Profile: Child’s Play with Deanna Urs by Charmaine Beleele

The writer Forest Witcraft said, “One hundred years from now, it will not matter what my bank account was, how big my house was or what kind of a car I drove. But the world may be a little better because I was important in the life of a child.”

We, as photographers have the chance to preserve that importance when we capture, through our images, the history of parents and children in family portraits. Deanna Urs believes those images reflect how we have treated the family. The Colorado portrait artist has said, “Treat your clients like gold and they will bring you rainbows.” And she adds, “I don’t like the term ‘clients.’ Families that I photograph become my friends.”

Although Deanna normally photographs families in their own home environment, her relationship with them during a photographic session reminds me of the way we treat guests in our own homes. She explained her startling success by saying, “I spoil my guests beyond belief. I treat them like they are royalty, and I truly love each one of them.” This is the same secret she used when she first appeared on the contemporary corporate scene as a star agent in the top one percent of 4000 agents in a large insurance company.

In 1988 she crowned 10 years of sales triumphs with a trip to Maui as a guest speaker for 1200 business people. Her secrets of providing a “quality business” in that field transferred directly to her photography business, which she opened in 1993. Nurtured on workshops from Monte Zucker and Hanson Fong, the “Artistry of Urs” has quickly catapulted her into the position of one of the most successful portrait photographers in the United States.

This award-winning photographer confides, “By focusing on a few clients and treating them top notch, I have been able to have portrait sales that range in the $12,000 average on a single investment sale. My highest investment on a wedding over the last year’s was $38,000, but my average wedding is $9200.” Working only on location, she utilizes a corporate office instead of the traditional studio.

Deanna’s 10 Commandments for the Care and Pampering Portrait Guests:
I. Thou Shalt Honor Thy Client as Thy Friend.
Urs thinks of her photography as “helping a friend find an appropriate art investment.” Urs photographed Jenny Behne’s wedding, and later she was also hired to photograph her grandfather’s 80th birthday party and family reunion. Jenny confided, “Deanna just has that personality. She created an instant friendship. She is not like anyone else.” Deanna states, “I am like the old-fashioned doctors of yesteryear. I make house calls!” Portrait guest Margot Planchard sums up Deanna’s friendly personality: “She has a genuine affection for people. She causes people to want to be photographed in their own spirit.”

II. Thou Shalt Be Observant of Your Friends’ Environment.
Underlying this key to Deanna’s style is her absolute faith in the value of the preliminary portrait consult. She explains, “First, I examine the architecture of the family home. I look for artistic elements, like the lines and shapes of doorways, arches and pillars.” At this time she learns the family’s tastes and style. Deanna says, “Find out what style your guest would enjoy because the image you will create for them is not just for now; it is forever.” She advises, “Get inside a family’s heads and hearts and find their passion.”

She continues, “Second, I study the points of special interest, like heirloom furniture pieces or works of art that are significant to the family.” Margot says, “She found something that was special to us, something that reflects who we are. We have a treasured oriental rug, and she brought a stand and hung it up for our background.” At the home of another friend, Sue Schaeffer of Houston, Deanna liked the raw silk curtains in the master bedroom. She and Sue took them down together, and Deanna draped them on Sue for the portrait.

Third, you should discover where the portrait will be hung: The room, the wall and the accompanying ornamentation are all key to unlocking the inspiration for a portrait. Deanna explains, “We discuss what wall space will work and what size is most appropriate. I am an interior designer in the portrait world. My friends merely invest in the art that will reflect them. This discussion is all done before the shoot begins. I do not wait till I have finished the shoot to begin the sale and a discussion of sizes.” It is this type of treatment that evokes consistent loyalty from her guests. Another “portrait guest,” Cathy Bouthers, comments, “I will never have another artist photograph me but Deanna Urs.” This kind of client allegiance cannot be bought. It is earned by the quality time Urs devotes to her portrait guests.

III. Thou Shalt Guide the Family’s Wardrobe.
Deanna says, “The clothing consult can make or break the session. It is even more important than the background. She visits the closets and helps the mother coordinate the portrait session like a special event. “This really takes the pressure off the mom, and I have no trouble doubling as a personal shopper if I need something special. For example, I’ll visit an upscale children’s boutique and pick three outfits. The mom will then visit the store, and try them on the child. She’ll make and purchase the final choice.” She adds, “If I see the ideal dress for a session, I just buy it, knowing the portrait investor will appreciate my investment.”

IV. Thou Shalt Not Fear the Spirit Of Playfulness.
She tells us, “Trust yourself to play. You will come up with ideas that will express the family’s style.” For example, one family had a treasured sofa and a very special estate gate. Margot shares, “We took the sofa outside, and the gate became the background for the family group.” This juxtaposition between exterior and interior worlds is not just found in the artist’s eye; it is what happens when you train yourself to “dare to play with no fear.” Families join the spirit of fun and playfulness.

V. Thou Shalt Not Bring Shabby Marketing Pieces Before Thy Friends.
Deanna created a marketing tool. She created a 6x9-inch booklet printed on rich cardstock. Entitled “The Artistry of Urs,” the booklet “is designed to be a one-time mailing per person.” Deanna shares, “Since I do not utilize a traditional studio, this piece is my traveling artist’s gallery, a beautiful portfolio I can leave with my guests.” Deanna and her graphic artist planned the book to blend stylish lettering and poetic text with her images. It comes with a translucent vellum letter, and it is wrapped in thick crystalline paper. Within two days, with the help of a commercial mailing list, it had brought her five first-class clients (“portrait guests”) For a special bridal boutique, Deanna wrapped it in handmade paper and had it florist-delivered with three fresh lilies.

