Alex & Yelena's Story
A San Antonio husband-and-wife team who got tired of picture day being the worst day of the school year — and decided to make it the best.
In 2018, Yelena was asked by a friend to photograph their child's school picture day — as a favor. She arrived to find chaos: children waiting 45 minutes in line, teachers scrambling, parents getting called because their kid was crying, and a harried photographer rushing through portraits with no time to ensure any of them were actually good.
She photographed every child. She got them to smile. She took her time. And afterward, she told Alex: “I think we can do this better.”
Alex, who had spent years in logistics and operations, immediately started building systems. Scheduling software. Parent communication workflows. A new model where families see photos first and order second. Together, they launched SA Picture Day.
Today, SA Picture Day photographs 45,000+ students per year across San Antonio and the surrounding Texas Hill Country communities. Yelena leads the creative team. Alex runs operations and technology. And every school coordinator they work with has the same reaction: “Why didn't we switch sooner?”
What We Stand For
Community First
San Antonio is our home. Every school we photograph, every family we serve — they're our neighbors. We show up like it.
Zero Burden Promise
Your staff should never have to manage logistics on picture day. If you're doing work we didn't take off your plate, we haven't done our job.
Innovation Always
We're obsessed with finding the next technology that makes picture day better. Our clients benefit from every improvement we make.
Every Child Matters
That school portrait might be the only professional photo a family gets of their child that year. We take that seriously. Every single portrait.
Our Journey
2018
Alex and Yelena photograph their first school picture day in San Antonio with two cameras and a borrowed backdrop.
2019
First 10 partner schools signed. The "view-first" iPad review system debuts — parents love it immediately.
2020
Pivot to outdoor setups during COVID. First foray into sports photography. Virtual composite technology developed.
2021
Dance studio partnerships launch. Revenue sharing model introduced. First community outreach event — graduation portraits for unhoused individuals.
2022
AI photo sorting system deployed. 99.8% accuracy from day one. 25,000+ students photographed this year.
2023
Hype Reel packages launch. Martial arts niche vertical developed. Apple Wallet digital ID cards released.
2024
Sail AI platform launch. 45,000+ students photographed. Expansion into New Braunfels, Schertz, Boerne, and surrounding communities.
2025
Website rebuild. Continued innovation. Still the same two founders who care as much as they did in 2018.
Meet the Team
We started as two. We're growing as many. Every person we add shares the same obsession: making picture day something everyone actually looks forward to.
Yelena
Lead Photographer & Creative Director
Alex
CEO & Operations Director
Want to Work With Us?
Schedule a call and meet the team behind San Antonio's premier visual operations company.
Prefer email? hello@sapicture.day