Leslie Wombacher is surrounded by her work at the framing and photography shop she owns with her husband, John, in Bucksport.—STAFF PHOTO BY NICK GOSLING

Framing and Photography Shop Has New Approach to Portraits
BUCKSPORT — Consistent with her passion for photography, Leslie Wombacher takes pains to display the treasures and heirlooms that people bring to her for framing in a visually stunning way.

“Fine Art with You in It” — Sundial Framing and Photography slogan

Like photography, there’s definitely a good deal of art involved in the framing business.

“You really kind of have to be an artist to be a framer,” said Wombacher, who does all the framing by hand, handling a joiner and matte cutter instead of a paintbrush and palette.

With each subject (a chunk of birch bark, a program from the Chicago World’s Fair, a Michael Jordan-signed practice jersey — yes, she’s done them all) Wombacher gets an idea of where the subject-owner plans to hang it, what style of house they have and what mold design would look best.

“Each frame, each molding has a style to it,” she said in Sundial Framing and Photography LLC, the framing and photography shop Leslie and her husband, John, own on Main Street.

Wombacher’s artistic eye comes in handy when she has to color coordinate matting, select a characteristic molding and determine how, using archival- or museum-quality UV-protected glass, the item will be placed in the frame.

Over the almost two years she and her husband have owned the store, Wombacher has also had to use a bit of ingenuity to, in some cases, fit a square peg in a round hole.

“I’m pretty capable of framing just about anything people bring to me,” she said. “You could frame a violin if you wanted to. It would require some engineering and some creativity, but you could do it.”

Both photographers for over 20 years now, the Wombachers know all about the trials and tribulations of the struggling artist and offer discounts to artists wanting to frame their works. As a rule, Leslie said, they keep their framing prices down and for photo shoots hand over all negatives and/or digital photos to the customers.

“I don’t believe in holding people’s originals hostage,” said Wombacher. 

As for the photography, both John and Leslie offer their own unique styles (John’s a little more “classic and timeless”, says his wife, who characterizes her own photos as “fun and playful”) and shoot everything from portraits to weddings to everything in between.

Now the Wombachers are changing two aspects of their business in an attempt to keep their doors open, keep costs down and capture a niche market in photo portraits.

Between now and the end of the year, Sundial Framing and Photography will be moving to the Wombachers’ home at 16 Mechanic St. The phone number will remain the same.

“It’s mostly because it will enable us not to have to pull that price level up,” said Leslie.

The Wombachers are also trying to capture a unique market in the portrait industry — showing people in settings, doing activities they enjoy, instead of the same old, line-’em-up portraiture shot. Leslie calls the niche portraits “a more creative option.”

“I don’t want it to just be the standard shot,” she said. “I’m trying to really emphasize ‘Why do these people come here?’ They’re here for a reason. Let’s show it.”

She cited a Michigan couple who came to the area as an example. The couple had an interest in lighthouses, traveling around the country to see them. John took their portrait sitting on the rocky Maine coast in front of a lighthouse.

Through the windows of Sundial Framing and Photography, Bucksport Bay glistens in the sunlight and in the distance the regal Penobscot Narrows Bridge and the stoic Waldo-Hancock Bridge span the waters — a photographer’s dreamscape. And though Leslie says she isn’t able to get out as much to do her own photography, she appreciates the beauty of the setting, as well as the uniqueness of Maine’s scenery, especially to photography.

“It’s gorgeous,” she said, looking out the window. “On any given day I can look out this window and say ‘I gotta shoot that.’ There’s just so many places in the state, and even just in this area, that are gorgeous.”

Sundial Framing and Photography is located at 82 Main St. and is open Tuesday through Friday, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Saturdays, from 10 to 3. The shop’s Web site, sundialframingandphotography.com, says, “Whether you are a bride looking for a photographer to capture your happiest day, or a mom who wants to make sure her children’s portraits do them justice, Sundial can accommodate any needs.”