This one $14,000 marketing piece has opened doors to five-star spas, department stores, Chambers of Commerce, art galleries and countless portrait guests. She says, “This piece of work, like a coffee table book, will stay in their hands a lot longer than the cheap mass market junk-mail. So, if dozens of mass-mailed postcards aren’t netting you your preferred ‘portrait guests,’ you might be sending the wrong message. You’ve got to give above average treatment to attract the above average guests!”

VI. Thou Shalt Communicate With Children as Your Friends.
Urs explains several steps to making a child feel like an individual, a friend. Here is where child’s play enters. “First, get to their playing level. Crouch, kneel or lie down, but getting eye-to-eye opens relationship doors.” She adds, “Second, speak softly: It sets the mood. Third, give them plenty of compliments and verbal encouragement. Last but not least, promise them a present. I do not skimp on this. I do not give generic toys. I investigate what interests and dreams the children have, and give something special to them when I visit. Recently, I had to search high and low for a rare red-headed Barbie (Scooby Doo Barbie) because it was one of my young friend’s heart’s desire.”

After Deanna photographed John and Anna Laratta and their three children, Anna commented, “The children named her Miss Deanna, and we bonded with her right away. She told the kids they would get presents, and they did, but she rewarded them even more with her praise and compliments.”

Once Deanna won a young friend over by climbing up into his top bunk bed and discussing the dinosaurs on the wall. The newly formed bond shines in the warm eyes of the shy boy in the final portrait. “It’s all about trust,” says Deanna. Anna appreciated Deanna’s attention to detail. She says, “During the session I noticed she captures children at their very best. She uses their natural expressions.”

Cathy Brouthers, who wishes the world would see her with the perception of Deanna’s Giclée, states, “She gave fabulous treatment to my dog. She brought him a toy and a treat and took time to get to know him. Other photographers have tried to photograph my French Bull Dog, Maxwell, out of doors, and he went crazy. But with Deanna, he stuck close to us and Deanna’s portrait captured our relationship together. Maxwell is a masculine dog, and I am a very feminine girl; Deanna’s art portrays this counterpoint.”

VII. Thou Shalt Not Use Paper Proofing!
Deanna visits her guests’ home again after the photographic session with her laptop, or she invites them to her corporate office to show her musical CD proofing movie. “You can justify using electronic proofs because you and your guest can thus observe more of the detail in the artwork.” She confides in her portrait guests that although this takes her more time to prepare than simple paper proofs, it allows them to see better detail for the proper size of the print.

VIII. Thou Shalt Offer Unique Products.
Currently Deanna offers both canvas and watercolor (Giclée) styles with her portraiture. At her workshop in March at the 25th Annual WPPI Convention, she will reveal her mysterious new option, a unique style for her guests (and us) to anticipate. For weddings and special events, Deanna uses both traditional and designer-style albums. Leather Craftsmen and Graphibooks have made it easy for Deanna “to offer unique products to my portrait guests. Do not be afraid to devise a special product and then price it appropriately according to its one-of-a-kind value.”

IX. Thou Shalt Not Ignore Your Education in Both Art and Business.
In 1999 Deanna attended her first major conventions. “I sat through every course I could and took copious notes. I was bound and determined to learn even though it was so over my head.” By the end of the year, her imaginative portraiture had brought her many awards—from WPPI, PPA, and the Fuji Masterpiece award. Now she has become the teacher and she is providing workshops for portrait photographers in guilds and meetings all over the United States. She says, “I love teaching. I love giving back to the industry in return for all that photography has brought into my life.”

X. Refer to Commandment One!
For Deanna Urs, photography is all about her passion, her passion for beauty, art and humanity. Deanna says, “I am truly passionate about my art. It is like oxygen to me. It is a natural high! My friends feel this in a portrait session. Often they are exhausted when I am finished. I am only finished with a session when one of two things happens: One, the guest yells ‘uncle’ or, two, I run out of card space. I warn my friends of this before we begin the session. I assure you I am never one to yell ‘uncle’ first!”

Deanna’s story has given me pause to reconsider how I treat clients. I cannot help but wonder what they would say if a writer called and asked them to describe me. Would they list descriptive words like the dad, Mark Dennis, who says Deanna is confident, artistic and bubbly? Or his wife, Terri, who says Deanna is creative, vivacious, flexible and adaptable? Terri also comments, “We like to use art to mark those pivotal moments of growth as we see our children mature. We will definitely be inviting Deanna back.” So, it seems that Deanna, by making her clients into guests, has herself become a guest in their hearts. Discover more at www.deannaursphotography.com or email her at d.urs@comcast.net/.

Deanna Urs will be teaching a MasterClass at WPPI 2005 entitled “Passion, Portraits and Profits” on Wednesday, March 23, 2005. The program will cover many of her high-energy techniques.

CharMaine Beleele, with an MA in Communication, owns Angel Kissed Photography Studio in Arkansas. She teaches Communication at the University of Arkansas in Fort Smith. She is also a regular correspondent for the Arkansas Catholic newspaper. Email her at photoangels@sbcglobal.com or contact her at www.angelkissedphotography.com/.