Remembering the sort man behind the digital camera | News, Sports activities, Jobs

In late July 2024, Rick Apitz holds on to a Mamiya mannequin digital camera, a mode of digital camera he used for 30 years earlier than adapting to digital movie. It was one of many final digital camera’s Apitz gave away after retiring from the images enterprise. Apitz died Saturday, Sept. 20, 2025 leaving a legacy of professionalism and generosity amongst space photographers.
By Clay Schuldt

NEW ULM– On Sept. 20, longtime native photographer Rick Apitz died at JA Wedum Hospice Home in Brooklyn Park.

For 50 years, Apitz was synonymous with images in New Ulm. His skills have been extremely wanted. He photographed weddings, highschool senior portraits, highschool athletics, confirmations and every other occasion that was requested. He was even instrumental in serving to different native photographers develop their skills.

For 5 many years, Apitz ran a images studio and printing enterprise in New Ulm. For a time, he even owned a body gallery. He bought Shayds of Color studio after graduating from Martin Luther Academy in 1973 and opened Apitz Printing in 1976.

In a 2024 interview, Apitz stated he grew to become fascinated about images in highschool. He was injured whereas taking part in soccer and will now not play. Even although he couldn’t play on the soccer staff, he may photographed the staff. Throughout his highschool profession, he took sports activities images.

Lokken stated that ultimately, The Journal requested him to begin taking images for them, since he was already on the sidelines. He labored as a Journal sports activities photographer all through his highschool profession.

After highschool, he started working for Mike Shay, who ran a images and printing studio. After two years, Shay supplied the enterprise, which he accepted. Though Apitz took over possession of the enterprise, he stored the title Shayds of Color.

In his 50-year profession, Apitz stated he discovered himself photographing a number of generations of the identical household. He would begin with one marriage ceremony, later {photograph} that couple’s youngsters, then that child’s marriage ceremony after which the grandchildren. Some of the children he photographed a number of instances as they bought into varied sports activities.

Apitz grew to become well-known for his work ethic. He stated he tried to by no means flip down work as a result of the images enterprise was unpredictable.

Apitz was pressured to shut his images enterprise within the fall of 2022. He was photographing the New Ulm High School soccer staff and suffered a stroke. Eventually, mobility points made it not possible to {photograph} occasions like earlier than.

Apitz’s sister, Patti Lokken, stated her brother struggled to stroll away from the images enterprise. She stated lots of people stored calling him to take images ‘one more time,’ and it was arduous for him to say no.

Lokken stated her brother made it a degree to provide his gear away to the subsequent era of photographers.

“He could have sold it all, but he wanted to help,” she stated.

My Eye Photography proprietor Shamara Hornick stated Apitz was the photographer who took her first child footage. He additionally took her sister’s child footage.

“I actually replicated one of the photos he took of my sister for her kid,” Honrick stated. “I did it in Apitz style, which was timeless.”

Hornick stated Apitz was even beneficiant sufficient to provide her some images gear after he retired.

“He gave me a tripod and gave me some of his old backgrounds,” she stated.

Foresee Studios proprietor Adam Towles stated he additionally benefited from Apitz’s generosity.

“When I was getting into the business, he was retiring and he gave me equipment,” Towles stated. Apitz particularly gave him some backdrops that have been standard with space households. Towles stated he has acquired calls from households who need portraits with these backdrops.

“I felt very honored,” Towles stated. “It is easy to say Rick Apitz was a good man.”

Towles complemented his expertise as a photographer and his willingness to adapt. He stated Apitz was a real craftsman when it got here to working with movie, however he was prepared to switch to digital cameras later in life.

Apitz’s kindness and professionalism have been well-known amongst his contemporaries as properly.

“Rick was a really kind person,” stated Mark Spencer, who bought into the images enterprise across the identical time as Apitz.

“Apitz had a wonderful spirit of cooperation,” Spencer stated. “I could buy film from him if I needed it. Others could be competitive, but not Rick.”

Spencer stated lately he and Apitz would speak concerning the previous instances and even bought a Mamiya digital camera from Apitz a yr in the past.

“Now I hold on to the camera for nostalgia’s sake,” he stated.

Aside from Apitz’s love of images, he had a love for airplanes.

Lokken stated one in all her earliest reminiscences of her brothers was being a part of his airplane membership. She remembered being in kindergarten and her older brother bringing her into his membership, which concerned studying about completely different airplanes and drawing planes.

“I didn’t care about airplanes at all, but he was my big brother, I worshiped him, so I joined the club,” she stated.

Apitz’s love of planes solely grew over time. Lokken stated he later in life he started constructing distant managed (RC) airplanes. He stored most of the planes in his storage and would fly them with different fellow fans. However, he remained dedicated to his household.

Lokken remembered that when her daughter Rachel bought engaged she requested her uncle Rick to take the marriage images.

“I remembered saying, ‘You won’t get him on such short notice on a Saturday,’” she stated. “But he stated he may do it. After the marriage, I requested him if he had a Saturday open? He had canceled a visit with mates to fly RC planes in Canada to {photograph} his marriage ceremony.

This degree of dedication was not restricted to household. Apitz made a degree of going the additional mile for different households.

A public visitation shall be held for Apitz from 9 am-12pm on Saturday, October 11, 2025, at Minnesota Valley Funeral Home North Chapel.

Lokken stated her brother didn’t need a big church funeral. A brief funeral service could be held for shut family and friends after the visitation.