A Very Special Graduate | Calgary Graduation Portraits

This very special graduation session happened in 2022—I’m just awful at keeping up with blogging(I mean, I haven’t even blogged my son’s graduation and he was in the class of 2020). These images are from my favourite niece’s graduation day. Anyone who has been following me for awhile will know her as she is my daughter’s BFF since birth ;) She allowed me to follow her around for the day so that we could get some more documentary type images, portraits of family, and some fun images of just her(and some with her bestie who got dressed up for the occasion as well). These were taken in Edmonton on the provincial Legislature grounds and at the Muttart Conservatory.

So proud of this kiddo as she is now studying dance at the University of Winnipeg. We miss her greatly though and I am so excited for her to come home for the holidays.

SCROLL DOWN for part two of this session where we did a Day After session…well, maybe not exactly the day after, but we did a session a little while after where she was just herself in her dress and her converse runners. Because this auntie believes you can never have too many images of yourself in the most beautiful dress you have ever worn!!

Those were all taken on the actual day of her graduation in Edmonton. The ones below were taken later that summer at my home in Okotoks. I love that she allowed me to take images of her with her every day hair and make up as the sun set across the street from my house.

Okotoks Graduation Portrait Class of 2023

The best thing about graduation sessions is being able to do a one on one portrait sessions with kids that I have literally watched grow up. I’ve known this kiddo here since she was in preschool and since she performed with my daughter, I have had the pleasure of carpooling with her for a couple of years so I really enjoyed hearing all about her plans for the future.

My number one tip to graduates is to have their session on a day that isn’t the day they are graduating. This allows for us to take advantage of the best light of the day. It also allows us to go to multiple locations or a location that is maybe a bit out of the way from your graduation celebrations. And, if the weather is bad, it allows us to reschedule. Plus, you have the benefit of being able to wear your graduation outfit more than once! If you are concerned about getting images with your cap and gown, we can schedule the session for the same week as your graduation. Most schools require you to pick up your cap and gown a few days early. So, you have it in your possession for at least a couple of days before the actual ceremony.

This gorgeous young woman had one request—no basic ‘standing in a field’ type of portraits. She wanted something different from that. I was happy to fulfill that request!! I also have every client share their dress/outfit with me ahead of time so that I can take that into consideration when picking a location. At the end, we decided on two urban locations in Calgary. These are the images we created together.

Calgary Graduation Portraits

In 2023, I had the opportunity to photograph a lot of young men who were graduating from high school. I think parents of young female graduates always think about having portraits done because there is so much effort that goes into their dress, their shoes, their hair, etc…but, I love that the class of 2023 did not leave out the boys!! There is something so special about seeing these young people at this moment of transition in their life from their childhood to adulthood. Many of them are finishing up their youth sports or activities and making big decisions about what they want for their lives. I love hearing all about their future plans. Getting to spend time with so many grads every spring truly brings me hope for our future.

If you have a 2024 graduate and are thinking about having portraits done, watch here and on my social media for my Black Friday specials to grad $200 off a regular priced session. There will be a limited number of these sessions available and they will be released at 9:00am on Friday, November 24th. When, they’re gone—they’re gone ;) Over the next week and a half leading up that, I’ll be sharing more examples of what you can expect from a graduation session plus some tips to getting the most out of your own session….so, watch here.

Graduation Portraits | Calgary Photographer

So, this Black Friday, there are two types of sessions on sale. The Adventure Session AND the Grad Session. What is a grad session? I feel like this is one type of session where people really have got stuck in their idea of what this type of session should be and that box that they are stuck in is not helping them get great images. A grad session really can be whatever you can dream up. I like to plan the session out based on the outfits and the grad’s personality. This lovely and talented human graduated last year from the PVA program at Central Memorial. She was NOT IN LOVE with her grad portraits done by the school. So, we started her session out in my studio creating better traditional cap and gown portraits(although, her hair is so beautiful we agreed that there really was no need for the cap). Then, she changed into her grad dress and we did some portraits in studio and just within walking distance of my studio. By making the decision not to do the session on the day of the graduation, this allowed us to take the time we needed to get all of the portraits that would make her happy. After all, one only graduates from high school ONCE and the portraits should be as fantastic as all of that feels.

Some grads decide to have two outfits—one more casual and one more formal. Some choose to have a quick family mini session at the beginning or the end of their session. Some bring their boyfriends or girlfriends. I’ve even set up an afternoon of minis for friend groups(although this wouldn’t be included in the black friday session sale it is still an option). So, instead of trying to squeeze the session in between all of the graduation events, pick a different day and give yourself a more relaxed experience overall.

As with the Adventure Sessions, these sessions will be on sale this Friday for $250 off of the regular price. There will be 10 sessions up for grabs. They are going to be popular this year as I’ve had many emails about them so make sure to set a notification to check your email or watch my social media to grab your spot before they are gone.