Heritage Studio and Gallery is now offering their full professional photography studio for rent!  Come on in and check it out.

• Hours of availability ……Tues-Fri   10am-10pm
Sat.  10am -6pm
• $50.00 per hour. (Minimum 1 hour) Full day discount available.
• Includes use of all props and lighting.
• Full dressing room-make up area.
• Studio size   26’ x 25’

Heritage Studio & Gallery requires each client to fill out a registration form with contact info and valid drivers licsence or other form of ID.

For More Information Contact…
Dave……330-819-4268
Lisa……..330-903-0980
Cindy…..330-352-4917
Gallery…330-854-9209

Private dressing room with make-up counter.

Props include furnature….various couches, chairs, and even a bed for “Boudoir sessions”, backdrops,screens and more.

Heritage Studio and Gallery w/ AR Video Presents:

The 2012 Most Unique and Picturesque Wedding Contest

We’re offering a free photography AND videography Combo Package valued at $5000 to the couple that gets hitched in the most entertaining way*.

All you have to do is make us want to shoot your wedding!

We’re willing to do just about anything to capture a wedding that is unique, creative, entertaining, and one-of-a-kind. So tell us your wedding plans and we might choose you!

-Runner-up will receive a 50% discount off of select packages -8 other “finalists” will be selected to receive a 5% discount off of select packages.

Apply online at HeritageStudioandGallery.com Or visit our studio at 2381 Locust St, Canal Fulton, OH 44614 to apply in person.

*Subject to Official Rules

Download official application by clicking the link below.

It’s that time of year again!  School has started and it’s time to start thinking about your senior pictures.  Luckily, you don’t have to think too hard because your senior pictures are all about you!  They are a great way to showcase your hobbies, interests, style, favorite places, and most of all, your personality.  It’s a chance to be really creative and unique and just have fun!  Here we have a wonderful example from a recent senior session with Rae N.

This session was so much fun and we can’t wait to do many more senior shoots!

Congratulations!  This is such a special time in your life, and we are so touched that you’d consider us to be a part of it.  Please look around and take in all that we have to offer.  Feel free to contact us any time with any questions or concerns you might have.  Our goal is to make this the most perfect experience possible.

We understand.  We know it is one of the most important days of your life, and we want to capture it for you.  Beautiful photography for the most beautiful day.

Our wedding photography starts at $1999.  Destination packages start at $3999.  All of our packages include the following:

* Two professional photographers shooting in unlimited locations on the date of your wedding
* Online photo gallery for sharing with family and friends
* Engagement session with a 8×10 signature photo mat if desired
* CD with printing rights released
* Friday and Sunday discounts are available.

Call for details, or view our Payment Plans

In Vogue

In Vogue is our most extravagant session.  If you love fashion and flaunting it, this is the session for you.  With a total of 10 clothing changes you can show off every outfit you love!  You will receive an indoor shoot with multiple backgrounds and prop options AND and outdoor session at the location of your choice (within 20 miles of Canal Fulton).  Please schedule between 2.5 to 3 hours for your session.  Choose from approximately 45-55 images.

Impression

The Impression is our most popular session.  If you want to look great and showcase your unique personality, choose Impression.  With a total of six clothing changes, you can be sure you’ll have a session that you will love.  It’s all about you!  You will receive an indoor shoot with multiple backgrounds and prop options AND an outdoor shoot at the location of your choice (within 20 miles of Canal Fulton).  Please schedule around 2 hours of your session.  Choose from approximately 35-40 images.

My Moment

This session is like a mini-Impression.  My Moment is ideal for anyone who wants the quality of Heritage photography portraits without the time and extravagance of an Impression Session.  Simple senior pictures that look great can be found with this session.  There is less time involved for us in shooting and retouching and as a result we make it more economical for you.  You will receive 3 clothing changes so that you can still show your style.  You will receive and indoor shoot with multiple backgrounds and prop options OR an outdoor shoot at the location of your choice (within 15 miles of Canal Fulton). Please schedule around 45 minutes for this session.  Choose from approximately 20-25 images.

Simple Graduate

The Simple Graduate is for the student that isn’t in love with the idea of senior pictures.  We know you’re out there!   Just because we are crazy about photos, doesn’ t mean everyone is, right?  We’d still love to help you get a few shots you feel proud of!  Wear your favorite outfit to your choice of our indoor studio or outdoor shoot at the location of your choice (within 15 miles of Canal Fulton).  We will shoot around 10 poses.  Please schedule around 25 minutes for your session.  Choose from approximately 5-8 images.

What is a custom portrait?  Why is there more of a cost associated with custom photography?  Without knowing the ins and outs of the photography business sometimes custom portraits are misunderstood.

This is taken with permission from Marianne Drenthe’s Consumer Guide to Custom Photography.

