Spring & Fall Double Senior Session | Reagan | Cedar Rapids, Iowa

SPRING & FALL DOUBLE SENIOR SESSIONS

Newbo Market | Ellis Park | Kennedy High School Senior Photographer

This past Spring as the trees started to bloom with the gorgeous flowers, I HAD to photograph them. In the Spring, snow is still melting and people are just starting to willingly come out of their homes after a long, brutal winter. Let me just put it this way - most people are not booking photoshoots at this time. It’s also graduation season and seniors are graduating while juniors are stressing about finals and the end of the year. They’re not ready to think about senior pictures yet!

I had this vision of a gorgeous (soon-to-be) senior girl in the golden sunset light with these blooming trees, but it had to be done SOON, because these flowers fall as fast as they come. I put out a model call and Reagan answered - and I’m SO glad!! She made my vision come to life!!

We only spent a little time taking photos since I just needed a few to share, but she and her family LOVED her photos and knew they wanted to book a full senior session for Reagan in the fall! So today, I get to share my first senior session from TWO different gorgeous seasons!

Every day when driving home, I saw these blooming trees overhanging the sidewalk as the sun shown through them. It was easy access and would be perfect for my mini-session model call with Reagan.
(A few examples of what I see (photos of Reagan) vs. what someone else might see (cell phone shots))

We even set up my lighting to make it seem like it was sunset-y and glowy for a few photos - it was exactly what I had envisioned!!

I knew I had the photos I was wanting, but I wanted to make sure it was worth Reagan’s time too (since she so graciously volunteered last minute for me) so we played around in the other trees and nature trail a little bit, which made it a great practice run for her full senior session. (And spoiler alert… she NAILED it!!!!)

We scheduled Reagan’s next photoshoot for the end of October, really crossing our fingers for those fall colors! And Mother Nature delivered. The colors were unreal. And with that red hair of hers… OhEmGee.

We threw around some ideas of locations and ended up choosing the Newbo area because of the cute buildings and Ellis Park for the colorful trees and water! Did you know that colorful trees + water = DOUBLE the color because the water reflects the fall colors!? Yeah.. it was gorgeous!

We met at Newbo Market and started our adventures from there. Reagan is SO adorable and awesome about posing. She NAILS the serious face every time. It was like walking around with a model the whole night, she made my job so easy!

After a few outfit changes, we made a pit-stop to get some photos with her pup and brother, and then we were on our way to Ellis Park!

I just couldn’t stop taking photos. We barely had to move around in the park, it was so pretty everywhere! And spending the evening with Reagan and her mom made my cheeks hurt from smiling so much. They’re two peas in a pod, and so much fun!! And it’s Reagan just SO gorgeous?!

We wrapped up Reagan’s senior session as the sun set and I knew I couldn’t wait to get home to go through her images!! It was the perfect senior session: fun outfits to match Reagan’s adorable style paired with a perfect, sunny day to just relax, explore and laugh while capturing some AMAZING images. Best day EVER!!!

Your calendar likely fills up as fast as mine does and it’s SO easy to forget to schedule photos! If you are graduating in 2020 or 2021, or a parent of a 2020/2021 graduate - reach out with any questions or to start planning!! Check out my Senior Gallery or contact me for more info!

Outdoor Country Senior Guy Session | Zeb | Alburnett, IA Senior Photographer

Multi-location Outdoor Senior Photos with Zeb

Alburnett | Senior Photographer near Cedar Rapids

I met with Zeb’s family for a consultation and we knew right away this his senior session was going to be an EVENT! While Zeb laid back and just listened, we planned his senior session for November - in hopes for no snow. We lucked out and his senior session day was gorgeous!

Zeb has so many fun hobbies and interests that we wanted to incorporate into his senior photos. They wanted to incorporate their family land including the tree house his dad built, an old barn his dad was working on (his dad’s pretty handy, can ya tell? He owns Schneider Construction in Cedar Rapids), his truck, the gorgeous pampas grass that we see in Iowa during the fall, the Monroe Township fire station he volunteers at in Toddville, his hunting blind set up in a field, and his mom requested a cool “Friday Night Lights” scene on the Alburnett High School football field! Phew!

And we had to do all of that in less than 3 hours. That and 7 outfit changes! (Don’t believe me? Take a look through the photos below!) Luckily, for a guy, that just means changing the shirt out but for a guy who wasn’t particular excited to get his senior photos taken, I knew this would be a miracle if it all worked out. I had it timed down to the quarter of an hour. 30 minutes here, 15 minute drive there, 30 minutes there, 15 minute drive to the next location, etc. I was pretty darn nervous about keeping everything on schedule.

We started at his family’s property:

Then we headed out the old barn. The barn was currently being renovated and was SO cool! And was a great backdrop to Zeb’s truck.

This one was one of their all-time favorites! They decided to order it as a metal print - how cool is that!?

Then we pulled over started heading over to the fire station but made a quick stop at the pampas grass - which is my all-time favorite! I LOVE the look of it in photos!

Pulling off into a little ditch off the side of the busy road… worth it! At this point, we were racing the sun! I had planned for the sun to set while we were at the football field but as we headed to the fire station, I knew we needed to be quick. But once Zeb had put the truck away, I couldn’t resist taking some more shots with the lights all shining bright! Then it was off to the corn field.

The sun was golden and setting faster than I anticipated. I quickly pulled off the road into the freshly harvested corn field for his hunting/hunting blind photos. First things first, Zeb’s dad brought a giant ladder for a really cool “what the birds see” view. And then I finished this part of his session safely on the ground - haha!

Birds-eye-view.

And then it was time to wrap up his session at the football field. It was starting to get a bit chilly with the sun setting… and dark! His mom got permission to turn on the football stadium lights and his dad used his construction light to help us create awesome and interesting lighting for the end of the night. They decided to order their “Friday Night Lights” photo on metal too, which is going to look amazing in their home, or maybe Zeb’s room if he’s lucky! :)

What an adventure this session was! Probably my craziest one to date, and I’m so glad we did it! We got to include ALL of the things that are important to Zeb. but you know what? You're only a senior once, you only get to have your senior portraits taken once, so go big or go home. It was a big undertaking but it was worth it!

Your calendar likely fills up as fast as mine in the summer and it’s SO easy to forget to schedule photos! If you are graduating in 2020, or a parent of a 2020 graduate - reach out with any questions or to start planning!! It may seem early, but I’ve had so many parents tell me they wish they wouldn’t have waited! P.S. I always run a special deal for Seniors who book their session for the summer. Check out my Senior Gallery or contact me for more info!