Studio Spotlight: Offspring Studios — Experience, Family, and a Fresh Start

By Peter Koop

Starting a photography studio from scratch is never simple, even when you’ve already done it once before. Offspring Studios represents both a return and a reinvention for me. This time, I get to build something together with my daughter, Rowan Foote, right at home in Sherwood Park, Alberta, Canada.

Our goal was straightforward from the start: to create a studio that values authentic portraits, real connection, and manageable growth. No empire building, no frantic pace - just meaningful work, done well, for our schools and families.

Simplifying Operations with Airstudio & Captura

Running a school portrait business can be a juggling act - bookings, schedules, communication, production, galleries, and all the rest. After running my first company, The Icon Experience, for 17 years before selling it to Lifetouch, I knew what worked… and what didn’t.

When Rowan and I decided to restart, I wanted to do it smarter. We built Offspring Studios from the ground up using Airstudio and Captura - tools that integrate scheduling, CRM, workflow, and gallery delivery into one seamless system.

The impact has been huge. Everything we need - client communication, task tracking, session details is in one place. No more juggling spreadsheets or searching for information across five different tools. It’s simplified, transparent, and lets us stay focused on what matters: the experience we give each client.

A Second Start with Purpose

Offspring Studios is more than a business restart - it’s a second chapter with new priorities.

After selling my first studio, I spent several years working on the software side of the photography industry. When that company was acquired by private equity, I found myself thinking seriously about what comes next. My daughter was looking for meaningful full-time work with a better work-life balance, and I was looking for something more grounded - and maybe a long-term retirement plan that still keeps a camera in my hands.

That conversation turned into a new beginning.

In our first year, we photographed eight schools, including a high school with roughly 400 grads and now in our second year, we’ve grown to 20 schools, including another high school with about 150 grads. It hasn’t all been smooth sailing - a national postal strike and a provincial teacher strike kept us on our toes - but overall, the response has been fantastic.

Our long-term goal is to stay small and deliberate: about 75 to 85 schools, mostly elementary, with a few seniors, sports, and dance clients mixed in. Rowan and I are personally at most shoots, and yes, that limits how big we can grow - but that’s entirely the point. We’d rather deliver a personal, consistent experience than chase volume for the sake of it.

When I think back to 1999, building my first company (The Icon Experience), it was all about hustle - just trying to get any business on the books. We started in the film days and rode through the digital transition in the early 2000s. I remember how long everything took back then. We even shot in RAW for the first couple of years, which meant endless processing time. Eventually, software caught up, computers got faster, and suddenly we could grow - 175 schools at our peak. But we also had more than 25 people on staff just to keep up.

Fast forward to today, and the efficiencies are incredible. You can pull a background, retouch a portrait, and even crop automatically with AI. It’s wild to see how far things have come. But here’s the thing - the heart of the job hasn’t changed. You still must create a genuine, flattering, creative image of each person who steps in front of your camera. Whether it’s a Hasselblad and film or a digital sensor and AI, that part never goes away.

And honestly, that’s where we want to live. We know it’s dollars and cents that keep a company alive and thriving, and sure, statements like “chasing the perfect shot” might sound a little utopian. The truth is, if you’re chasing that perfect shot, the dollars will follow. It’s when you start chasing the dollars and forget about the shot that things begin to slip and this is what some of the big companies seem to have lost sight of in their pursuit of growth. They have openly dropped the actual image to the bottom of their priorities where sales techniques have risen to the top.

When every photo still matters - when every face still feels personal - that’s when you know you’re doing it right. The big guys can keep chasing numbers. We’ll keep chasing the perfect shot and if you capture it – they will buy it!

What’s Working for Us

• Airstudio: CRM, scheduling, task management, and communication in one

• Captura: Streamlined production workflow and gallery delivery

• Owner Presence: We’re on site for nearly every shoot

• Local Focus: Keeping our footprint close to home for stronger relationships

• Authentic Portraits: Natural posing, outdoor creativity, and real expressions

Who We Are

Offspring Studios is a Sherwood Park–based father-daughter photography studio. Between us, we bring over 30 years of experience in school, sport, and grad portraits. Our specialty is natural, creative outdoor photography - capturing kids as they truly are.

We’re proud to be part of the Sherwood Park community and to work with schools that value quality, connection, and authenticity as much as we do.

Rebuilding a company later in life has its challenges - but it also comes with perspective. There’s something deeply satisfying about doing it again, this time with intention, and with family.

Peter Koop

Co-Founder, Offspring Studios