http://www.petclix.com/PET PHOTOS ON THE GO...
Submitted by admin on Sun, 2007-04-29 09:25.
PetClix handler/photographer Chris Kokuba of Clinton Township tries to pose Guppy the pug to mug for the camera inside the PetClix studio.
PetClix handler/photographer Chris Kokuba of Clinton Township tries to pose Guppy the pug to mug for the camera inside the PetClix studio.
Bubba, the chocolate Labrador from Grosse Pointe Farms, is coaxed to face the camera in the PetClix mobile photo studio last month. All kinds of animals -- from a trio of rats to a pot-bellied pig -- have posed there.
The Clinton Township-based PetClix mobile photo studio makes a stop in St. Clair Shores, as Annessa Scott of Grosse Pointe Farms arrives with her dog Bubba last month.
For information about upcoming visits by the traveling portrait studio PetClix, go to
www.petclix.com or call 866-738-2549.
Paul Brough's business of photographing pets from a roving RV might be a bit unusual, but the way he came up with the idea for his animal-centered entrepreneurial endeavor is age-old.
Brough, a 35-year-old resident of Clinton Township and owner of a mobile pet photography studio called PetClix, was looking for someone to take a picture of his bulldog Diesel about five years ago when he realized "there had to be a better way."
Like so many other business owners, he set off on a mission to discover it. He researched the pet portrait market. He invested $150,000 and customized an RV inside and out as he formed the company two years ago.
"It was a big hassle to find someone to do the picture, and what I did find was not good quality," said Brough, who operates PetClix with fiancee Mala Greenberg, 32. They employ a staff of five.
They set up the colorful 32-foot RV outside pet-related businesses around metro Detroit.
The company is on the verge of expanding by buying a second trailer and hiring a second team of employees. But first, a team is headed out west this coming week for the summer. Hundreds of appointments in California, Washington and Oregon are already scheduled.
"If 10 years ago you were to take portraits of your pets and hang them in your home, you were a psychopath," Brough said. "Now it's almost unusual if you don't have pictures of your pet around the house."
Since Petclix began, about 1,000 customers -- the human ones -- have come through with creatures of all kinds.
Brough, Greenberg and their staff members have become accustomed to working with all sorts of animals and people.
From the typical dog and cat to the more unusual rat, pig or lizards, a variety of pets turn up for appointments, which usually last about 20 minutes -- pretty impressive considering animals aren't too good at sitting still and saying cheese.
It gets pretty interesting. There was the pot-bellied pig that required a ramp to get up to the table to pose. She wore a bow tied around her tail and posed in very regal setting on a red velvet chaise lounge. In another more fitting sitting, the pig stood in front of a white picket fence and bales of hay.
One little dog wore a $1,000 diamond necklace and carried a Coach-brand handbag that was accented by the dog's perfectly polished nails -- something that might have made toy-dog-toting Paris Hilton envious.
One of the most memorable clients was the owner of three rats, one of them hairless.
They were posed for a Christmas card, like three cuddly little pointy-nosed elves, inside a miniature sleigh.
In another scene, one of the beloved little rodents' twitchy little whiskers and beady eyes peeked over the lip of a bright orange bowl.
The owner loved the work so much she paid $320 for prints.
Some clients spend $20 or $30 while others spends hundreds, said Brough. An 8-by-10 at PetClix costs $26.
The Tepel family is pretty typical of PetClix customers, even if Harriet Tepel is a bit embarrassed to have already had her pug dog Guppy photographed twice. He's not yet 2.
He lives with the Tepel family in Grosse Pointe Farms and has been the subject -- along with the Tepel kids Beatrice 15, and Hans, 11 -- of Christmas pictures and most recently Easter pictures, which were taken a few weeks ago outside the Dapper Dogs dog wash in St. Clair Shores.
"I'm almost embarrassed about it, but it was so convenient and so easy," said Tepel, vice president of Tepel Brothers Printing in Troy. "I don't even have professional portraits of my children done. I always say I want to, but I never do.
"If they hadn't been right there outside, it never would have happened in a million years.," she said. "I thought, 'Hey, this is perfect. I get the kids and the dogs, all in one fell swoop.' "
The Tepels bought some wallet-sized photos and a CD of the entire sitting. The CD rotates as a screensaver on Harriet Tepel's computer.
There are clients, unlike the Tepels, who want framed, larger-than-life likenesses of their pets displayed at their homes and offices, Brough said.
PetClix operates from a customized, 32-foot-long RV that's painted on the outside with a comical, cartoonish scene of dogs, cats and mice at a beauty salon.
Inside are the usual accoutrements of a photography studio. It's a bit cramped, but there's room to stand upright and move easily with several people inside.
There is a table where the animals -- and oftentimes their human companions -- pose.
Hanging from a wall nearby are about 15 curtain-like backdrops. There are a beach scene, a furry pink rug that's popular for little dogs, Christmas backgrounds, a patriotic motif, plain muslin colors and sports themes among the choices.
There are bins full of all sorts of props, along with hats, bow ties and jackets in dog sizes. On the other end of the RV is the viewing room that's just been renovated to include a built-in, L-shaped leather seating area, where just-photographed images can be reviewed on a high-definition TV.
What sets his business apart, Brough said, is location. He brings the studio to pet-related businesses, sets up in the parking lot and waits for customers who have seen the event advertised at the place of business being visited by the eye-catching RV.
The studio primarily visits pet stores, veterinarian offices and groomers. It also participates in charity events and works with churches, giving part of the proceeds to those organizations.
The studio is undergoing other renovations in preparation for the cross-country trip to California. A bathroom is being added and other changes are being made to make the studio more comfortable for distance travel.
"This business is about to blow up," Brough said. "We're very excited."
Link Found this on my travels, another coincidence! If you google Zedan+Michigan you will come up with them in the places in this article. Mainly women, a dentist and I think a realtor. But the town names was what grabbed my attention!
Also found this, the guy professes to be 28 and a brothel manager. I couldn't see any further than that.
MySpace.com - MR ZEDAN ESQUIRE - 28 - Male - SAINT CLAIR SHORES ...MySpace profile for MR ZEDAN ESQUIRE with pictures, videos, personal blog, ... i been in michigan for 3 weeks and the only time i seen you was when you were ...