ABOUT TRANSFORMATIONS BY GINA
“Transformations By Gina” is owned by me, Gina Ortiz! I have had over 25 years of
experience as a photographer. I have spent most of my early years working in the
music industry as a concert/music photographer. I am also a certified makeup
artist, and I graduated from the prestigious Westmore Academy of Cosmetic Arts
in Burbank, California. I have been working within the Trans/CD community for
more than 5 years in Los Angeles, and many more in Denver prior to that. I am an
extremely understanding, compassionate, and enthusiastic G.G. that loves my
work and my girls. I pride myself not only on my work, but on my excellent
reputation as well! Just ask any of the hundreds of girls that I have worked with!
My girls are more than clients; they are my sisters!!

Expect to spend anywhere from 4 to 5 hours for your session. You may schedule
your appointment by calling 818-508-5289 or you may schedule by going to the
"Contact Us" page on this site, where you may use the "Request Appointment"
form. Please be sure to leave your contact info. If you are not comfortable with
leaving a telephone number, just leave an email address and I will contact you
shortly. Please be patient. I get a LOT of emails.
I will generally schedule your appointment to fit YOUR time availability, however I
prefer not to take late-night appointments. You will be asked to place a small
deposit to insure your commitment, and it will be applied toward your balance.

Please visit the "Rates" page on this site for a complete list of services and rates.
You should arrive UNSHAVEN with NO MAKEUP. If you must shave that day, you
may be asked to shave again, depending on the rate of your beard growth. If you
do arrive with makeup on, you WILL be asked to remove it. You may arrive in girl
OR boy mode.

Since you will be here for a good amount of time, you may want to bring a snack,
or have a good meal prior to your arrival. You may bring your favorite music, wine,
or anything else to make you feel more comfortable. You are also welcome to
bring a friend, as long as he or she does not interfere with the shoot. If you are
coming for a makeup lesson, please do not bring anyone unless you ask me prior
to the lesson!
WHAT TO EXPECT
CLOTHING AND WIGS AND SHOES, OH MY!!

It may be wise to choose your outfits before you come for your session, so you
don't use up all your time deciding while you are here. But if you cannot access
those items before you arrive, then you will be allowed time once you are here. If
you do not have any clothing or shoes with you, then you may certainly browse
my closet! I've had TONS of dresses, skirts, blouses, SHOES, WIGS, accessories
and costume jewelry donated, as well as purchased, for this purpose. Of course
there is no fee for the use of my wardrobe, but I can't promise everything will fit
you, or that you will love every item! You can choose up to three different
hair/clothing combinations for your shoot. And to state the obvious, you will not
need to bring any makeup, unless you prefer your own products.
YOUR PHOTOS
Once you have selected all three of your outfits for the shoot, we will begin your
makeup application. This takes about an hour. Once the makeup has been applied,
then we will begin shooting. You may choose to be photographed inside in the
studio, or you may wish to go outdoors. If you have a specific location in mind,
please make suitable arrangements with me in advance. I encourage you to bring
any favorite "props" you may want to be photographed with, such as a favorite
necklace, flower, pillow, etc.

A NOTE ON EROTICISM: If you have ideas of an erotic nature for your shoot, then
we can discuss that. I do erotic photo shoots quite often. Whatever you would like
to do in your photos is fine with me as long as you don't expect my participation!! I
have a very strict "hands off the photographer" policy!

When we are finished shooting, you may choose to have me remove your
makeup, or you may choose to keep it on so you can go out on the town. Or you
may prefer to remove the makeup yourself. Since I have done this so many times,
it may be quicker to have me do it!

