MSU Students Offering Free Holiday Portraits to 45 Families

BOZEMAN — Montana State University will provide free holiday portraits for about 45 local families on Dec. 6 during Community Portrait Day, a service-learning event held by the School of Film and Photography.

From 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., MSU’s Visual Communications Building will transform into a holiday scene decorated with balloons, snacks and activity stations for families waiting to have their portraits taken in studios. Each session lasts 15 minutes and is photographed and edited by students in an advanced lighting practices course. Attendees will receive an 8-by-10-inch print and about a dozen digital images after their portrait session.

“To capture lasting memories for people from this community that they can keep with them and cherish for years is meaningful,” said course instructor Matt MaCoy, who participated in his first Community Portrait Day as a photography student in 2016. “Not a lot of people have the luxury to get family photos every year. It makes me feel like I’m welcoming them into this community where I was welcomed as well.”

Community Portrait Day, which began in 2009, is a time-honored tradition for many local community members who cannot typically afford holiday portraits. MaCoy said one family has returned to the studios for 12 years, from the time their daughter was 6 years old to when she turned 18 last year. The family is one of hundreds photographed since the event’s creation, spearheaded by MSU photography professor Alexis Pike.

Along with photographs, families receive gifts for their children at the event, such as toys or art supplies. MSU and the Great Rocky Mountain Toy Company will also provide $50 gift cards for each family.

To cover the cost of portraits and gifts, 11 juniors and seniors in MSU’s advanced lighting course raised $3,270 — and counting — by visiting local businesses and campus organizations. MaCoy said coordinating fundraising, organizing spreadsheets and learning about tax deductions was just as valuable to the upper-level students as honing their studio skills.

“Thinking about all the bits and pieces that go into an event like this has been super interesting,” said Abbey Reinicke, a senior from Missoula studying integrated lens-based media. “Those are all things I haven’t really done, so it’s been a fun experience to work with my peers and facilitate a community event.”

Reinicke, who developed an interest in gallery work and alternative photographic processes at MSU, will rotate between roles during the event, taking portraits, assisting photographers with children, greeting families and lightly retouching photographs.

“Students leave with an immense sense of gratification for having done this,” MaCoy said.

To attend Community Portrait Day, families must fill out a registration form. There are limited spots available, which are only open to those who would not otherwise be able to afford portraits.

Contact: Matt MaCoy, School of Film and Photography instructor, at [email protected]