“Karl Mecklenburg is one of my favorite Broncos of all time. Several years ago I had the privilege to meet Karl and his family in person and create this family portrait.
The session took place at Washington Park, one of my favorite location spots. While most of the portraits I create are at our indoor and outdoor studio near DU, many families choose a location that is special to them, including hundreds of portraits in clients homes.”
-Daniel Bettinger
We have created generational family portraits for many large families in our outdoor studio. Our studio offers a great central location for everyone to gather for a portrait.
This image of the Ed and Shirley Smith family was captured about 10 years ago. Since then the family has grown in numbers but unfortunately, father Ed and brother Mark are no longer with us. Time flies and families change. When all is said and done family portraits become more valuable and cherished by future generations.
Over the last 30 years, one of our most loyal clients has been the Jeff Shoemaker Family. Every two or three years, Jeff and his wife Nancy update their family portrait.
The Shoemaker family has made historical contributions to our community as founders of The Greenway Foundation. You can thank Jeff for the fantastic improvements to our local river systems. The Platte River and Cherry Creek trails have become magnets for outdoor enthusiasts thanks to the Shoemaker family.
This is one of our favorite images of Jeff and his daughters, captured in our outdoor studio about 15 years ago. Jeff adores his daughters and now has 2 granddaughters to spoil.
Thank You Shoemakers for your years of loyalty to Bettinger Photography.
Several years ago we had the privilege of photographing Chauncey Billups as a proud father with his beautiful baby girl. While we enjoyed seeing the Billups Family several times over the years, this image is one of our favorites.
The Billups family is a pillar in our community and are all around Great people!
We love Colorado Natives!
“In the Late 90's I took this image of Alfred Williams and his family. As a former CU Buff and Denver Bronco, Alfred is one of my favorite football players and a true Colorado Legend. Thanks Big Al!”
-Daniel Bettinger
In the early 80’s, as the President of the Professional Photographers of Colorado, Richard Bettinger petitioned Gov. Richard Lamb to dedicate October as Family Portrait Month. As we now celebrate our 60th year in business, we will be offering some amazing deals on indoor and outdoor family portraits at our Exclusive studio. Our way to say thank you to our loyal customers and welcome to new customers. We look forward to hearing from you!
The most common issue with glasses is the glare. But if you wear glasses every day, then you should wear them in your portraits. To avoid these issues we ask that you remove the lenses before your session. Or if you prefer, ask your optometrist to borrow a pair of empty frames. Several mail order glasses sites will loan you up to three frames to try (cc required but no purchase necessary). You will still look like you, just without the glare.
This sounds like an obvious thing to consider when choosing your outfit to go to school or work, let alone to have a professional family portrait taken. Often what happens is clothing has stains that you may not notice in everyday wear. This includes light colors and dark colors. Take a good look at your outfits, stand back while they are hanging on the hanger and check it out in good light. For small children, consider bringing clothes for them to change into once you get here. And bring a burp rag of course for baby drool.
It doesn't matter if someone thinks their arms look too skinny or too big. Everyone in the portrait should choose an outfit with a sleeve at least to the elbow. This includes men, women, adults and children. Wearing a longer sleeve focuses the attention on faces instead of the arms.
Each member of your family has a style of their own. And they all know how to look their best on a day to day basis for school or work. But there is a little bit more to planning outfits for a family portrait then just asking everyone to wear something nice.
First, start with discussing where your portrait might hang and consider coordinating your clothing color to the room decor. Matching the color and formality of the room gives the wall portrait a decorator’s touch.
Then choose medium to dark tones that compliment each other. Lay everything out on the bed. If one outfit stands out, or clashes, trade it out for something else.
Finally, select the accessories for the finishing touch. That includes, jewelry, belts, socks and shoes. Everything counts!
At Bettinger Photography, we believe in creating traditional portraits. We are not about the trendy “lifestyle” photography where you can’t see everyone’s face.
Daniel Bettinger firmly believes a timeless portrait is about the faces. “I think about a photograph of my Great Grandfather on his horse outside his barn. It’s a great picture but I can’t see his face. The one I cherish the most is the close up portrait of him and my Great Grandmother. I enjoy comparing the similarities to other members of my family. The way my hairline looks like his and my oldest niece shares the smile of my Great Grandmother. And I can’t forget my own daughter who has the same onery twinkle in her eye . That’s what a portrait is about. That is what our future generations will want to see.”
Daniel is an expert in lighting, composition and posing. Details and head spacing are critical so that not one person is emphazied over another. These will be the portraits that stand the test of time and will be appreciated day in and day out. No mater what your family dynamic is, we’re here to serve you. Families of all sizes, we’ve done it all.
All of us at Bettinger Photography are positive about the future. We are so grateful for all of you who have supported us throughout our 60 years in business. We look forward to creating more memories for you and your loved ones. We can’t wait to see you!
Family tradition is extremely important to all of us here at Bettinger Photography.
One of the most challenging, fun and rewarding requests we get is to emulate or recreate an image from a past generation. Kazimer and his mom loved this portrait of his Grandfather from when he was in his late teens. They wanted to match it as closely as possible.
This is where the trained eye of an experienced photographer becomes critical. While we didn't have the exact background or chair we were able to recreate the lighting, body angles and many of the details of the pose. These portraits now hang side by side as a tribute to Kaimer's Grandfather.
Do you have a portrait from a family member we can match for you? We would be honored to be a part of this tribute for your loved one.
We use our outdoor studio year round. The colors as the seasons change are so beautiful. If you are being photographed on a day that it may be a bit chilly, consider planning your clothes to represent the season. Scarves and jackets can make the perfect clothing for your family portrait.
Father’s Day, Mother’s Day, Birthday, Christmas or just because. Consider giving the gift of a portrait session and professionally printed photographs .
