It’s hard to believe how quickly Minnesota can turn, but here I stand looking out my window at the snow on the ground only three weeks after Grady, his mom, and I walked the trails at Afton State Park for his senior photos on an absolutely gorgeous & crisp fall night. 

I always love the adventures that photography takes me on. It’s such a privilege and honor, and to hang with awesome people while doing it? All the more amazing! This was definitely the case when we got to hang out with Dan & Rachel again for Dan’s daughter, Carol’s, senior photos. Rachel reached out saying they’d like me to take them, and we were all for heading back to hang with the horses, err we mean, them (just kidding, guys, you’re totally cool!) Rachel went on to explain that Carol not only wanted to take her senior photos with horses but also with smoke bombs, which presents a bit of a tricky situation as far as location goes. With this in mind, we chose to take them at their family home in Farmington.

Meet the lovely, Susan. This girl is an absolute rockstar and killed her senior photos at Afton State Park! She literally hit the ground running and was a natural right from the beginning, so much so that I had to stop and say, “You must’ve been a model before!” To which she humbly raised her head and blushingly smiled saying, “Yeah, I modeled when I was little.” How cool is that?! She also previously rode horses, so of course we had fun chatting about that as we walked around Afton State Park… and, if that isn’t amazing enough, she comes from the rare breed of women that enjoys playing video games. When you ask Susan about what she wants to do after high school, she doesn’t hmm and haw like some seniors can, she has a plan and a pretty solid one at that. She plans to start training to become an EMT, and then once she is able to do that, she’ll study to become a nurse – she’s hoping specifically to work in pediatrics. If I can tell you anything about this girl after spending the afternoon with her, it’s that she would be an awesome pediatric nurse. She’s so gentle, soft-spoken, and just beams with love – I can see my own kids loving her (up until she’d have to administer shots!).

I can truly say that it is not every day that senior photos involves a gun. A gun? Yes, a gun. Don’t worry, we didn’t get held up – praise the Lord! Park High School senior, Connor, is on their trap team. The gun wasn’t the only thing that came along with Connor for his senior portraits at Vermillion Falls. Connor’s mom and grandma also joined in the fun; and it definitely was fun as they teased him many times throughout the session, keeping it light-hearted and relaxing!

I think one of the coolest things about high school seniors today is that they are often not "just seniors" but are already working on their college degree. Am I wanting them to rush through their high school experience? No! But, as a college grad from a private school, I totally understand that college can get very expensive quick and getting as much time doing PSEO done helps keep the student loan debt that much more at bay. This is the case for Park High School senior, Erika, who is currently a PSEO student at Inver Hills Community College. She shared during her senior photos that by the time she graduates, she should have about a year and a half of college credits done -- way to go, Erika!