Family Portraiture & Children Photography by Merrick Photography

• Don't Pay Me Unless You're Thrilled…
• FREE Clothing, Hair & Makeup Consultation…
• Expert Location Photography At No Extra Charge…
• Free Portrait Enhancement & Artwork…
• And That's Just The Beginning…

1. First and foremost is my 100% money-back guarantee - "If you are not absolutely thrilled with your photographs and my service - if you don't cry tears of joy when you see your photographs for the first time - you don't pay me."

I take my guarantee very seriously so, if you aren't completely thrilled with your photographs, I will either create additional images for you at no charge, or I will cheerfully refund all your money. I am absolutely committed to creating the finest portraits you have ever had created.

2. "I meet with you personally BEFORE the portrait session, at no extra charge, to help you with every decision that will go into creating this beautiful child or family portrait for you - this ensures that you and your family will look perfect in your photographs."

This is such an important step and is all part of my custom designer portrait service. There are only a handful of photographers in America who do this, and I DON'T CHARGE YOU FOR IT! I will meet with you before the session day to help you choose clothing, talk about location, help you with questions about hair and makeup, etc.

All of these things are vital to the creation of a great photograph! This is one of the great secrets to creating a perfect portrait - planning and organization.

3. "You can have this photograph created anywhere you like in the area, at no additional charge. I don't believe in using the traditional photography studio with a boring 'painted background'. Instead, you can have your portraits created outdoors, in your home, at the park, by the river - wherever you like, in fact. I will even help you to decide on the perfect location."

How personal and treasured is a portrait of your family going to be if it isn't created in a location that is beautiful and personal to you?

I can't remember the last time I actually photographed a family in the sterile and clinical setting of a studio. Instead of that, the portrait session is a lot of fun for everyone because they are relaxed and in an environment they are comfortable with.

In fact, the location itself will be like having an additional personality in your photograph.

4. "I work in an artistic fashion to enhance every photograph I create."

In addition to being a professional photographer, I am also an artist. One of the things I love to do to relax is to paint, but I also bring my love of art back to my photography. This goes SO FAR beyond "digital retouching" where we just remove blemishes or touch up wrinkles. This is so much more. Included in the creation fee is my personal attention to every inch of your portraits to give them another dimension of life. Don't worry, no one will EVER be able to tell that any enhancement was done to them, but this one step can take a good photograph and make it truly perfect.

5. "Natural expressions are guaranteed - I have not only focused on my photography skills, but I've also mastered ways of working with subjects to get the best and most natural expressions each time."

We've all seen photographs where the subjects looked fake and posed - and those types of portraits never look good. Why have a family photograph created if your family doesn't look natural? There are a number of ways to ensure that each of your family members look their best in the photographs. And, I'll give you a hint, I'll NEVER make any of your family members "say cheese." The key to this is to have everyone feeling relaxed, happy and having fun together. Traditional stiff posing techniques actually take away from that relaxed, fun feeling, so I concentrate instead on natural-looking images.

6. "Because of my own family, I understand how important these photographs will be to you."

When I was growing up, my parents never had a nice family portrait created. Now that I live more than 4000 miles from my original home I appreciate even more the value of good family photography. I don't get to see my family as often as I would like to, so I really understand how much these photographs are going to mean to you, and I feel I have a huge responsibility to make them perfect for you.

I didn't become a photographer because it seemed like a surefire way to make money, but because of my love for my family, and a love for helping other families capture the memories that will last a lifetime.

7. "I only take on ONE portrait session per day. What does this mean to you? It means that I will never be rushing to get your session done so I can move on to the next. Your photographs will be perfect, because I devote all my time and effort to focus on your family."

This is so important! Most photographers try to cram 5 to 10 sessions into one day! They have about enough time to set up a couple lights, snap a few images, then fly out the door on their way to the next session. I made the decision when I started my business that I wasn't going to work that way. You deserve to have my undivided attention, and I'm not going to be rushing off to do another session, leaving you and your family with less-than-perfect portraits. My parents taught me something very important: "Anything worth doing is worth doing right." I believe in that 100%, and that's why I'd rather do 1 great session a day, rather than 10 "okay" sessions. It's a matter of pride. You're trusting me with your family's memories, and I take that responsibility VERY seriously.