02/20/2019
Woot Woot! We won an award!
Local Photography Business Wins National School Photography Award
Oneida, NY, 2019
BJK Photos, dba Best Eye Photography, was recently awarded the Best Practice Award at the School Photography Summit in Kansas City, MO. This award recognizes BJK Photos as leading by example by implementing standards to run their business in the most effective and efficient way, accurately communicating with customers and vendors.
“We’re honored to receive this recognition amongst a field of top performers in school photography,” stated Beth Jones, one of the owners of the company.
BJK Photos, LLC was established in 2017 and currently does business as Best Eye Photography. However, Best Eye Photography was originally launched in 2009 as a division of Vantine Imaging, a leading composite company located in Hamilton NY. As Vantine employees, Beth Jones and Janet King started Best Eye Photography in 2009 to diversify the markets served by the company. Best Eye Photography targeted the local school and sports markets. Under the guidance of Beth and Janet the company has grown from 5 schools to over 100 since photographing our first school in 2011.
Beth and Janet had the good fortune and the wonderful opportunity to purchase the company from David Vantine, owner of Vantine Imaging in the Spring of 2017. Thus the birth of BJK Photos, a combination of our names Beth Jones and Janet King.
“I like the lesson that this teaches my daughters. At any age, at any stage in your career, you can take a leap of faith and do something new. I had a goal of business ownership and making that happen in my mid-40s is no small feat,” commented Beth.
Beth had worked at Vantine Imaging for 17 years and focused on growth and development. As National Sales and Marketing Manager, Beth was responsible for market and product development, sales and marketing, new business and retention. She embraced the opportunity to own and operate the Best Eye Photography company and starting the next chapter of her career. Beth makes her home in Sherrill NY with her husband Connelly and two daughters, Madelynn and Juliette. Beth understands what families want when it comes to photography. She represents the current demographic of our target market.
Like Beth, Janet had a long tenure at Vantine Imaging. For 16 years Janet served a variety of roles such as Customer Service Manager, IT Coordinator & IT Manager. Responsible for the company database and system development, she worked closely with Beth to develop systems and processes to enhance the customer experience and improve efficiencies for the company. Janet lives in Hamilton NY with her husband Tom. They spend their free time with their 4 children and 8 grandchildren, loving every minute!
Like the company name, our combined experience makes us the perfect business partners. While neither of us are photographers by trade, we have a wonderful team of talented and passionate photographers. Creating a fun and energetic company culture, focused on both the employees and our customers, is our ultimate goal. We both love what we do and compliment each other, making this an exciting and successful journey. “We have been blessed and it is such an honor to receive this national recognition for our efforts,” stated Janet.
The School Photography Summit is an association of professional school photographers across the United States underwritten by H&H Color Lab. Founded in 2011, the School Summit brings together some of the nation’s top school photographers in an annual event to shape the best of class product quality, customer service, integrity and business practices amongst independent school photography businesses.
