Passionate Photographers Choose AsukaBook
AsukaBook is proud to shine the spotlight on our customers! We love the great images these photographers capture and the high standards they set in the industry.
Tell us about your company or studio.
The name of my studio is Kelley Dulcich Photography (how original, is that?). I've been in business for about fifteen years and am based in Portland, Oregon. My studio is located in the heart of the Pearl District, a vibrant, artsy, urban area with many incredible restaurants, art galleries and shopping boutiques.My specialty for the first twelve years of my career was black & white, film-based, high-end photography of babies and children. As my clients' children grew up, I was continually asked to do Senior Portraits, but I resisted. Most of the high school senior portraits that I'd seen were corny and not what I wanted to put my company name on.
Over the years, I had been experimenting with digital images but didn't use it for my actual business. I must have been one of the last to make the change to digital. My first year in the high school market, I started out with a few seniors and honed my look to something that I thought was modern and fresh. I realized in the process, that I was having so much fun and I was newly inspired. Now, my business is crazy-busy and seniors represent about 90% of my total business.
Most of what I do is on-location work within a one to two mile radius of my studio. I can get greenery, flowers, wheat grass, gritty cement walls, distressed brick and urban city scenes all within a few blocks.
Why photography?
I think that I just kind of fell into it. I've always loved fashion, art and business and have found a way to meld all of my passions into one. Photography is so broad; if a person gets tired of working with people, there are always objects. One year, after Easter, we had some Jelly Belly jellybeans laying around and I took all these really cool macro shots of jelly beans. I was planning on enlarging them into huge pieces of art for the wall, but never did. Some day, when I have more time.I love photography because there is always something new to learn. I think I've learned more in the past two years than the last fifteen combined. There are no limits to what can be created with a camera, a computer and a creative mind.
I also love my clients; the teenagers are young, fresh, beautiful and excited to go onto another chapter in their lives. I have had so many interesting conversations on shoots.
Why do you use AsukaBook?
In one word....the quality. I have tried other book manufacturers and they just don't compare to the quality. When my books arrive, there are no surprises; they look just like they did on my computer screen. I also really like the frosted slipcase included with the Hard Cover books. It adds the finishing touch. And, I really like the cover material because it's not too thick and bunchy in the corners like some of the other manufacturers' books.My clients love the hardbound 7x7 Book Bound series because it's a modern version of a photo album. Photo albums just seem so old-fashioned to me and parents of high-school seniors are not going to put a gigantic portrait on the wall. The book gives them a lot of their favorite photos in a neat and tidy compact little book that looks great on a coffee table. It's a great gift for grandparents too.
Any selling tips for other photographers?
Be consistent and offer a quality product that you are proud to have your name on. And, that's a lot harder than it sounds. Everyone has a digital camera these days and most likely, a good one. The average person can get decent shots without hiring a professional. They need a reason to hire you. Have a "look" that is your signature, but have enough flexibility to give your clients variety and keep your "look" fresh.What else should people know about you?
One of the funniest locations that I've used for seniors is what we refer to as "the golden grasses." My studio is located in a very urban part of the city, but I've found a way to still get that "big open field of wheat" look.My spot is located in one of the seedier parts of Portland, off a sidewalk, next to a city bus stop. There is a small patch of grass (five feet by five feet), that turns to the perfect golden color in the summer months and the perfect midday light bounces off a very tall ivory building across the street. There are usually a couple of homeless people who have set up camp in the background, there is a huge real estate sign posted in the middle, and usually a group of people waiting at the bus stop while we're shooting, thinking that we are really weird, I'm sure. The subject, typically a gorgeous high school senior girl, in a tiny little sun dress, who has just had her hair and makeup done for the shoot, is sitting or lying in the "golden grasses" for the perfect shot. All you need for a great shot is a little snippet of something in the background.