Professional Associations
We are a member of the following organizations:
Volume Imaging Professionals
Professional Photographers of Canada
More About Who We Are
We are proud to be Ontario’s oldest, family owned and operated school portrait photography company. Adanac Images crafts beautiful school portraits of students. Families value the emotional and timeless quality of our affordable product. Schools recognize our professionalism and trust us.
Let us tell you more about who we are …
The Core Values of Our Company
Customer Service
Our customers are human beings – not transactions or distractions. They deserve our attention and respect. The customer experience should be caring and even … fun! We will conduct business professionally and with integrity. We will “stay in the saddle” and work through problems. We strive each day to earn and keep your business.
Sustainability
We consider the long-term impact of our actions on our stakeholders and the environment. Profitability and giving back aren’t mutually exclusive. We believe sustainability should be “business as usual”.
Continuous Improvement
It is a privilege to be part of this industry. Education, new technologies, benchmarking, hiring and training make up our environment of continuous improvement. We celebrate our successes, learn from our mistakes and we are not afraid to fail forward. We’re only as good as the last job we did.
Our Journey to Today … from 1959
Our Humble Start
Maurice Oliver was bitten by the photography bug as a student growing up in Winnipeg. After high school he worked for Harold White Studios for four years doing wedding, portrait and commercial photography. After this he joined the RCAF and trained as a military photographer. He left the Air Force and married Betty Bushfield.
Together they set up a small studio called Maurice Oliver Photography in downtown St. Marys in 1959. The studio flourished doing weddings, school pictures and various portraits.
A Thriving Business
There was no dedicated school lab in Canada at the time so Maurice began acquiring processing and printing equipment so he could keep his school portrait work in-house. Maurice began soliciting processing work from other school photographers to keep his lab equipment busy. The lab was born!
Soon the volume of work became too much for the small downtown studio and a decision was made to expand. Maurice formed a partnership with John Wright, a successful school photographer, and in 1969 a parcel of land was bought on Queen Street at the east end of town and building began right away.
Why "Adanac"?
A new name was chosen for the lab – ADANAC Images. The name served two purposes: It identified the company as Canadian. “ADANAC” is simply Canada spelled backwards! Alphabetically, the company name would appear near the top of any list. After three years Maurice bought out John Wright.
The lab business grew steadily and an addition was added to the building in 1976. There have been many changes over the years but the business still remains in St. Marys and it is still owned by the Oliver family.
Mark & Janet Oliver
Mark Oliver, Maurice’s son, began working at ADANAC in 1983. Mark and his wife Janet took over the reigns in 1991 after both completed university degrees in photographic engineering technology at St. Cloud State University in Minnesota. We’ve been putting our family name on our work for two generations!
Our dedicated employees have accumulated over 120 years of experience and they keep our story unfolding, one portrait at a time! We’re proud to be Canada’s oldest, family owned, dedicated school photography lab. Welcome to our family!
Our Company History Photo Gallery
Maurice Oliver was stationed at the radar base in Clinton, ON where he served as a photographer in the RCAF, 1952
Maurice Oliver learning the ropes of commercial photography, 1955
New photography business opens in St. Marys, 1959
Maurice Oliver, 1960
Price List from 1961
Artist sketch for new Adanac building begun in 1969
Company van, 1971
Maurice and the “Love Bug” camera, 1971
Aerial view of Adanac, 1973
Building expansion, 1975
Aerial view of Adanac, 1986
Mark doing his best James Bond impression in front of package printer, early 1990s
Mark photographing students, early 1990s
Our lab has had to be reconfigured many times over the years as new technologies are adopted, early 2000s
Old Kreonite paper processor is readied for scrap, 2007
Analog film processing equipment in dumpster as company moves quickly into digital image processing, 2008
Obsolete film package printer, 2008
Janet posing with soon to be discarded spotting table, 2008
Tart box label 2009, showing staff
Tart box label 2010, showing staff
New outdoor sign installed in 2018
Jon McKinnon retired in 2019 after working at Adanac for 44 years.
Adanac staff, spring 2019
Sustainability should be Business As Usual
We consider the impact of our actions over the long-term on our customers, employees, families, suppliers, communities and the environment. We can’t continue to take and take without giving back. We believe sustainability should be “business as usual”. To that end, we have implemented the following.
Family Discount Program
With our Family Discount Plan, families pay full price for their first two children’s portraits. Additional children’s portraits are free! Conditions and restrictions apply. (K – 12 market only)
School Commission
We pay a 10% Commission to our schools, based on net sales. Over the years, this has provided schools with annual, stable, much-needed funds.
Supporting Local Food Banks
We operate a Food Drive at our pre-paid schools. Students who donate a non-perishable food item at the camera receive 8 free mini-portraits, no purchase necessary! Over the years we have generated tonnes of food for local food banks.
A Smaller Footprint
Adanac is Bullfrog-powered! We pay a premium to offset our electricity and natural gas usage. In turn, Bullfrog Power is able to make sure an equivalent amount of green energy is put into the grid or pipeline on our behalf. Since joining Bullfrog Power in 2007, we have been able to reduce our CO2 equivalent footprint emissions by 159 tonnes! (Figures provided by Bullfrog Power, January 2021)
A Cool Roof
Our white (cool) roof helps to reflect the sun’s heat and lowers our energy costs.
Adanac Recycles
We actively participate in our municipal recycling program and compost too.
Pesticide Free
We don’t allow the use of pesticides or synthetic fertilizers on our grounds. We have installed nesting boxes for birds. We have also installed a pollinator garden.
Supporting Local Matters
We regularly contribute what we can to local charity auctions, school fun-fairs, sports teams, etc. We have accepted students on co-op placements and we have participated in numerous career days.
Bow Wow!
Did we mention we’re a dog-friendly workplace?
Employment Opportunities at Adanac
Send Us Your Resume
There are currently NO job openings available at Adanac Images.
You are welcome to send us your resume. We will keep it in our file. Your information will be kept confidential.
Are you Creative, Motivated and seeking a Challenge?
Are You Considering Owning Your Own Business?
This second-generation, family business has prospered since starting in 1959. The company has been consistently profitable and enjoys recurring, dependable revenue from multiple channels.
Despite their youthful appearance, the current owners aren’t getting any younger and are looking to transition.
Do you have business skills and an interest in volume (schools & sports) photography? Are you creative, motivated and technology-minded? Do you seek personal independence and control? Have you considered owning your own business?
If you have the resources, let’s talk! Confidential and Serious inquiries only please.
©2022, ADANAC IMAGES
of ONTARIO LTD.
766 Queen Street East
P.O. Box 1240
St. Marys, Ontario
N4X 1B8 Canada
Toll Free: 888 323-2622
or 519 284-3850
