Cherished Snapshots Photography is booming.

Jenn Hafelfinger covered three weddings, took four airplane trips and two road trips in one week recently as the word has gotten out about her unique and affordable photography service, she said.

She does all kinds of shoots for individuals and families, but they are not just the standard studio portraits.

Hafelfinger may take a graduating senior to an unusual spot for senior pictures, put a family in an ordinary setting or catch children in spontaneous situations to create something which can be cherished for years to come, she said.

Of course, she can do a studio session, but her gift is capturing people being natural, Hafelfinger said.

Clients like her to do unusual things, perhaps catching just the right angle as a family walks through the grass or as family members play together, or even sitting on a train, she said.

She likes to do things that are “out of the box,” Hafelfinger said.

For instance, she once photographed a senior in her prom dress under a shopping center waterfall, and hiked seven miles to the top of a mountain for a graduating senior photo session, she said.

The point of all of this is to bring out the person's character, to capture real moments, not just posed shots, Hafelfinger said.

She wants to capture real life â€" moments which invoke emotion through the years,  she said.

She also does maternity shoots, in which a mother interacts with her child, and wedding photography.

Sessions run from 1-1/2 to 2 hours at a price of $75 to $135, with prints and a CD of the photos included, Hafelfinger said.

Customers have the right to print their own photographs off the CD, which is different from the way many photographers keep the rights to the photos they take, she said.

“They belong to them,” Hafelfinger said.

Hafelfinger was raised in Fort Collins and took some classes in photography at Loveland High School, but her real training came from her father, she said.

He was an avid hobby photographer and taught her everything from how to use a darkroom to the purpose of filters, starting at the age of 9, Hafelfinger said.

She used to do licensed day care for many years and began taking photos for families on the side, she said.

Once she moved to Wiggins about a year ago â€" with her husband Jim, and children, Kendall, 9, and Autumn, 8 â€" she decided to go all the way to start her own photography business, Hafelfinger said.

Since then, she's traveled as far as Oregon to do a session and travels all over Colorado, Wyoming and Nebraska regularly, she said.

Much of her business comes from friends of those for whom she has already done sessions, Hafelfinger said.

She will help her clients to put their photos on sites like Facebook, and people are intrigued by her style, which leads to another session, she said. This has helped in the boom for her business.

Those who want to see her work can go to her Web site at www.cherishedsnapshots.com.

To schedule a session call her at 970-483-6403 or e-mail her at cherishedsnapshots@ymail.com.

â€" Contact Dan Barker at business@fmtimes.com.