HeirlooM & LEGACY Sittings
Heirloom & Legacy Sittings are conceptual commissions crafted to honor life transitions, professional achievements, personal unions, and enduring legacy. Combining analog depth, character-rich vintage optics, and unhurried studio rigor, each sitting provides a measured, intentional environment to mark moments of significant personal or institutional transformation.
To ensure every milestone is honored with proper depth, each commission begins with a 30-minute legacy consultation (via phone or video) to align on emotional context, family history, and physical artifact selections.
RECOGNIZED MILESTONES & SCOPES
Heirloom sittings are structured for individuals, couples, and families commemorating major passages:
Academic & Institutional Commencement: Graduations, Chair Appointments, Tenures, and Faculty Milestones.
Couples & Engagements: Intimate, non-formulaic studies of relationship, connection, and union.
Personal & Family Legacy: Milestone birthdays, intergenerational portraits, and career transitions.
Heirloom Event Portrait Installations: Dedicated on-location portrait sittings for formal suites, rites of passage, and ceremonial honors.
PHYSICAL HAND-OFF & ARCHIVAL PROTOCOL
All primary physical works and hand-crafted heirloom artifacts undergo a joint physical review with you on-site upon completion or proofing. To maintain absolute material quality, original analog works and master digital scans remain in studio custody during flatbed digitization, color calibration, and archival binding phases. Original physical works, custom portfolio boxes, fine-art monograph zines, and master scan links are released and dispatched in full following production and final balance settlement.
COMMISSION SCHEDULE & AVAILABILITY
Heirloom sittings—including engagements, wedding portrait installations, career appointments, and legacy portraits—are booked year-round on a rolling basis, subject to studio calendar availability.
Because academic commencement coincides with high seasonal demand, graduation-specific sittings are realized during a dedicated annual commission window:
Year-Round Heirloom Sittings
Availability: Open year-round for engagements, wedding portrait installations, executive appointments, and personal legacy studies.
Lead Time: Early consultation (4 to 8 weeks in advance) is recommended to secure specific dates, lighting conditions, and custom location requirements.
Annual Commencement Commission Window
Commencement Portrait Season: April 1 – July 15
Session Booking Window: February 1 – July 1
PRINCIPAL COMMISSION OFFERINGS
The Keepsake
A tactile studio sitting centered on immediacy, vintage optics, and one-of-a-kind physical objects.
The Sitting: 1.5 to 2 hours of dedicated studio or site-specific environmental portraiture.
The Process: Made on 4x5 large-format view cameras using classic Polaroid or Instax Wide instant sheet film backs (10 to 12 exposures created during the sitting).
The Artifacts:
10 to 12 original, physical instant film portraits rendered live during the sitting
High-resolution archival digital scans of all original works
Commission: From $1,350
The LEDGER
A dynamic, layered sitting leveraging digital medium format and vintage optics alongside analog film.
The Sitting: 1.5 hours of active portraiture designed for fluid experimentation, varied lighting setups, and real-time visual iteration.
The Process: Driven primarily by digital medium-format systems paired with vintage lenses, anchored by a single intentional roll of medium format analog film (10 exposures).
The Artifacts:
Integrated digital and film proofing gallery (40+ curated studies)
6 final finished portrait works, fully polished and retouched
Commission: From $850
The FOLIO Series
An unhurried, pure analog film sitting focused entirely on character, presence, and film emulsion depth (2 to 3 hours). Realized without digital creation across five distinct material scopes.
6X7 Medium Format Scopes
Essence I (B&W Only)
The Sitting: 2 hours dedicated to unhurried, character-driven portraiture under controlled studio lighting.
The Process: One roll of 6x7 Black & White film (10 exposures created).
The Artifacts:
Curated medium format film proofing gallery
5 final finished portrait works, fully polished and retouched
Commission: From $1,150
Essence II (Color Only)
The Sitting: 2 hours dedicated to unhurried, character-driven portraiture under controlled studio lighting.
The Process: One roll of 6x7 Color Negative film (10 exposures created).
The Artifacts:
Curated medium format film proofing gallery
5 final finished portrait works, fully polished and retouched
Commission: From $1,250
Essence III (B&W + Color)
The Sitting: 2.5 to 3 hours with deliberate pacing across multiple lighting setups.
The Process: Two rolls total—one B&W and one Color (20 total exposures created).
The Artifacts:
Comprehensive medium format film proofing gallery
10 final finished portrait works, fully polished and retouched
Commission: From $1,750
4x5 View Camera Scopes
Essence IV (Sheet Film — B&W or Color)
The Sitting: 2.5 to 3 hours centered on the deliberate, contemplative pace of large format sheet film portraiture.
The Process: 5 individual 4x5 sheet film exposures made on large format view camera.
The Artifacts:
Comprehensive sheet-film proofing gallery
3 final finished large-format portrait works, fully polished and retouched
Commission: From $1,650
Essence V (Sheet Film + Instant Film)
The Sitting: 3 hours of multi-system large format portraiture.
The Process: 5 individual 4x5 sheet film exposures + 8 physical instant film prints rendered live upon session conclusion.
