There is one place in Athabasca where you will feel a little lighter, happier and more inspired whether you are there to fulfill all your photo needs, from custom framing to passport photos to photo reproduction.
There is one place in Athabasca where you will feel a little lighter, happier and more inspired whether you are there to fulfill all your photo needs, from custom framing to passport photos to photo reproduction. That place is the Photo Shoppe, and its owner is as unique as the pictures she captures with her lens.
Laurie Bonell was born and raised in Athabasca, and although she spent time away, there was always something about her ;home town ;that drew her back. Naturally charismatic, she excelled in the ownership and operation of a hair salon and a franchise business, while keeping busy as a professional speaker, trainer and instructor, and enjoying two terms as the president of the local Chamber of Commerce.
When she decided to amalgamate her talents and experience to create The Photo Shoppe, the business grew quickly, necessitating a move to a larger building this year.
“There isn ’t any other service like this, locally, ” smiles Bonell, of her store where customers come for custom framing, passport photos and to purchase her photo art or poster prints that she brings in. “I ’ll be putting a hair and makeup chair the photo studio, ” she says with excitement. “All the services you need for a great photoshoot will be under one roof. I ’m also working on a photo series called Portraits of Courage, which will ;honour ;those that have overcome tragedy in their lives. ”
Bonell, who has been taking photos for more than 40 years, knows how to expertly capture the story within the story, whether her subject is a performer gazing into a glass ball, or a curious turtle on a lawn. It is this attention to ;detail, ;and her understanding that there is always more beneath the surface, that brings so much to her photographs and her customer service.
It takes more than great customer service, however, to make a business work. It takes expertise, of which Bonell has plenty. She recently created an enlarged photo from a 4x6 ;printed ;from ;a 1945 ;negative, even though the original printer said the photo would lose clarity. It didn ’t. The photo has special significance for the client, and he was thrilled with the results.
To learn more, visit The Photo Shoppe ’s Facebook page where you ’ll find a list of services, along with cheerful and inspiring posts from Bonell.
Private portrait ;studio at the Photo Shoppe
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