FAQ's

An hour's portrait session in the studio for an individual or family (parents and children) is €100. An hour's portrait session for an extended family (parents, children and grandchildren) or other large group is €175. A deposit on your Custom Wall portrait is due on the day of the session. You may also like to avail of one of our all-inclusive packages which are detailed in our shop.

Our Custom Wall Portraits range in price from €315 up to €2,595 including a choice of bespoke made-to-order Italian frame.

Most clients spend between €650 and €2,900 on the portraits.

Call the studio on 01 2845544 and have a chat about what you'd like us to create for you.

If possible, it's a good idea to arrange a visit the studio here in Dalkey before you make your booking, to have a brief consultation in person.

Our walls display the different styles of finished portrait to inspire you, and you can expect us to create one of the styles from your own session. Seeing the choices available in advance is the very best way to "Prepare Well". You may decide to wear certain clothes or colours depending on which style appeals to you - and that is an easier choice to make when you've planned in advance. We can discuss your ideas and schedule your Studio Portrait session appointment at a time that suits your family.

We take commissions with the expectation that you would like us to create at least one Custom Wall Portrait from your session. If you are happy to do this, then you should schedule your studio session and your viewing appointment.

The session - the important bit! -  is the time we spend creating the portraits in the studio for you. This is when the magic happens.

For a Family Portrait Session, we allow about an hour, any less time can make the experience too intense, especially for younger children. Any longer and smiles can start to become 'fixed'. You can see in our portfolio, we like expressions to be as natural as possible. This may be your first ever portrait session with us. Or it could be one from a series of portraits we are creating for your changing and growing family. If you have no specific plans at the beginning, don't worry, we'll help you decide what's going to be best for you. Your portraits will be created in your choice between our black white or our colour work.

You can book your Portrait Session appointment at our studio by phoning +353 1 284 5544, and we'll also schedule your Viewing & Ordering appointment to take place within 3 weeks of your session.

A €100 booking fee is required to reserve your time in our studio's camera room with one of our photographers, and you may already have a Gift Voucher that covers this fee. Do book in advance for very specific dates like birthdays, anniversaries, reunions and communion days. Saturday is naturally a popular day for family portraits and tends to book up first, as do holidays and school mid-terms.

*Please be sure to read our cancellation policy.

When you book your Portrait Session, you will also book your in-person Viewing & Ordering appointment to return and order your portraits within 21 days of your portrait session. This is the only and best method for choosing your PHOTOGENIC portraits.

This is the time when you will be making important purchasing decisions about which images to frame for your walls. This is a business meeting, so you should plan to come to this appointment without very young children.

You will view your images on a large TV here and we will print and prepare only the portraits that you love the most.

The finished size and framing style choice is entirely your decision and an experienced PHOTOGENIC colleague will offer guidance to you. If you have planned well, you will know what style of portrait has been created and you'll have thought about where and how you would like to display your pieces, or who you would like to give gifts to. 

So now you sit back and choose your favourite photographs. The selection process is always an exciting, enjoyable, decision making time.

After you have chosen your favourite images we will get to work literally making each piece individually - from hand printing to custom framing. We bring your portraits to life and we do this using only the best materials, technicians and craftsmen.

This is almost always the first question we're asked. Clothes do set the mood of a portrait - think of a communion or graduation portrait. Think of how you know the difference between a family group portrait taken at a wedding as opposed to one taken at a picnic from your own family album - the clothes set the tone and tell the story as much as anything else.

There are no 'rules' about what you should wear for your portrait. Your portrait should be whatever you want it to be - authentically you! There are some guidelines that can help if your want a particular style or mood of portrait and we do have some suggestions to help in this regard.

You might like to choose either formal or casual clothing for the family members. It's not a good idea to have one person in jeans and runners while everyone else wears suits or vice versa. If you like a light & summery overall style, with white or pale pastel tops, chinos or pale jeans, white background etc, then having one person in a striped top or black jeans may mean the portrait doesn't have the look and feel you had envisaged.

Similarly, for a classic, low-light portrait - one where the faces and hands of the subjects are so important - we recommend darker colours and tones for your clothing and we create your portrait on a darker background.

Wear what you like and feel comfortable in too. It's not necessary to buy anything new or wear clothes you feel are out of character for your family.

If you would like colour portraits, then you need to think about how the colours you choose will look hanging on the wall in you home. Will the colours tone or clash with your décor (and does it matter) ? Strong colours will be very striking and will stand out. Pastel shades blend in and can also look well in most home décor environments. Black and white portraits emphasise tones, textures and contrasts. Choose simple clothing and avoid very strong patterns and big logos. Ask any of us when booking if you have any concerns about clothing - we have a lot of experience of advising clients with families in every age group.

