Color Rite Photos and Portraits --   Alexandria    by Olivia Richards,  Herman Review    Paul Blume celebrated his first anniversary as the owner of Color Rite Photos and Portraits in Alexandria in February. The store is located at 504 3rd Avenue East, or just four blocks east of "Big Ole" in Alexandria.    The store offers one hour photo finishing, in-store photography, on-location photography such as family photos or weddings, custom framing, along with retail photography supplies.    Paul's interest in photography stemmed from a wedding gift given him by his bride, Beth, on their honeymoon trip to northern Minnesota 21 years ago. The gift was a 35 mm camera, which he still has in his possession. That camera started an interest in photography that grew from a hobby into a business.    At first, Paul said, he tagged along with Shirley Libbon of Chokio, who is a seasoned photographer in her own right. He picked up tips from her and they worked together for a couple of years.    Paul launched his career as Paul Blume Photography on October 7, 1989, with a booking to take photos at Pete and Rita Kaiser's wedding which was held at the Eden Reformed Church in Herman. That was the start of a long list of couples in the area he has helped preserve wedding memories for.    Now, while at the store, Paul continues to take wedding bookings, and says he still has some dates open going into summer.    Senior graduation photos are taken in-studio as well as on location. There are several parks in Alexandria that provide good background material. One senior girl even brought her horse to an Alexandria park to have with her on her photos.    Paul has learned the art of photography through trial and error, he says, with every photo shoot a challenge, even now.    Paul is expanding on custom framing at the store. Recently he spent a week at classes sponsored by Larson Juhl Company, a large framing company in the Twin Cities. Since then Paul has added hundreds of corner samples, and new mat samples, enabling the customer to choose from an array of inventory to get the most attractive look for the item to be framed.    True Value and Home Center in Herman is a drop-off site for photo finishing at Color Rite Photos and Portraits. Paul picks up the spent film cartridge and returns with the finished photos for pick-up by the next day.    Paul has five full-time employees at the store, with one specializing in taking children's photos. The employees are experienced in developing, reproducing and enlarging prints, and making reprints, and have the use of a scanning machine to restore or copy old photos.    Recently Paul has been invited to speak to groups about photography and enjoyed it. He has visited 4-H club meetings and some miscellaneous church group gatherings. He says he is willing to come and share what he has learned.    To book a photo shoot for any occasion, you can call the store at 320-763-4539. Store hours are 9 a.m. until 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 10 a.m. until 5 p.m. Saturdays.    Back to top of page     Home   Location   Agriculture   Business   Education   Recreation   Churches   City of Herman   Development  History   Keep in Touch   Got Photos?   Herman, USA   Area Links