I was asked if I would do some "Senior Pictures" for Haley, by her Grandmother. When I first met with Haley to get a feel for who she was and what she had in mind, I remember her saying, "Well, I am a wrestler"! What?!?!!
We talked for a while and she spoke of her fondness for her Grandmothers house and property, where she had spent so much time growing up. We decided that we would spend a little time at her Grandmothers to capture her in the surroundings that she grew up with. We talked about a few other possibilities, especially if it was raining. As luck would have it, we never had to implement the "rain session" plans, but we were ready to!
Over the next week or so, Haley would send me a couple of pictures that she wanted to emulate. One of these photos depicted a stern-faced High School football player, harshly lit, in a locker room. It was a great photo and quite powerful in its effect. She wondered if we could do something similar with her, in her wrestling gear. I agreed that it was a dramatic photo and told her, "let's set it up"!
For our first session, I met with Haley at her school, with Sandi acting as my assistant. We had obtained permission to use the girls locker room to take the photos and Haley made sure the coast was clear! No fake back drops here!!
We shot a few dozen photos in the cramped space of the locker room, with me setting up the tripod and taking the photos from inside the showers! The harsh, flash lighting was a bit tricky, but we got it done and I was happy with the pics that I reviewed on the camera's small LCD screen.
Now, Haley had been pretty casual in appearance when I first met her, and she looked pretty formidable in the locker room, giving me her "all business" look! (I wanted her "I am going to pin you" face!) When I met her at her Grandmother's place a couple weeks later to do some location portraits, and she came out of one of the bedrooms, I actually didn't recognize her for a few moments! The confident, fit, competitive wrestler I had taken photos of, appeared to have transformed into a feminine and very beautiful lady!
We walked around the expansive property and captured a few photos in places that Haley was fond of, dodging a bit of rain in the process.
I had a great time capturing a few different "sides" of Haley. When taking "portraits", I try to capture my subject's character, or personality and often this is accomplished with impromptu, candid photos that capture the subject relaxed and being themselves. Oftentimes they are not even looking at the camera!
Here a a few of my favorites from her photo shoots, both planned and candid.
