History of Candid

A Clever Idea That Turned into Something Bigger

It all started in the late 1960s, when an ambitious college student named Jack Counts, Jr. began using his camera to take pictures at fraternity parties, which he then developed and sold to the members. Unable to locate a lab that could turn around orders quickly and inexpensively, he created a makeshift processing lab, and the trademarked photographs that are known as “Party Pics®” were born.

It wasn’t long until a promising business had emerged, as one campus became two, and three, then four,. This led to colleges, universities, and high schools across the country requesting photos for graduation ceremonies, parties, special events, groups (bands, teams, cheer squads, etc.) all processed at this very cutting edge processing lab.

Candid Color Systems® was later formally established in 1972 and has been the leader in special events photo finishing and photography for 40 years. We continue to provide our customers with fast, premium quality photo finishing, along with proven marketing methods and tools that create a competitive advantage in the marketplace.

“Our customers are our partners and friends. We exist solely because of our customers and we are only successful when they are successful.”

Simply put, Candid Color’s goal is the same as its customers’ — to grow their business profitably.

Continuing to Lead with Innovation and Expertise

Candid Color takes the lead in offering an ongoing amount of superior products and services. We keep our customers ahead of the competition with new innovative products including Attitude Pano, Level Two™ portraits, Spotlight Memory Mates and more. With custom titles, custom designs, and state-of-the-art programs for proofing and ordering, Candid Color gives your business a constant competitive edge that brings results.

In addition to industry-leading products and systems, we provide our customers the best support in the industry. Candid Color has complete turn-key marketing systems to guide our customers through the booking, sales, photography and delivery of photos to their customer.

In addition, our expert photographers provide the necessary training, and even equipment rentals, to properly execute almost any type of event. From acquiring the business, to delivering the photos, we are with our customers every step of the way!

Inquire about opening an account today, or call our Customer Development team at (800) 336-4550 — we’d love to tell you how we can help your business grow.