At the end of your session, you will be given a CD-Rom with about 150 high-quality
digital images on it. You will be asked to go home and view the photos, and
choose 10-15 of your favorites for me to retouch with Photoshop. You may call me
with your list, but it's best to send me an email. I will then retouch your photos,
and email them back to you one by one, so as not to lose quality. I hope to see you
soon!!!
Hugs and Kisses, Gina
A NOTE ON ETIQUETTE (READ THIS!)
AND GIRLS, I SHOULDN'T HAVE TO TELL YOU THIS, BUT IT IS
WORTH MENTIONING. HERE ARE SOME VERY SIMPLE GUIDELINES
FOR YOU TO FOLLOW TO INSURE THE BEST EXPERIENCE
POSSIBLE. HOW WELL YOU RESPECT ME AND MY GUIDELINES
WILL ABSOLUTELY DETERMINE OUR WORKING RELATIONSHIP,
AND ENABLE US TO DEVELOP A GENUINE AND LASTING
FRIENDSHIP!! IGNORE THEM AND I WILL NOT SCHEDULE AN
APPOINTMENT FOR YOU, IT IS THAT SIMPLE.
Ok, with all of that said...those of you who already know me know that I am a very gentle and
kind soul. But I also have a low tolerance for B.S. I have dealt with a LOT of flakes in this
business, and all of my girls know the quickest way to piss me off is to waste my time and be
flaky. So here are some points to remember when dealing with me:
1) Yes, I know I am hard to get ahold of sometimes. That's because I am the only person in
L.A. who does what I do. Yes, there are other makeover artists, but none of them are also
the photographer, the office girl, the photo retoucher, the sales girl, and the one who single
handedly promotes the business. I have 14 email accounts, a Yahoo group, a Flickr group,
Twitter page, Facebook page, a Myspace page, URNA, CD.COM, and numerous other
profiles to maintain, plus a phone that NEVER stops ringing. I receive HUNDREDS of calls
and emails a week, and to answer them all is simply impossible, especially while I am with
a client. Please be patient with me, and I will be patient with you.

2) Don't call me over and over again. LEAVE A MESSAGE!! If I don't answer the phone it
is truly because I can't answer it!! I am photographing someone, or I am too busy to get the
phone. Yes, I have been known to actually leave the house once in a while. Don't call 13
times and hang up when the machine comes on. I have caller ID and I will know it's you!
You will get off to a bad start with me, and that's not good.

3) Don't call me late at night! I work from my home, and I do not enjoy dealing with clients
around the clock. Do you? I like to think I have "business hours," just like you do. Do I call
YOU in the middle of the night? No, I do not. You are not allowed to wake me up to talk
about what you should wear for your photo shoot. Don't even think about it.
4) Don't email me back and forth three times a day for weeks with a zillion questions. I do
not have the time to go back and forth a hundred times. Make a list of your questions (if
you can't find answers to them right on this page!!) and send them to me in ONE email or
ask me on the phone. Do you set a doctor's appointment and then call them back a dozen
more times just to MAKE SURE you still have the appointment? No, you don't. Don't do
that to me either, please. I don't like to be chained to a telephone all day. Do you?

5) Don't drive me nuts with daily calls and mails and questions for weeks, only to back out
of the appointment the night before. Seriously, this happens all the time. Even if you have
paid a deposit, this is the rudest and most unforgiveable thing you can do to me. Not only
do I count on these sessions as MY FULL TIME AND ONLY INCOME, to cancel at the
last minute means it is too late for me to fill that time slot with someone else.

One girl recently booked me for a Saturday AND Sunday together and cancelled (by
EMAIL) late Friday night with a note that said "enjoy your weekend off." I'm not making
this up. But at least she was considerate enough to pay for ONE of the days. Another girl,
just two days ago, wrote me and begged me for days to let her make an appointment
without a deposit. She SWORE she would show up and pay her balance in full on the day
of the appointment. She didn't have a Paypal account, she was in the military, out of
state, hadn't gotten paid yet, etc..etc. and just could not get her deposit to me in time. So,
out of good faith, I agreed and trusted her. OF COURSE she did not call, write, or show
up, or answer any of MY emails after wasting literally weeks my time with of back and
forth questions and begging me to take a chance on her and to trust her.

So, if I seem a little bitchy, it's because of people like her. (Honey, you just better not
EVER try to get another appointment with me!)This is what happens every single time I
take a chance on a stranger. So please, don't ask for special favors if you don't know me.
I don't ask big favors of total strangers, nor should you. I bend over backwards for the
people I love (that's why my back always hurts) and they do the same for me. That is why
we are friends. Selfishness kills friendships, because friendship is a two-way street!!
Just remember one tiny, teeny little FACT: once you have pissed me off and destroyed
MY trust, you have very few (if no) other options for getting a makeover in Los Angeles.
TRUST IS EARNED. PERIOD.

Now that I have said my peace, I will say that I really DO love what I do! 99% of the girls
that contact me are wonderful people, and we have SO much fun during our time
together. Each girl that comes here ends up being a good friend, and remains dear to me
forever! I'm blessed to have such a wonderful group that I can call sisters!! You can be
part of our family too!! As long as you remember to treat everyone around you with the
same respect you would afford someone close to you. Remember the GOLDEN RULE!
*NAMASTE!*