Picture-Perfect Family Forges Ties to Studio : Newport Beach’s Figge Photography is a real family affair. ‘I’d hang out with my brothers and my mom even if we weren’t related,’ says Leslie Figge Chatillon.

As much as Hollywood loves a schmaltzy saga with a happy ending, even Disney would probably pass on the story of the Figge family.

Too unbelievable, they’d no doubt say. Too hokey. This, after all, is a clan that is so wholesome and so close that it makes the Brady Bunch look dysfunctional.

First, you’ve got colorful matriarch Melba Figge, still sassy and savvy at 70, and still very much a driving force behind Figge Photography, the business she and her late husband, Bill, launched in Glendale back in 1945. She lives in Corona del Mar, just down the road from the family’s Fashion Island photo studio, tools around town in a gold Mercedes, travels to all the USC football team away games, and tells jokes that would make Joan Rivers blush.

Every bit as active in the business today as she was when it began 47 years ago, Melba is often the first of many Figges whom clients encounter as they arrive for a photo session. She does their makeup, touches up their hair, helps select the clothes, assists with lighting and poses the subjects.

The photographer she assists is her son, Greg Figge, 45. He learned the art and science of photography from his dad, who died just six months after being diagnosed with cancer in 1976. Greg smiles as he tells stories about afternoons spent in the darkroom with his father, processing film and watching football on a TV equipped with a special light filter on the screen. Less animated than his gregarious mother but every bit as conversational, he lives in Dove Canyon with his wife, Melissa, and three children.

Down the hall, perched at a desk surrounded with beautifully framed Figge photos of friends and family, is Greg’s sister, Leslie Figge Chatillon, 37.

Leslie is the self-described “warden” of the family business, responsible for supervising the work flow at the studio, which employs 12 and is busy enough that it turns down more weddings than it books. She lives in Irvine and has a 6-year-old son. She and her ex-husband, Rick Chatillon, remain close. They see other often and talk daily. His company, Newport Photographics, has processed most of the Figges’ color work since 1982.

If it sounds like quite the family affair, it is. But you only know the half of it. Across the hall from where Melba weaves her makeup magic, 44-year-old son Stephan produces videos for weddings and other special events. The Costa Mesa father of three often videotapes Figge photo sessions to create mini-documentaries starring their clients.

On an given day, you may also see Stephan’s youngest brother, Eric, 35. He owns an interior and architectural photography business in Newport Beach but pitches in now and then to shoot a wedding. He is married, has two kids and lives across the street from Greg. And at the front desk, you are likely to run into Aunt Muriel Wiggle or even her daughter Cathy Bramnick, who heads up the Figge’s finishing department.

It’s a degree of family togetherness some would not care for. But for the familial Figges, it’s simply business as usual.

“We all grew up watching our parents work together,” says Greg. “When you’re 5 years old, and you see your folks having such a good time, you want in on it. We’ve been working together as a family all our lives. It’s what we’re used to. Not only is it comfortable, but it’s a helluva lot of fun. We all love to have a good time, and I doubt that any of us would be here if we didn’t really like the business and each other.”

Leslie agrees and says that’s probably the major reason that the family business--and the family--thrives.

“I’d hang out with my brothers and my mom even if we weren’t related,” says Leslie. “They’re all really fun to be with. We just got back from a long weekend in Mexico. There were 35 of us down there to celebrate my mother’s birthday. For some people, it would be too much. But we have a great time together.”

That’s not to say that working with your family isn’t without it’s occasional pitfalls. Greg, 45, notes that sometimes his mother treats him like a child. “That bothers me sometimes, but it never lasts too long,” he says. “Whenever any of us gets irritated with someone in the family, it blows over pretty fast. We’re not big on grudges.”

Does Melba ever pull rank just because she’s Mom?

“Not so much because I’m Mom, but because I’ve been at it for 45 years,” says Melba. Adds Greg: “Sometimes we tell her that experience is overrated. There are times when my mom and I disagree about lighting, for example, but it never becomes a personal thing. If we can’t reach a compromise, we’ll do it her way and then we’ll do it my way. The bottom line is that we produce a portrait that makes the client happy.”

Stephan thinks one of the reasons that the family ties rarely get tangled is that everyone associated with the business feels comfortable expressing an opinion.

“I think you’re a lot more apt to say what’s on your mind when you work in a family business,” says Stephan. “When you know you’re not going to get fired, it’s easier to be honest and direct. In most work settings, personality conflicts build because people don’t feel the freedom to get things off their chest.”

For daughter Leslie, the biggest advantage of keeping it all in the family is that she can count on those around her for emotional and practical support.

“Even if you have a business partner who’s really there for you, no one understands you like your family,” says Leslie, who started working in the business when she was in eighth grade. “I know for a fact my mom or my brothers would be there for me no matter what, and they all know the same thing about me.”

The degree of personal and professional harmony that the Figge family enjoys is extremely rare among relatives who work together, according to psychologist Dr. Susan Forward, co-author of “Toxic Parents: Overcoming Their Hurtful Legacy and Reclaiming Your Life” (Bantam, $5.95).

“If the people involved are loving and able to respect differences in thoughts and ideas, a family business can work,” said Forward in an interview. “But frankly, I’ve seen and heard of a lot more horror stories than successes. More often than not, what happens is that anything that’s toxic or unhealthy in the family relationship becomes magnified as the family members spend more time together.”

In many family businesses, Forward said, ego and control issues fuel conflicts between husbands and wives, as well as sibling rivalries. And when parents and children work together as the Figges do, she said, a different set of problems often arise.

“Parents very often have difficulty treating their children as equals in a business setting. They’ve been in the authority role for so long that it’s difficult to let go. It tends to stifle the growth of the son or daughter. Also, as the parent grows older and has less vitality, it’s often hard for him or her to give up their power because they still see their kids as children.”

Forward advises people who are considering starting or joining a family business to be extremely cautious.

“A bad business experience can tear the fabric of the family apart,” she said. “I’ve seen parents sue children and children sue parents. I’ve seen family members who’ve been literally locked out of a business where they contributed for years. When things go sour in a business, family members tend to get more vindictive and hostile than they would with a business partner or colleague. There’s so much emotional connection to start with, so the sense of betrayal and anger are intensified.”

Fortunately for the Figges, they can’t relate to much of the friction Forward describes. Even when it comes to discussions over money and who gets paid what, they say they somehow always manage to talk it out.

“Greg and my mom and I function in our business as partners,” Leslie explains. “When it comes to business, we get together and powwow. We’ve always been able to make sure that we’re all taken care of. We’ve always been able to communicate and compromise and work things out as a family and as business partners. I guess we’re really lucky on both fronts.”

Even though mother Melba just celebrated her 70th birthday, neither she or the Figge kids seem to be in any hurry for her to retire.

“There are days, especially if we’ve had a really difficult kid in here for a sitting, when I think to myself, ‘I’m too old for this,’ but I snap out of that pretty quick,” says Melba. “I don’t have time to think about retiring--I’m too busy. Most people retire so they can spend more time with their family. For me, that wouldn’t work. My family is here.”