Graduation Session in the Blossoms | Calgary Photographer
As soon as I saw this girl’s dress, I knew that we had to schedule the session in the spring blossoms. It suited her dress so perfectly and made for such soft and romantic photographs. She bought the dress while on holiday with her mom in Quebec if I remember correctly.
This family chose to add a quick little family mini session to the beginning of their graduation session. Almost every family chooses that, but if you are not one of those families, you can add an extra outfit or an extra location to the session. Some graduates like to be photographed in a casual outfit or a team uniform. Others choose to have two contrasting locations—perhaps the studio and then a more natural setting. Or, their childhood bedroom and a cool urban location. This is why I create a totally custom session for each graduate. I’m not interested in creating a session that is hurried and only provides a few photographs. I want to create a session that documents your graduating child in a complete way and that takes time so that it is done properly.
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.
Urban Rooftop Graduation Session | Calgary Photographer
I know it’s November so you might be thinking that this isn’t the right time of year to be talking about graduation sessions, but you would be wrong!! Graduation sessions are by far my most popular sale item on Black Friday. So, in the spirit of answering some of your most frequently asked questions about graduation sessions, I will be posting some of my favourite sessions from the last couple of years.
This is the lovely Emelia. We came up with the idea for a rooftop sunset session together after she showed me her dress. I thought it was the perfect choice for this type of session. This session is such a great example of why we don’t have the session on the same day as the graduation ceremony or party. When we make it a separate event, it allows for another day to celebrate your graduate. It also allows for flexibility as far as location, time of day, and outcomes. Every grad is different so I want to make sure that their photographs always reflect that. Allowing for flexibility as far as scheduling the graduation session means we aren’t at the mercy of the weather or the crazy schedule for the day. You can spend the actual graduation day focusing on celebrating as a family and worry about portraits on another day.
This year, my own daughter is graduating and we are planning at least three different portrait sessions(because I really am that kind of crazy). This will definitely be one of the locations as I love it so much. Where would your perfect graduation portrait session location be?
