Capturing eMotion: English expat Linda Atschreiter has developed quite a reputation for making portrait photography pop at her Foto eMotion studio in Zug. So my husband, our travelling garden gnome Frastian and I got in front of her camera to see what the fuss was all about.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Two short stops outside central Zug sits the Foto emotion studio in a clean, compact room that manages to maintain a spacious feel. Linda Atschreiter, an amiable, funny, expatriated Briton, is the artistic force of the studio, which specialises in family photography featuring newborns, grandparents and every age in between. Beloved pets, too.

Linda, a trained chef, came to Switzerland in 1982, where she ended up settling with her Austrian husband. Her interest in photography blossomed nine years ago when her son, Alex, was born. "Suddenly I had this great model," she explains.

After working in other photography studios, she set up her own business in 2008. "I always wanted to be self-employed. I said to myself, it really is now or never."

Making photos "pop"

Employing the studio's white backdrop brings her distinctive style to life, causing subjects to seemingly burst from the resulting photographs. "The white background makes the images pop out. They are more dynamic," says Linda. This result is "why people want to come to me".

Unlike a typical portrait photographer, Linda doesn't adjust each individual pose during the session, preferring instead to capture the experience as it happens. "I take the stress out of a visit to the photo studio," she says. "Nobody need pose--I animate my customers to have fun, be themselves and forget the camera, thus enabling me to capture the magic of each individual family."

Of course, when only shooting one or two people, she does have to be a bit more hands-on. For our photo session, Linda suggested a few ideas to get my husband Chris and I animated and interacting with each other.

She had us sit back-to-back atop black square seats and compete to see who could stay upright the longest as we pushed against each other; we arm wrestled, (play) fought over--and ate--ice cream cones, and generally canoodled, cuddled and laughed, while Linda caught the lighthearted mood.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

"The biggest job for me is to make people feel at ease," Linda tells us. Her laid-back manner made us comfortable from the word go, while her presence--and that of the camera--was never intrusive. Her small instructions regarding body, head and eye positioning ensured we looked our best. (No small task since Chris and I rarely manage to look photogenic at the same time!)

While she employs various poses for adults, Linda never asks children to pose. Instead, she catches them at their best as they play games, bounce on trampolines or chase bubbles.

Though the majority of Linda's sessions are for family or pet photography, she recently turned her hand to energising business-style photographs as well. Some people will say to me "I want your style, but for business," she explains. These clients are usually searching for a fresh, innovative way to present themselves on CVs and business websites.

For the future, she hopes her signature style "becomes a bit of a brand, even on a small scale. That when you say 'Foto eMotion', you know what you are going to get."

The screening room

Linda's goal for the fun, creative and personal photo shoot is to produce images she can transform into "stunning mounted pictures that complement the customer's home interior". (Yet the work continues long after her subjects leave the studio. Following each shoot are about six to 10 hours of post-production work.)

Shoots typically last for an hour to an hour and a half, and cost SFr 150. This should allow customers to have enough cash left over to purchase a high-quality artistic product, if they like the outcome, Linda says. She only sells framed or mounted prints.

"I want to be able to designate the quality," she expands. "I want the photos hung on walls, not gathering dust in a drawer." This is one of the reasons her two suppliers in Switzerland hand-assemble each finished product.

Going back to see our results, we entered Linda's studio to find it transformed into a private cinema. Understanding something of humankind's (or, more to the point, womankind's) critical nature, she instructed us to be open to the spontaneity of the photos. Then the curtains were drawn and the lights dimmed, as we settled down on vintage red velvet cinema seats to view the "presentation".

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

We were both pleased with the number of fun, natural shots she was able to capture. And Chris, not particularly excited by the prospect of an afternoon in a photo studio, was pleasantly surprised by the experience as a whole. He is now even insisting that I let him help choose which photos we purchase!

The sky's the limit

In terms of options for both the session and the final product, the sky literally is the limit. Linda recognises that the shoot is "about the person you are" and says she wants to "represent that in a very nice way".

She has photographed ballerinas, a trio of harmonica players in stage attire, kids hamming it up for the camera and even a tattooed Harley rider and his sidekick, a French bulldog. She welcomes whatever will make customers feel most like themselves, and most at home.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

When it comes to picking out a photo or series of photos to hang, Linda offers customers almost infinite flexibility. Photos can be printed on canvas, glass and forex boards (thick wooden panels) or placed in traditional frames, where sizes range from 30 cm by 20 cm small sets, to wall-encompassing 120 cm by 80 cm oblong works of art. In fact, as long as the picture's resolution is high enough, print size can likely outgrow your budget.

"A big part of the concept" is that "it should be something that really adds to your home," she says. "It should be part of your home interior, your home decoration." Linda explains that since the possibilities are endless, she is happy to work with each customer individually to make sure their expectations are exceeded.

"I want [people] to walk away saying, 'I enjoyed the experience, and I love the photos. I will hang that up--it's full of emotion.'"

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Say cheese

The photo session costs SFr 150. This includes a 1- to 1.5-hour shoot, 6-10 hours of post-production work, and at least 25 finished pictures to choose from, which are provided in presentation format on a USB stick.

Mounted photographs start at SFr 175, and can be printed on canvas, glass and forex boards, or put into more traditional frames. The frames are made of wood (two sizes, five shades) and metal (light and dark silver).

There is a 10 per cent discount for the first product ordered, and 20 per cent off each subsequent order that is made within around 7-10 days of viewing the photos.

Once you've picked your photo(s) and style, the production turnaround is 10 days for forex and canvas; and 2-3 weeks for glass and frames.

Linda also offers gift vouchers, available in any amount; perfect holiday presents for family or friends.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

www.foto-emotion.ch