Wauwatosa West class of 2024 | David | september

Jul 9

Written By Abbie

This is the post I have been dreading not just all year… but in fact… for YEARS.

This is MY baby, my youngest.

David.

The more I think about what to write, the more I feel the vice tighten around my heart. I don’t want to embarrass him, so I’ll leave the sappy emotion for the Hallmark card.

So, believe it or not, the photographer’s kids are NOT as photographed as you may think. I don’t often (ever?) have the gifted opportunity to drag them (kicking and screaming?) to my studio or to the local park for a series of updated portraits. It’s a sad but true fact. They’re busy, I’m busy, they don’t want to… I DO want to… but I’m their mom.

That being said, I unrealistically made a really cool plan in my head (and out loud, for that matter) of doing a little “mini” session each month of David’s senior year of high school. (Spoiler alert - that plan 100% did not happen.) While I did manage to squeeze in a few photo-ops, it wasn’t the over-the-top dream I had envisoned. But really, in the end, it doesn’t need to be over-the-top. It just needs to be HIM.

So here we were, in September, first month of senior year (!!), and we headed out for his first official senior portrait session.

I’ll admit, I cried. He had to come give me a hug.

And then I got to work.

It was a real test: pushing past your emotions AND working with your own child who ALSO happens to be a reluctant subject. But… I think I made it work.

september | JACOBUS PARK

David is a casual, no-nonsense human. He doesn’t see the need for extra frills. He is commonly seen wearing PLAIN hoodies and t-shirts (like in these photos) or, if there is text, it’s representing a brand or subject that he truly believes in, not just because it came that way.

He has an amazing smile (and expensive…) but the expression that is TRULY him is the closed-mouth smirk with full dimples showing.

By the time we were done (who am I kidding - HE was done), I felt like I captured David as a person very well. He approved the images and nodded in agreement. In fact, like most of my clients, he was pleasantly surprised at what he saw.

That’s what I call #winning