Pictures Worth 1,000 Smiles Santa’s Pal Has A Gift For Capturing The Moment

Thu., Dec. 25, 1997

By Robin Rivers robinr@spokesman.com

Three-year-old Brenden Bryant has a beautiful smile.

But he had absolutely no plans to show that grin to Santa Claus on Wednesday - until he met Bianca Carroll.

Brenden gawked at Kris Kringle for nearly 15 minutes, locked his arm around a shelf and put up a tearful fight before landing on Santa’s lap.

On Wednesday, Carroll captured the memories of hundreds of people who packed the aisles of River Park Square’s One Hour Photo to do one thing: Immortalize 1997 with Santa.

His face wrenched with tears, Brenden looked up at Carroll, who promptly bopped the boy’s mother on the head with a balloon.

Mom bopped her back.

The laughing began. Brenden’s beautiful smile peeked out. Carroll clicked the camera shutter, capturing another Christmas memory.

Everyone who came Wednesday wanted those same smiles and Santa.

The smile part is what the 23-year-old photographer has been perfecting every day since Thanksgiving in her first year as Santa’s picture-taker.

“I want the big smiles,” said Carroll, wearing fuzzy antlers and an elf apron. “None of those posed smiles. You have to make them laugh.”

And laugh the children did. Carroll charmed thousands of teary toddlers this season with her silly words and fuzzy friends.

“Two-year-olds are the entertainment around here,” Carroll said. “About one in 100 will sit and smile.”

She also helped keep a 17-year tradition going for hundreds of Spokane-area families.

Families like the Helines, who have taken their picture at the downtown shop each year since 1980. Carroll admits her charm isn’t the draw.

It’s the gentle nature of the store’s Santa, who also goes by the name Elmer Smoak, that brings them back.

Wednesday, Greg and Lynette Heline hauled in their four daughters and poodle, Sunny, for the annual photo shoot.

“He’s just really special,” Lynette Heline said. “He’s the real Santa Claus.”

Carroll and her stuffed punk rock snowman got approving nods, too.

A half-hour before the 3:30 p.m. closing time, the line of people waiting for last-minute Christmas pictures was still an hour long. Carroll admitted - on her 27th consecutive day behind the camera - that this holiday work was exhausting.

But no way was she or Santa leaving those kids without their memories.

“I never got my picture taken with Santa when I was a kid. I wish I had,” Carroll said. “We won’t quit as long as there are kids.”

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: 2 Photos

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