Meet Allie. Graduating high school senior, valedictorian of her class—a rare combination of brains and beauty. The perfect student to represent the mission statement of her teachers. You can be sure you’ll be seeing more of this talented woman as she makes her mark in the world. And the world will be a better place for it!

Allie wanted the backdrop of Vancouver for her high school senior portrait session. We had a great time getting to know each other and I even brought along another talented high school senior, Ian.

He shadowed me during December for his high school culminating project. Unfortunately, there isn’t a lot of shooting going on at that time, so he spent his week watching me work in front of my computer. As much a real world experience as that is, it’s just not the rock star photographer image everyone has of what I do for a living. Perception versus reality. Two worlds colliding. Look for a behind-the-scenes image of Ian in this set. So, without further ado… let me introduce Allie.

My name is: Allie
I’m a Senior at: Heritage High School
Childhood Ambition: Changed a lot. Finally decided on businesswoman.
Fondest Memory: Spending a week in Hawaii with the family.
Soundtrack: Everything is Beautiful – Starfield.
Retreat: Going on a run through the park.
Wildest Dream: To be in a movie—my lifelong secret desire!
Proudest Moment: Giving a speech at 8th grade graduation as valedictorian.
Biggest Challenge: Not catching senioritis.
Alarm Clock: My cell phone… and if that doesn’t work, my mother.
Perfect Day: SUNNY, warm, and no rain.
First Job: Tutor for a family friend.
Indulgence: Shopping.
Last Purchase: Sixteen-ounce Peach Pleasure from Jamba Juice.
Favorite Movie: The Count of Monte Cristo.
Inspiration: Jesus, all the way.
My Life: Will make an exciting change as I attend George Fox University this fall.
My Future: Is directed by God. It will be grand!

My name is: Ellora
I’m a Senior at: Hockinson High School
Childhood Ambition: To be a pediatrician or surgeon.
Fondest Memory: Celebrating two years with my boyfriend
Soundtrack: “Boxer” by The National.
Retreat: A nap in a warm, cozy sweater.
Wildest Dream: To move across the country for college! Hopefully, it will come true.
Proudest Moment: Being cast in a new play by Louis Sachar.
Biggest Challenge: De-stressing
Alarm Clock: Is a godsend.
Perfect Day: Any day I see a rainbow.
First Job: Solo vocalist with the Oregon Symphony.
Indulgence: Anything chocolate.
Last Purchase: A month of Bikram yoga.
Favorite Movie: I could never choose just one!
Inspiration: Debussy
My Life: Is bursting with opportunities!
My Future: Will make the best of them.

Ellora is a senior at Hockinson High School, graduating valedictorian of her class in 2010. She’s smart, beautiful and will surely set the world on fire, so watch out!

There were a lot of favorites from our portrait session. Narrowing it down was difficult. Which ones are your favorites? Share your thoughts and comments below!

My name is: Kiara
I’m a Senior at: The Vancouver School of Arts and Academics.
Childhood Ambition: I’ve always wanted to be a famous dancer.
Fondest Memory: Performing at the Opera House in San Francisco CA for thousands of people. Soundtrack: Honey Baby by Three Plus
Retreat: The Beach
Wildest Dream: Becoming a famous dancer and being able to travel the world.
Proudest Moment: When I choreographed a dance piece and it was put in our school show. All the compliments were overwhelming, but I was so excited.
Biggest Challenge: My biggest challenge in life was moving to Washington because I had to leave my friends and family and make new friends.
Alarm Clock: I press the snooze button many times before even considering waking up.
Perfect Day: 80 degrees, sunny with a slight breeze. Perfect for a sun dress.
First Job: My first job was in a food booth at the Clark County Fair.
Indulgence: ALL FOODS!!!!!! =)
Last Purchase: McDonalds
Favorite Movie: The Lion King
Inspiration: My family. They inspire me to be a better dancer, a better student, and a better person.
My Life: I grew up in San Francisco, California. I love dancing, playing soccer and basketball. I am a very competitive and outgoing person. I love making new friends and making people happy.
My Future: I want to be a nurse!

Her spirit and enthusiasm are as infectious as her smile and laughter. She’s an accomplished hip-hop dancer and is sure to turn the world upside down. We hit quite a few locations during this portrait session. From downtown Portland to downtown Vancouver. As you can see from the images, it was a great session.

