Picturing the Pups

     Several years ago, on one of our many trips to the dog mall, Annie, Paul, and I found a photo studio had moved in.  Over the years, we've stopped in at least once a week to chat with Wolfgang, Beth, Crystal, Ann, and the rest of the staff and admire the art on the walls.  I'd mentioned several times to the Hubbs that before we leave Richmond, I'd like to have our pictures taken at Wolfgang Jaspers with the pups.  Last spring, the Hubbs surprised me by walking into Wolfgang's and booking the appointments for a family photo shoot.

     The appointments are done as a set of 3.  The first one is a get together where everyone talks about what they expect to get out of the photo shoot (for us, we had eloped and have never had pictures taken of us at all).  We were thinking of fancy pics of us and family pictures with A&P.  What to bring as far as clothing for all 4 of us was discussed.
     The 2nd appointment was the actual photo shoot.  Beth and Wolfgang blocked off the photo studio so that Annie and Paul could be off leash without worrying where are they and what are they getting into.  There's a huge changing room to the side that Annie and Paul could wonder in and out of without revealing our clothing changes.  Beth and Wolfgang have thought of everything including a vanity that you can sit at to do your make-up, a chez lounge to sit on, and lots of hooks to hang up all of your stuff.  There's also a big fluffy rug that's comfy to stand on while you're changing.  (I'm not coordinated enough to stand in heals and change clothes.)

This pic's on their website!

     The 3rd appointment is when you come back to the studio to choose what pictures you want and how you want them.  The room you get to choose the photos in is pretty cool and comfy too!  Sit back and chill out on the couch as your pictures are projected onto the screen in front of you in 2 forms.  Both as a movie and as the photos themselves.  Did you like that family picture, but there was just something a little bit off?  No problem, Beth and Wolfgang can pull up all of the pictures like it and show them to you on the screen so you can find the one that's perfect.  Trying to figure out what your pictures will look like on the wall and you just can't picture the size right?   The picture you pick out gets projected onto the wall so that you can really see what you're ordering in the size your ordering it.  (sooo helpful!)  We also ordered 2 panels with 3 pictures in each panel.  The fact that the photos were projected onto the wall so we could see what we were ordering was fabulous!
     Both Wolfgang and Beth are wonderful to work with and make you feel comfortable and easy to smile for the shots.  They also both have lots of patients when it comes to working with both Hubbs and I and especially with Annie and Paul.  (Annie has a history of running from us when we turn on the camera).    The Hubbs and I also made the horrible choice of shaving his head that morning (his "normal" hair cut), but the freshly shaved head reflected light like crazy.  Not a problem for Wolfgang, in about 30 seconds he reset the lights so that we didn't get HUGE GLARES coming from the Hubbs head.  

      Annie and Paul even got dressed up for the event!  Annie had on her pearls (don't worry, they're fake ones I found at JoAnn Fabric) and Paul had his neck tie on.  There are a few shots taken of them without their collars or dress clothes on, but they just weren't feeling it/acting themselves.  So after a few moments, their normal collars went back on and they went back to being themselves.    
     Another really nice thing about Wolfgang Jasper Photography is that they guarantee their photos.  That may sound really weird, but let me explain.  Both Beth and Wolfgang will tell you that these photos are an investment, and they understand that life happens.  Roofs leak, hurricanes come through, homes catch fire, and pets chew on things.  If for any of these reasons (or any other ones) your photos get destroyed, simply notify Wolfgang Jaspers and they will replace your family photos in a timely fashion.  This is possible because everything from the photos to what you ordered in what size is kept on file.  
     Wolfgang and Beth bring their family pets with them to work and encourage the rest of the staff to do the same.  No animal is off limits when photographing.   On their webpage, there's pictures of dogs, cats, horses, and even a parrot!