It was a tall order.
The mission:
Find a location for senior photos where Gavin can ride a dirt bike, bring his car, fish in a pond, play hockey, and do a wheelie with his cap and gown.
Oh, and include his two brothers and the family dogs in portraits as well!
Ordinarily I’d suggest scaling back the list. After all, most of my subjects would find such an extensive agenda exhausting.
But not Gavin. He is indefatigable, unstoppable.
When his mom Renee said “he doesn’t wear out,” she wasn’t kidding.
Case in point:
Gavin has played hockey since he was three. Recently, he broke his left pointer finger when another hockey player smashed in to his hand.
Rather than take a break, and… I don’t know, get immediate medical assistance, he played the whole rest of the game.
The adrenaline must have dulled the pain, but afterward, he tried to open his water bottle and felt his whole hand go numb.
I asked him about it. He replied, “Most people like things easy; I like it when it’s hard.” Like playing hockey with a broken finger or grinning in the rain.
The session:
As the downpour started, he sat by his beloved car, cheerfully beaming at my camera. In that moment, I realized – this is Gavin.
He’s smiling when others would be stressing or complaining. He’s willing to rise to the challenge of the moment.
Broken finger or a rainstorm, he embodies resilience.
He didn’t give up, but the rain forced our hands. We rescheduled the rest of our ambitious senior portrait agenda for early the next morning. He had a plane to catch soon after that, so we both carved out the time.
As the sun rose over the peaks, Renee lugged his wardrobe and many props, like the supremely capable sports mom she is.
We talked about pizza crust, his girlfriend, Greek donkeys, which of his brothers will pick up trash, his mom’s safety lectures, the personality traits of Penelope and Einstein (the family dogs), how to pop a wheelie, how to hit a rock into a pond with a hockey stick, and more.
Some might have found it all tiring. He made it easy.
Flagstaff Family Portrait Photography • Flagstaff Maternity Pregnancy Photographer • Flagstaff Newborn Photographer • Flagstaff Child Photographer • Flagstaff Senior Portrait Photographer • Flagstaff Couples Photography
Kristen Dacey Iwai of KDI Photography is a full-time professional portrait photographer based in Flagstaff, Arizona with decades of experience. Making portraits of families, pregnancy, newborns, babies, children, and high school seniors in her downtown studio and on location, she serves clients from Flagstaff, Sedona, Tuba City, Winslow, Payson, Page, Williams, Prescott, Mesa, Scottsdale, Phoenix, Arizona
