When Bob Gassen came around the corner holding up a camera, his children used to run from him.

“Here comes Kodak Bob again – run!” They would tease.

Now, most people tend to smile when they see Gassen. He’s been a part of many families, documenting major milestones from live births to senior portraits and weddings.

In fact, people feel quite at home when they visit Gassen’s studio, HumaNature Photography, in Kirkland. His dogs, Luna and Kit, are usually wagging their tails at the front door to greet visitors.

Gassen and wife, Mary, moved to the area 27 years ago from Milwaukee, Wis. so Gassen could continue his career as a computer programmer and consultant.

By the end of the ’90s, the tech community “crashed” and there were few jobs available, Gassen recalled.

So he decided to pick up his camera and take his hobby of photography to a professional level.

Ten years ago, he started HumaNature Photography and worked out of his Redmond home before moving his business to Market Street after a couple years.

“When I started my business, I thought I would’ve loved to be a photographer for National Geographic, travel the world and I would do nature/landscape stuff,” Gassen said. “So I realized very quickly that there are no jobs like that.”

Instead, he did people photography part time, and when the weather in the area was bad, he traveled south to do nature/landscape photography.

That’s how his sister-in-law came up with the name HumaNature Photography.

But as his business evolved, Gassen realized his best market was people.

“And then as we got into it, people said, ‘Bob, you’re pretty good with bringing out people’s personality, their human nature,’ so the name just evolved with us as we settled in to do people photography,” he said.

When his son was a Lake Washington High School junior, Gassen had him round up his friends and he shot their senior portraits.

After shooting senior portraits and family sessions, Gassen wasn’t sure where to go next to expand his business. Someone suggested weddings.

“No, no. I’ll never become a wedding photographer – too much stress, too much pressure to get it right the first time,” he recalled of his response.

But his niece was getting married that year and asked Gassen to take her wedding pictures. He declined to be her official photographer, but instead brought along his camera and took pictures while he enjoyed the wedding.

The couple ended up liking Gassen’s images better than the pros they hired, so he got into the wedding business as well.

“Well the next logical progression is pregnant moms and babies and kids and the kids grow up to be seniors,” Gassen said of how he’s expanded his market. “So over time, we’ve created this whole circle of life approach to our business where no matter where you come in the cycle, we want to keep you in the circle forever.”

For his senior portraits, he shoots in his upstairs studio, or he goes where the students want to go – water skiing, to the mountains to play in the snow, the ocean, on their family’s boat.

“Just whatever allows them to express who they are,” he said, adding, “It’s a whole lot different than when I was a high school senior. You’d go to a studio, get your mugshots – click, click, click, done. Next.”

He spends at least an hour with each senior, allows them to try on as many outfits as they want and use whatever props they want.

Often times, once Gassen is in a family, he becomes the family photographer.

He points to a portrait on his studio wall of a high school senior, an extended family member of former Mayor Bill Woods.

“Their cousin Cynthia got married, who happens to be Bill Woods granddaughter, so we got into the other side of the Woods family and photographed Cynthia’s wedding a couple of years ago,” he added.

When Woods’ son, Tom and wife, Hilda, were recently killed by a drunk driver, Gassen shared the pain of loss with the family. He supplied images of Tom and Hilda for their funeral.

“It’s hard because we do get close to our customers,” he said. “We really do become part of the family.”

Gassen also shares the good times with families.

He has done destination photography, where he travels with families on vacation or on a trip.

In his studio, he picks up a thick storybook wedding album and points to pictures of Kirkland residents Catherine Alford and Brett Flowers. He went on a week-long cruise with them to the Bahamas to document their wedding four years ago.

The couple stopped in his studio one day and said they could get a photographer on the boat to shoot the wedding as part of the package, but they didn’t know who they were going to get. So they picked Gassen to come along.

As he got to know the family, Gassen took pictures of the couple’s bon voyage party and wedding when the boat was docked in St. Thomas. During the trip, Catherine invited him to go parasailing.

“It’s an amazing experience because you get up there and you can see right down to the bottom of the water,” he said.

Another day, the group went on a helicopter tour and swam with the manta rays, “which was really freaky as they swim along and brush up against you,” Gassen laughed. “That’s what’s really fun about my business is becoming part of the family and doing things with them.”

Aside from the familial aspect of his business, Gassen says he enjoys being a part of the community, taking photographs of such events as the Kirkland Rotary Duck Dash or the downtown Christmas tree lighting.

And he just loves what he does.

“I love it when people come back to me and say I hate getting my picture taken, but you made it so much fun and so enjoyable. And when they take their picture home and put it on the mantel above the fireplace, I just love that feeling.”

More information

HumaNature Photography is located at 730 Market Street in Kirkland. Call 425-822-3868 or visit www.humanaturephoto.com.