What custom photography ultimately is all about is choice and experience (as in THE experience). Custom photography is about finding someone who will photograph your family, give you devoted 1:1 attention without worry of the next ‘in line’ or the feeling of a crowded portrait studio. A custom photographer will typically show you a fairly extensive gallery culled to only show the good images that meet the photographers’ creative sensibilities. Often the images are fully edited images-color corrected with blemishes and undereye circles removed. Custom photographers are also known as boutique studios, offering a range of products and unparalleled service. Think Lexus vs. Hyundai, think Nordstrom vs. WalMart.

Custom photography should have you, the client and your experience in mind.

When the photographer charges…for the photo shoot (aka SESSION FEE) you are not just paying for the two hours of session time, you are paying the photographer for 12-19 hours complete time for your session.  There is a great deal of time involved in creating high end custom photography sessions for a client.  The luxury of great service, better choices and a supberb end product.  The result of all this are heirloom quality images.  The time invested at the session is only a small portion of time involved in this process.

Regarding equipment costs, a good quality professional camera with a selection of good optical quality lenses and digital storage mediums and computer set up can run from $10,000-$30,000 costs dependent on the photographer.  Even though you can purchase a really good quality digital SLR for about $2100 there are still other costs related to photography.  A good lens for portrait photography can run from $900 to $2500.  A dependable computer system with software loaded for business and creative usage can run $2500 to $8000 dependent on the photographer.

Custom photography is more of a luxury than your entry level cookie cutter chain experience.  Custom photography truly is not for everyone, it requires a level of commitment, investment in time  and money, forethought and planning on the part of the subject/client and requires a larger time commitment for the photographer as well.

Clients who enjoy taking a more active role in the creation of their families’ memories have the desire to have portrait art that is truly personalized.  These more discerning clients have been known to budget and allot time for a custom photography session.  Many clients opt for it to be a once a year special experience, some opt to have custom photography sessions done to record their child’s stages in life.  Having said this, it is clear that custom photography is not in everyone’s budget,  it is something that most families save for to splurge on from time to time to memorialize their children as they really are  (not posed and primped in the cookie cutter studio setting).

Custom photography has been likened to purchasing a fine vehicle.  To get to point B from A let’s face it, even a bus ride would suffice.  If you want to luxuriate in a finely appointed vehicle, customizing your own experience by listening to smooth jazz while sitting in a climate controlled setting adjusted purely for your comfort in a body hugging leather interior, perhaps that Lexus you so desire is your cup of tea.  Custom photography is much the same cup of tea.  It is the Lexus of the photography world.  It is where the intangibles make the experience truly wonderful and the images themselves make the investment of money and time truly worthwhile.

Custom photography can be broken down into even more levels.  There are on location, studio, mixed studio/on location, specialty location and destination type photographers.  The beauty of custom photography is in the choices and in the luxury of thoses options.  The customized service level you are sure to experience will be amazing.  The knowledge that your final images are the result of someone caring about those moments so much that they take extra time ensuring that the artwork you receive is good enough to stand by with their name on it.  That level of quality and commitment  is all but lost in the age of “mass produced,” “mass marketed,” corporate “everyone is a number”.  Custom photography is based on being unique to you.  How great an experience would be,  to be able to sit back and allow a photographer to do this highly custom work for images that you will most likely cherish for a lifetime?

We know that weddings can very quickly get expensive.  Truly, the last thing we want to do is add stress to your wedding planning.  We have come up with two different payment plans in an effort to meet each bride and groom’s financial situation.

Traditional Plan

Our first plan is pretty basic.  It is the only plan we offered for quite a while, and I think you will find it to be fairly standard in the industry.  The first 50% of your wedding total is due on the day that you book the wedding date.  Then a second 25% is due on the date of the wedding.  The final payment of 25%  is required when the couple receives their proofs or CD.

Easy Pay Plan

The second plan allows you to slowly pay off your wedding total month by month.  Thirty-three percent is required to reserve the date, and then the remaining amount will be charged to the client’s credit card in monthly installments payable on the 15th of each month.  Monthly payments will be calculated by taking the remaining 67% and dividing it by the total number of full months remaining until the wedding date.  This amount will be charged to the client’s credit card each month.  (Heritage shall not be entitled to any penalty for prepayment.)

Why should my fiance and I hire you?

I am glad you asked.  I hope that you would hire us because:

* you love our photography style.
* your personalities mesh with our photographers.
* we work terribly hard to make each and every couple thrilled with our services.
* you’ve heard great things from other brides and grooms with whom we’ve had the pleasure of working.
* you want your wedding photography to be a good and fun experience (and so do we!).

What is your photography style?

This is an excellent question, and one that is often misunderstood.  We are lifestyle photographers who shoot your day as we see it in the most artistic way possible.  We don’t interrupt the proceedings to pose you for our photos.  Of course, we still shoot any desired formal posed photographs, but the ceremony and reception events consist mostly of candids.

How far will you travel?

We will travel anywhere on this great planet.  Depending on the distance, hotel and travel accommodations may be required.  Destination weddings outside the U.S. begin at $3999.

Are you a member of any photography associations?