The Artifacts:
Comprehensive sheet and instant film proofing gallery
5 final finished portrait works, fully polished and retouched
8 physical instant film portraits rendered live upon conclusion
Commission: From $2,150
HEIRLOOM EVENT PORTRAIT INSTALLATIONS
Dedicated, editorial portrait sittings executed on medium or large format—rendered on-location before, after, or separate from an event. Designed as high-touch, deliberate portrait encounters activated within private estates, ceremonial venues, or institutional environments.
INSTALLATION TIERS
Half-Day Milestone Installation (Up to 4 Hours On-Site)
Scope: Designed for focused ceremonial assemblies, formal spousal portrait suites, or multi-generational family groupings surrounding a milestone event.
Production Includes: Complete spatial lighting build, dedicated medium and/or large format camera staging, active direction, and up to 4 hours of dedicated portrait throughput.
Primary Deliverables: Includes base film/digital documentation allocation and master file package as scoped during pre-activation planning.
Investment: From $2,000
Full-Day Milestone Installation (Up to 8 Hours On-Site)
Scope: Designed for multi-phase celebrations, extended family reunions, or day-long rites of passage requiring multiple lighting setups or location transitions.
Production Includes: Comprehensive spatial lighting architecture, full multi-format camera configurations, continuous dedicated portrait throughput, and full-day spatial presence.
Primary Deliverables: Includes expanded film/digital documentation allocation, comprehensive proofing archive, and expanded master retouched package.
Investment: From $3,800
RECOGNIZED INSTALLATION SCOPES
Sittings include, but are not limited to:
Life Milestones & Ceremonial Honors (Centennials, major anniversaries, institutional appointments)
Pre- & Post-Ceremony Portrait Suites (Formal bridal or spousal portraiture, generational family assemblies)
Rites of Passage & Family Legacy Commissions (Matriarch/Patriarch studies, family crest/archive additions)
Publication & Legacy Keepsake Sittings (Bespoke fine-art monograph & heirloom print sittings)
(Please note: To preserve optical focus and spatial dignity, the studio provides dedicated, high-production portrait installations only and does not offer candid event coverage, reception documentation, or full-day wedding reporting.)
Commencement & Academic Sittings
Dedicated, reduced-scope sittings structured specifically for graduating students, candidates for advanced degrees, emerging artists, and scholars during the seasonal commencement window.
Student & Academic Accessibility: To support graduating scholars, specialized commencement tiers are available exclusively during the April 1 – July 15 window. Eligibility requires proof of upcoming or recent commencement, such as a valid institutional ID, degree petition, registrar letter, official regalia order receipt, or commencement program listing.
The Commencement
A tactile, live-chemistry studio or environmental sitting centered on immediacy, vintage optics, and one-of-a-kind physical objects.
The Sitting: 45 minutes to 1 hour of focused studio or campus environmental portraiture.
The Process: Created with medium or large format camera systems using classic instant film backs (8 to 10 exposures made during the sitting—one complete film pack).
The Artifacts:
8 to 10 original, physical instant film portraits delivered live upon session conclusion
High-resolution archival digital scans of all physical prints
Commission: From $450
The Cap & Gown
A dynamic, multi-setup graduation session blending the speed and flexibility of modern digital medium format with the distinct character of vintage lenses and a dedicated film sequence.
The Sitting: 1 hour of active portraiture under controlled studio light or natural open-air conditions.
The Process: Digital medium format portraiture using rare vintage lenses for a distinct optical character, anchored by a full roll of 120 medium format film (10 exposures made during the sitting).
The Artifacts:
Integrated digital and film proofing gallery (20+ curated studies, including high-resolution scans from the complete film sequence)
8 final finished portrait master files, fully retouched
Commission: From $700
CUSTOM ADDITIONS & ARCHIVAL PRINTING
Additional Retouched Master Files: $85 per file (includes high-resolution file and digital archive license).
Fine Art Museum-Grade Prints: Museum-rag cotton prints and custom framing services are quoted individually upon selection of final master files.
On-Location / Travel Commissions: Sittings outside the regional studio area are accommodated with travel expenses quoted in advance.
PAYMENT & COMMISSION TERMS
Booking & Retainers: All milestone sittings, family legacy assemblies, and commencement commissions are secured with a 50% retainer upon booking to lock in calendar availability and initiate your pre-session consultation. The remaining balance is due on the date of the sitting (or upon final proof review prior to master file release and heirloom artifact dispatch). Custom installment plans across up to 3 payments are available upon request for multi-generational family commissions.
Institutional & Academic Invoicing: Standard 50% retainer required. Net-30 invoicing, departmental purchase orders, and institutional billing are fully supported for university chairs, academic honors committees, and ceremonial appointments.
Scheduling & Pacing: Sittings are strictly limited each season to maintain unhurried personal care, thorough pre-sitting legacy alignment, meticulous analog or digital post-production, and dedicated archival artifact crafting.
COMMISSIONS & INQUIRIES
Sittings are strictly limited each season to maintain absolute material quality and personal attention. For session availability, location requests, or custom milestone consultations → Inquire About a Sitting