If you go to school with Kiki, make sure to ask her about her portrait session. We had a blast and Kiki is a natural in front of the camera. Which ones are your favorites? Leave a comment below. Congratulations Kiki, I hope your last year of high school is full of good times and great memories!

Lexie is Spencer’s sister. You may remember Spencer from his senior session last year. There isn’t much more that I can say about this family and their kids that hasn’t already been said. It’s truly an honor to be a part of their lives, marking those moments in time that pass so quickly for all of us. Even more of an honor to be asked back into their lives to share in these transitions.

When you meet Lexie, you will immediately be drawn in by her charismatic smile and charm. I feel these images capture the best of her that day and hope you enjoy them. Special thanks to her mother for being “reflector girl” and jumping in to lend a hand with bending the natural light a bit. Thank you Lexie for a wonderful day and being such a good sport, never questioning my creative impulses. She even picked up a filthy, stinky Polaroid that we found laying on the ground. I had an idea for an image that I’ve used to kick off this post, a blending of the past and the present. Best wishes for an incredible senior year!

Since I don’t advertise senior sessions, it’s understandable that I don’t get a lot of calls to do them. When I do, it’s usually from seniors that are really trying to set themselves apart. They want a photographer that’s not using the same formula poses and locations that all their friends are having done. It’s important to them to capture this time in their life and for their unique personality to shine through.

When Elaine contacted me, she asked that I come up with an urban theme and feel for her pictures. After a number of conversations and location scouting, we decided on a location near downtown Portland, Oregon. I commissioned Sarah, my album designer, to create a few sample spreads for a senior album I’m putting together. These are a few of my favorite images and page designs from our session.

Because of the freedom and willingness of seniors to tackle any location and really immerse themselves into the experience, I must admit that these are quickly becoming one of my favorite things to do. They are a creative challenge and it’s every bit as important and singular an experience as a wedding and artistically very rewarding.

Congratulations Elaine! She will be focusing her creative energy into becoming an architect and I have a feeling that she will do very well. Stay tuned…

There is a funny story about our first photo shoot. Beth, aka mom, contacted me and asked what they should wear for the shoot. I told her that they should try to wear matching clothing so they looked like a family. No conflicting patterns, such as polka dots and plaid. Oh, and one more thing…no white. So, I show up to their home and everyone is running late. The sun is setting and we are racing against the clock. As the kids start coming out of their rooms and assembling for the shoot, I realized that mom has dressed them all in white shirts! We went ahead and photographed everyone and while Beth was happy with the photographs, I knew it wasn’t as good as it could have been. I asked if we could schedule another session and found out they were planning a family trip to the Oregon coast for Thanksgiving. We met at the coast and had a wonderful session on the beach at twilight. Some of my personal favorites were from that session.

So, it was an honor to be asked to photograph Spencer’s senior portrait. We decided to do the session at their new home. A beautiful home that could easily be featured in the pages of Architectural Digest, there was no shortage of possibilities. Spencer is a wonderful young man and dutifully went through the motions of this rite of passage. The challenge for me was to find his personality, lend a voice to the images that captured this time in his life. Of course, the weather was stormy and we started with straight forward head shots in the house. As we moved outside and found some wonderful locations, I never had the sense that Spencer was truly engaged until he started talking about his new car. And by new, I really mean old. His Subaru Justy.

Who doesn’t remember what car they were driving when they were a senior in high school? I had a piece of junk ’67 Mustang that I eventually restored, but all through high school it was in various stages of disrepair. I miss that car and all the memories of freedom it represents. There was something magical about that Mustang, not to mention the sound system and life experiences that were lived out in that car. When I asked Spencer to pose next to his beloved car, I felt the magic happen. Then I asked him to dive into the pool with his clothes on and the photos started getting better and better. Are they the typical senior portraits? No, but I never claimed to be a senior portrait photographer. My passion is photographing people in a real way with natural looking light.

Congratulations Spencer on your upcoming graduation. This is when you step out of childhood and become a man in the real world. I hope you find your voice and change the world. Be true to yourself and never stop loving your family. Thank you for letting me be a part of that special time in your life.