Yes, Dave is a member of the PPA.  This stands for Professional Photographers of America.  The reason this is beneficial to you is that we are constantly kept up to date with the latest trends in wedding photography and are offered classes and webinars to learn new techniques.

Do you give us the digital files that we can print later?

This is an option that is always available to you.  If the digital files are one of the options you choose, you will receive the CD with the print release.  We do strongly suggest using a professional printer however.  The quality that you will get from a drug store or supercenter will not match that of a professional printer and your portraits will suffer.

“Call it a clan, call it a network, call it a tribe, call it a family.  Whatever you call it, whoever you are, you need one.”  -Jane Howard

Family Pictures Akron

We think we will remember, but slowly, as time creeps by, the details become a little less clear.  We would love to help you remember the way it was.  Please call or e-mail to learn more about a custom portrait with Heritage.   We specialize in contemporary, photojournalistic, lifestyle photography that captures you as you are.

Family sessions are $150 and include the photographers’ time, talent, and equipment.  Sessions can be held in the studio or on location in the Cleveland/Akron/Canton areas.  Destination portraits are also available for an additional fee.

Frequently Asked Questions

How far in advance do I have to book my session?

How do I reserve my session? Typically, we are able to get sessions scheduled within two weeks.  Please keep in mind, however, that certain seasons may cause us to book up more quickly.  We ask that you call or e-mail to inquire about possible dates.  When a date has been determined, the session fee is required to lock it in.  The session fee can be transferred to another day as long as the session has been cancelled within 24 hours.

When can I view my images?

The entire gallery is available within two weeks.

After I order, how long does it take for my prints to be available?

Our typical print order will be received within two weeks.  This is almost always the case.  However, depending on the season, it can take slightly longer.

How far will you travel for our session?

We have a travel fee for sessions outside the Cleveland/Akron/Canton areas, but we will go just about anywhere.  Still waiting for a session on the moon…

Can I purchase the digital files?

Yes.  We now have CDs with all of your files and a print release form available for purchase with any session.  We do highly recommend that you have any prints made at a professional lab.  (We can give you a list.)  We promise you won’t regret the extra pennies that this may cost. Akron Family Photographer

Can I scan and share the prints that I purchased?

We ask that you please do not scan and print images.  This is actually illegal according to federal copyright law.

Probably the most common question we recieve is “What should we wear?”  It’s a tough question because in a lot of ways, a custom portrait is very personal to you.  This guide has been written to give you a few tips.  This is just a guideline…all rules can be broken.  The most important thing is just to look stylish in whatever way works for you.

Coordinating clothing adds to group portraits.  You don’t have to match (and in fact it might be better if you don’t), but coordinating makes the picture look more styled.  Most importantly, just be sure to coordinate styles.  In other words, if one person wears ripped jeans and the other is in a tux…it is a bit visually confusing.

* Very dark or very light colors usually look the best.
* Choose pieces that are in style without being too trendy.  You don’t want your photo to scream “2011” in a year or two.
* You (and anyone else photographed) should be the focus of the final image.  Be sure to avoid large patterns (bold stripes, Hawaiian prints, etc.) as they take away from your face.
* Avoid clothes with large logos or wording—they tend to be distracting.  Printed t-shirts and anything with text are best avoided.
* Feel free to bring one or two changes of clothes for each of you.  You may not have time for all of them, but we can pick and choose what will suit your style and look.
* If possible and fitting for you, bring something casual and something a little more formal.
* Keep hair simple.  Of course, be you, but a brand new hair-do can date your portrait quickly if the look goes out of style.  Also, if possible, avoid a haircut right before a portrait.  It’s best to schedule a haircut at least a week before your portrait.
* Make-up is a little tricky.  Too much and you look silly; the camera will easily pick up on any unblended or “funny” area.  On the other hand, you may want to add a bit more than usual in order to be sure it is seen.  Matte finishes work best.  The use of powder is effective for hiding any shiny areas.
* Remember that bulky clothing can add pounds.  Avoid too many layers, bulky sweaters, etc.  In almost ALL cases, sweatshirts are unflattering and should be avoided.
* V-necks and open collars do the opposite:  They slim your face and neck and flatter most people.
* Keep jewelry simple.  A chunky necklace or cool scarf can work if they aren’t too wild, but both would probably be too much.  Keep in mind that a cool accessory can really add to a portrait.  If in doubt, bring it along and ask your photographer.
* Make sure nails are properly painted (or not painted, depending on your preference).  Chipping polish will show.
* If you wear glasses, see if your optometrist will remove the lenses for the session.  Many will for no charge.
* Your shoes may show, so be sure that they coordinate.  Bare feet are always fun if you are willing.
* Keep the climate in mind for any outdoor portraits.  If it’s cold, we recommend stylish coats with cool scarves or warm sweaters (not too bulky though).  Hats and gloves are cute in winter photos.  If it’s a hot summer day, be sure to dress in cool fabrics like cotton.