Professional Services in Tucson

Nearly a half century ago, horticulturist Harrison G. Yocum opened his backyard to the public, displaying a bounteous collection of cacti and palms. After a few relocations, expansions, and the establishment of a nonprofit charter, Tucson Botanical Gardens now spreads 17 distinct plots across more than 5 acres. A delicate rumble hearkens the arrival of the Garden Railway miniature train, which winds through gardens uniquely dedicated to birds, butterflies, wildflowers, and traditional Native American crops. Admission—which is free for garden members and children younger than 3—grants passage to five different tours, and groups of 10 or more can arrange self-guided or docent-led tours at a discounted rate. If visitors awaken their appetites by savoring aromas from the onsite herb garden or by staring at clouds shaped like canned goods, they can dig in at the Gardens' Café, where sun spills through a slatted gazebo onto iron tables loaded with roast-beef baguettes and mexican tortilla soup.

Catalina Cleaners' meticulous staffers continue a 25-year tradition of purifying patrons' garb with environmentally safe solvents. A member of four professional dry-cleaning associations, including the Drycleaning and Laundry Institute, Catalina Cleaners painstakingly rids customers' apparel of stains or Rorschach tests. Six family-owned locations are sprinkled throughout the Tucson area, providing quick access to pristine garments while ensuring that clients never again have to assemble suits of newspapers and duct tape.

Emily Thueringer doesn’t need helping finding creative outlets. She paints, makes ceramics, writes, and reupholsters furniture, but in high school it was her sister who introduced her to photography. Since then, Emily’s passion for photography has grown, and her portfolio along with it. Her body of work is filled with high-contrast, eye-level shots of her subjects, some posing and others candidly glancing out of frame. She captures these warmly colored shots during photo-shoot packages tailored for weddings, babies, senior portraits, and holidays. She then shares how she captured them during photography classes and hour-long TV events entitled Photographer Secrets Revealed!.

Inside her studio, photographer Leighanne Preuss does more than just take pictures. She makes them—or rather, builds them—by piecing together film cameras by hand. In combination with her BFA in fine-art photography, this deep appreciation of the photographic process plays a big role in shaping her introductory workshops. In fact, Leighanne often encourages students to discard automatic settings in favor of making manual adjustments of exposure time, lenses, and fake mustaches. Outside the classroom, Preuss practices what she preaches, snapping high-quality footage of families, kids, and weddings.

The team at Michelle Burley Photography knows there is more to preserving family memories than the simple click of a shutter. First, they create a welcoming boutique portrait-studio atmosphere—kids entertain themselves with finds from the resident toy box while adults enjoy coffee and sweets. Photographers guide graduating seniors or beloved pets through each session, incorporating any number of backgrounds or props to artfully set the scene. They seek out the perfect lighting at the studio's outdoor area or within the abundant sunshine streaming into one of two camera rooms. Clients then proof their images in an online gallery or with a cutting-edge portrait-viewing system that allows canines to choose their favorite shot via telepathy.

The crew leans toward a classic, romantic style, making it a natural match for wedding and boudoir photography. The photographers preserve captured images as wrap canvases, gallery mounts, or custom keepsake storybooks.

Professional photography studio with a focus on weddings and portraits