fred Meyer approximatley 2 miles, make a left directly across the street from Big John's Gas Station onto Pine Street. Continue approxmiatley 1/4 mile, the 4th drive on the right you'll see our sign.

Procedures and Policies

Why are there different minimums listed for different types of sessions?: Minimum purchases had to be created because our wonderful clientele and growing business took off a bit faster than we had anticipated. There is a fine line to keeping yourself healthy and having time to spend with your family and just plain working too much. We thank our clients for this bittersweet dilemma. We are a small studio and plan to stay this way - Tasha is doing what she loves but trying to grow slowly and steadily as to not get overwhelmed. Everything we do we work hard to do well and we strongly believe quality is more important than quantity. So in an effort to spend more time with each individual client, we've had to put different minimum purchases on different types of jobs due to the time and effort we invest on our part, before you even place an order. No matter what business you're in, you'll find there are many different ways to run one, and we strive to be proud of what we do and the service we deliver.

On-Location Portrait Sessions

Should we be photographed at our home?: We absolutely love to come to your home for your portrait. It personalizes a portrait, and always makes it even more meaningful. It doesn't take a spectacular house, we can always find a corner, (usually not where you expected us to do it) that frames your family nicely, and very little of the house ends up showing in focus... so don't worry about cleaning up the whole house. Please understand the additional policy regarding this - a $600 minimum purchase. The time it takes to pack and unpack our equipment and the additional planning required make it quite an event.
Where should we go for outdoor portraits?: We can create most outdoor portraits on the grounds of our studio at usually no additional charge. We bought the property our new studio was built on having done some specific landscaping for portraiture in mind. If you have a specific desire, for instance a mountain background, we have some favorite spots, or we'll go to yours. An outdoor location session adds about $50 depending on the location. We also do portrait safaris on certain days/evenings during the summer months at various locations around the Peninsula (the Kenai River, the Homer Beach (excellent mountain backgrounds), Skilak Lake, Hidden Lake, etc...) for very minimal additional costs.

What Should We Wear?

General Suggestions for Everyone

Don't mix dark and light outfits. (Use all dark or all light) This keeps the group from looking "busy" and allows the faces to stand out first.
Solid fabrics (no-pattern or subtle-pattern)
Darker clothing tends to slenderize
Long sleeves help reduce distractions
Colors can be mixed, as long as colors are very subdued, and harmonize with one another.
Try this: lay out everyone's clothing together and see which outfits stand out. Replace "standouts" until there is a good blend.

Special for Outdoors

Choose "earthy" colors that blend well with outdoor surroundings. Think of "fall colors" (dark reds, purples, greens, grays, browns, taupe, etc.)
All white, or white mixed with light khakis, also works great.

Special for Women

Dark or opaque hose and shoes for formal groups.
Makeup as usual (don't exaggerate for color portraits)
Accessories subdued.

Special for Men

Dress shirts need a jacket or sweater over them.
Ties date portraits quickly. Choose a classic pattern of moderate width or skip the tie.
Darker pants and shoes are best for group portraits.

Families

Can we do additional groupings?: Yes. Time allowing, we can add additional groupings for only $40. For example: a grouping of the children alone or with the parents alone or a change of clothing. We cannot guarantee additional groupings where small children are involved; their attention span is often used up after one session.
How do I prepare the children?: Treat your studio visit like a routine trip to the grocery store. Be careful not to over-prepare young children. The best expressions happen when children forget they're being photographed, when no pressure is placed on them to "perform". We will create little distractions we've found to work. It's usually best if the parents just stand off to the side and relax!
Can you add people to groups later?: Yes, we have access to some of the best digital retouch artists in America in our minds and we're able to do just about anything you ask. If one person or several are unavailable on portrait day, they can come in later to be photographed and we'll insert them into the grouping... no one will know but you. The fine print of course is cost - digital artists usually cost around $150 per hour so depending on the complexity of the project, the additional price can be quite high.

Children

What type of clothing should I bring?: It depends on what type of session you are going for - coming in to the studio to see all the different possibilities is a great idea. When selecting your own clothing, remember to avoid bold patterns, stripes, or bright colors, we want the focus of the portrait to be your child, not the clothing. Simple, classic outfits in muted tones are usually the best. For infants, the more skin showing the better, so we like bare feet, legs, arms. White clothes are always great. And don't cover up that body too much. For toddlers bare feet are still great and bare shoulders too. If you're doing a themed portrait, these rules are generally out the window, such as fireman's gear (its likely to be busy and bright colored) and these work well too. The important thing is to have a plan.
How many outfit changes can my child do?: Our goal is to achieve one perfect portrait per session. It often requires 30 or 40 images to get the one we want. So concentrating on one outfit is preferable. It's a good idea to bring more than one choice, and let us help you decide. It's surprising what works best... it's usually the simplest thing.
What is the best age for children's portrait sessions?: This again depends on what you want. We have some clients who begin at 3 months (most likely soft curious expressions or out Baby Parts Panel) then do 6 months (usually more dependable smiles, sitting up), 9 months (usually standing or Goldfish Bowl portraits, themes, etc...) and 1 year (an outfit as well as a real cake bashing at the end). They are all wonderful stages to do, but sometimes budgets do come into play, and in that case, decide what you really want (such as a big smile sitting up - which would probably fall into the 6/9 month range) and do just one session. The important thing here is to give it some thought of what final pieces you'd like. Overall, don't wait for the perfect age! Bring your children when you get the urge. And have portraits done often... you'll never regret having done it. That being said, we love to photograph children at these "life stages"

Infant	With and without mother and/or father
Baby	We love naked baby portraits in black and white
Toddler	Wonderful barefoot in the garden portraits or active in studio portraits
Preschool	Usually candid, playful poses indoors
5 years	Before the loss of teeth changes that young face
8 years	A great time to do a more formal portrait for the wall
12 years	The last of childhood looks, just before dramatic changes happen
16 years	It's fun to include an instrument or other story-telling props
High School Senior	We do a "portfolio session" to show all the complexity of these young adults
18-19 years	Leaving home... this portrait is their first as adults

Should I stay in the room with my child?: Yes, occasionally we'll ask you to step out of sight if a child's attention is hard for us to get. Normally we'll want you nearby, but out of the line of sight. Every child is different...; Teenage subjects sometimes open up better without a parent watching. We like having a parent there, but if you sense tension, just slip out to our waiting room occasionally.