Emma and that beautiful warm smile
As I start to look back at 2015 and the seniors that we were blessed to work with, I have to admit that I’m already missing these young men and women so I wanted to post a few of my thoughts about them and the photos we were able to capture as well as a little of the background behind some of the photos. We worked with several seniors this year, too many to post in a single blog, so I thought I’d split them up into groups and a few individuals that we spent more time with, to make it a little easier to read. I’ll be writing these posts over the days to come. I’m thinking of it somewhat as “Therapy” to get me through the sadness of knowing they’re moving on into bigger and better things… without me…
I’d like to start with one of the cheerleaders. Since we also shoot sports, I get to spend a lot of time with the cheerleaders and get really attached to them. I still maintain the position that Cheerleaders may be the best athletes in sports. Certainly some of the hardest working.
We LOVED just being around Emma. Oh, sweet Emma. She’s the prototypical All-American Cheerleader, always got a smile, sweet southern girl that every mother wants her son to marry and everyone wants to have as a best friend. There’s an inner warmth in Emma that comes through her personality and spreads comfort to those around her. As I grow older and “hopefully” wiser, I value these “compassionate” people more and more. They are the most special people on earth.
From a photographers perspective, I wanted to make sure that I was able to bring out those traits that are so special about Emma but I also wanted to make sure that I could show a little of that side that isn’t always so apparent. The “softer” side. I began to think and plan for the shoots, but I have to admit, working with Emma was so much fun that we did a lot of improvising and some of those are my favorite shots.
The shot above is one of my favorites from the year. The warm light of a beautiful sunset on the old Marine Corps train reminds me of the sacrifices that were made for us in war so that the rest could be free to grow up, raise families and continue their American dreams and traditions. That history is the supporting backdrop for Emma who in this photo seems to glow and clearly outshine even that beautiful sunset, with the red and white stripes in the shirt paying tribute to the Flag. Being ex-military myself, when I look at this photo I know when those who made those sacrifices might have looked down and saw her in this setting, they would tell us, this is why we did what we did.
Some of Emma’s early life photos were in Spring Park so we decided to shoot a few senior portraits there as well. The Carousel was the perfect prop for her in this beautiful dress.
The idea for the above photo was Emma’s, I can’t take any credit for that. It was fun but let’s face it, seeing me leaning out precariously from a ladder directly over you is a scary proposition. I love the photo, still that signature Emma smile…
Val and I are REALLY going to miss Emma. We’re blessed to have been a small part of her senior year. It’s going to be hard to replace that beautiful smile. I’ll sure miss it…
To see more of Emma’s Gallery: Emma McFall
The Way I See It... 