photographer

life . Portrait . street

Madison, WI

Flavia

Fontana Giusti

flavia@grainandblur.com

Logo for the service "Picture Day preschool portraits by Flavia Fontana Giusti"

As an experienced preschool photographer I find picture days to be the most fun job a photographer can have, because there’s nothing like capturing those sparks in children’s eyes.

I have a boutique approach to school and preschool portraiture: I’m constantly experimenting with light and textures to offer creative solutions that look nothing like the cookie-cutter products that dominate the industry. My style is painterly and timeless, and I also offer optional seasonal personalisation (back-to-school, fall, holidays and spring) to accessorise my set.

I design and source my sets and equipment with care, choosing responsibly made materials, and purchasing either from fellow small businesses or from the circular economy. 

I was born and raised in Europe, between France and Italy, in a big family, surrounded by many kids, and always with a camera in my hands. I speak four languages which allows me to connect with most of the children I photograph. 

I arrived in Madison in 2021, I’m fully insured, and I’m here to stay and find my place in the community.

Boutique school photography that stands out

My style is colourful and painterly, but not distracting, because the focus is the children. That being said, I work with a variety of beautiful, highly artistic sets that I craft and source with the greatest care.

I offer affordable children’s photography for families, and custom portrait solutions for schools who have strong visual identities, or space limitations, or prefer outdoors photographs (weather permitting). My tools are versatile and I can make them work anywhere. Also, I love a challenge, and when I get creative with my equipment there are very few limits!  

I love to capture smiles, but if a child isn’t feeling it, of they’re shy, or if they’re not big smilers, that’s not something I want to force. My goal is to find their spark, to connect with them and reveal expressions that are authentic and real, and that parents will recognise as their child’s. I come to the daycares and preschools with a process and a flow, and then meet children who have their own personalities and temperaments, and I try to work with that. Sometimes they’ll want to run around and climb on my set, and as long as they’re safe – and my equipment too – I’ll roll with it, because sometimes all that’s needed is for the children to forget they’re being watched and photographed. 

I aim to capture a gallery of images, some traditional portraits, and some more candid, allowing the kids to move and show who they are. That gives parents the opportunity to chose between the classic headshot and a sweet moment, or go with both.

After picture day, I handle and communicate directly with the families and do all of their ordering through online galleries, my goal is for schools to have an enjoyable experience, and not to add to their workload.

what to expect

  1. initial contact and secure your preferred date and time.
  2. A few days before the day, you send me a roster of the kids and their classroom. This will allow me to prepare and stay organized on picture day.
  3. Picture day! I will bring my setup, equipment and props to your center. It takes me approximately one hour to set up my equipment, and for my standard kit I’ll need an open space of approximately 8ft x 10ft. I will then spend the time it takes to capture genuine moments with your children. Smaller groups can be completed in one sitting. Medium to Large schools can expect 2-3 days of camera work. Group and staff pictures are available upon request, free of charge to the preschool.
  4. I return home, process and upload the photographs to individual galleries. Each child’s gallery is then sent privately to their parents’ emails. Parents can expect their galleries to be up by the end of the week. From there, they can see the final results and choose to purchase prints, JPGS, and/or products I offer. If a family makes a purchase, the order and payment go through my site to me, and prints and/or products are shipped directly to them, making it smooth and seamless for the schools.
  5. If a “makeup” photo date is scheduled, we repeat the process with those children who need makeup photos. Makeup photo dates are usually 1 day.

More resources to guide you through picture day

Gallery of portraits

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