I am looking for a place that takes holiday photos. The place I used to go to closed. They were awesome, they would have real props in the background instead of just a picture on a screen. I am board with Picture People, all they offer is either a black or white background with a cheesy prop. I can do that in my house. Portrait Innovations is better, but they need better props. I prefer a real background because it adds to the photo.
I didn't know if anyone knew of a place that was reasonable and used real props instead of a plain backdrop. I wish someone opened a photo place like this around here.
Re: Holiday Photos
A friend of mine has taken her family portraits at JCPenney for the past two years and has been very pleased with the results. They have a variety of backgrounds and a combination of props that they use, especially for pictures of the kids. Here's their winter portfolio if you'd like to see some examples.
I do not, not, not recommend Sears. We went there once, the wait was a NIGHTMARE, the photographers were terrible, we were rushed - it was a miserable experience. ETA: And the photos sucked.
If you only want one or two poses, specific for holidays then you should be doing ok with Sears.
But if you would like maybe a few poses and a few regular family pics, maybe separate pics of the kid(s?) then it might make sense to look into a private photographer instead of retail photographer. You get more for your money.
My sessions run at $150 including digital negatives and I am know that many others will charge around the same.
So I guess to make a long answer short, if you only need a pic or two, I would recommend Sears. If you would like more time and pics, look around for private photographers
BFP#1: 01/10, M/C 6w -- BFP#2: 06/10, M/C 5w -- BFP#3: 09/10, DS born June 1, 2011
BFP#4: 07/12, M/C 5w3d -- BFP#5: 12/12, EDD 08/18/13
Decorate This
I'm only familiar with Jen Lowe's pricing, but her Fall Mini Sessions are 30 minutes for $200 (for a family of 5 or fewer; $25 for each add'l family member) and in that timeframe, you get a ton of photos. She provides you with 4x6" prints of all images plus a DVD of the files so that you can print them where and when you like. Here's my family's photos from last year, just as an example.
I'm partial to Jen because I really like her style of photography and I adore the woman herself, but there are plenty of other photographers out there and many of them do mini sessions in the fall because folks are looking for holiday photos. I strongly suggest that you look around some more if you're truly interested in a professional photographer - they aren't all astronomically priced.
If you haven't heard from Jenni directly (she posted above and is a professional photographer), you may want to contact her through her website. I believe she has to be careful what she says here about her business because The Nest is pretty strict about folks advertising.