For inspiration have a look in our galleries, and on our Instagram page.

For women, get ready for your portrait session as you would if you were going out some place nice - hair the way you like it, some make-up and your favourite feel-good outfit will all help you relax and enjoy the session.

For men, the usual shave if you are clean-shaven and again your favourite smart casual clothes will ensure you look good and feel good in your portrait. Experience has shown us that parents often arrive with no intention of joining their children in their portrait. As the session progresses and is enjoyable, a decision is often made to 'jump in'. This is great because we love photographing families together. What isn't so good is having any regrets - we call them the '...if onlys' - "If only I'd worn X, Y or Z...." trust us on this one. It's always good to talk with us or visit for a consultation so we can help you get the very best from your session with us.

At PHOTOGENIC we have a particular reputation for our work with very young children & babies, and we have experience of working with every age group (our youngest clients have been only days old).

Toddlers rarely sit still for more that a few seconds at a time, and babies can be unpredictable about sleeping and feeding. Relax, we know all about children and we know how to engage even the youngest child long enough to capture their personality.

You need to do a little extra planning to help us make the portrait session go smoothly, so email us at the link below and we'll send you an email packed with tried and tested tips for getting the best out of you child's portrait session.

Send me your hints & tips!

PHOTOGENIC is open Tuesday to Saturday 9am - 5.30pm. We're open late on Wednesday evenings until 8.30pm by appointment only. Tuesday-Fridays only we may close for lunch 1.30pm - 2pm. PHOTOGENIC is closed on Sunday and Monday.

You can come & visit our studio and gallery and see the Custom Wall pieces on display in person before you book your portrait session. This will help you decide what style of our work you prefer, what size of Custom Wall Portrait you would like us to create and we can give you sound & practical advice which will help you get the very best out of your session with us.

At peak booking times like Christmas and school holidays we give priority to clients who are voucher holders so be sure to mention this when booking or enquiring. Use this link to make your enquiry.

Our vouchers are valid at face value for 5 years from the date of purchase and can be fully refunded within 28 days of purchase if no booking has been made with it.

Some gifts may be part of a particular programme like PHOTOGENIC Babies Month-by-Month. Some have bonus values when used within a time period. It's advisable to contact us about your voucher with us as soon as you receive it and check any time sensitive terms or bonuses.

Holders of Vhi Invitations should use the dedicated Vhi member page.

Be sure to book in early for important occasions, birthdays or for that all-important generations family portrait.

Parking at the studio is mostly on-street and the Parking Tag App, which covers all of Dublin, also works in Dalkey. The parking zone is DH.

The DART Station car park is separately managed by APCOA and costs €4.50 (fee is a minimum charge and per day).

PHOTOGENIC is on the ground floor and there are no steps into, or within the building, making every public part of it accessible for all clients.

Cancelled Sessions

The €100/€175 booking fee - payable at the time of booking your studio session or covered by your Gift Voucher - is refundable or transferable only with 7 days notice of cancellation for Saturdays or 48 hours for weekday bookings. Please alert us to your cancellation by calling 01 284 554.

Cancelled Viewings

Viewing appointments can be rescheduled to occur within 21 days of your session, also with 7 days or 48 hour notice as detailed above. For viewings outside the 21 day timeline, an additional deposit of €100 is required to schedule a new appointment.

No Show

In the event of not showing for an appointment, your €100/€175 session fee or €100 is forfeit respectively for studio session and viewing appointments - this is not negotiable. Further appointments will be offered only at the discretion of the studio - this is also not negotiable.

Gift Vouchers

Some gifts have added/bonus value which is time sensitive like our Christmas Bonus Offer, PHOTOGENIC Babies Month-by-Month, Mother's Day & Father's Day and Family & New Baby Special - the latter has added value up until the month of the new baby's first birthday only. These limited offers have strict T&Cs for the added value, but are valid at face value for 5 years and may be subject to an additional purchase.

Promotional Offers & Gifts

We regret that cancellations and rescheduling of bookings of Promotional or Incentive Offers are limited and at the discretion of the studio. Promotional Offers can be rebooked once only and moved to a weekday only.

It's advisable to contact us about your Gift Voucher as soon as you receive it and check any time seasonal terms or bonuses.

PHOTOGENIC is open by appointment only.

We now operate on an appointment only policy, and it will no longer be possible to enter the studio without either an appointment or by calling ahead to 01 284 5544. This will also apply when you are collecting your finished portraits.

Both the appointment for your Portraits Session and your Viewing & Ordering appointment will be made when you call to book with us and this will limit the amount of time you spend at the studio after your session.

Our cancellation policy applies and can be read above.

We cannot proceed with any appointments where clients arrive more than 15 minutes late.

A hand sanitising unit is located inside the door for our clients.