Senior Portraits - My favorite sessions!

Don’t get me wrong - babies and kiddos are adorable, but senior portraits are by far my favorite! Surprised? Here’s why - 

Some people may cringe thinking about working with this age group. They are notorious for being rebellious, dramatic, opinionated, indecisive, etc. Easy-going and agreeable usually do not make the list. 

We take photographs to capture moments in time and, to me, there’s something really special about senior portraits. High school is a relatively short period of time in which so much change can happen developmentally and emotionally. It’s a period of time some people remember fondly, while others would rather forget the experience.  

In the time span of just a few years, you may learn to drive and become more independent, find activities that excite you and subjects that engage you, figure out what doesn’t excite you, learn that decisions and actions can have very real consequences, form social and romantic relationships, apply for your first job, and potentially make choices about what you’ll be doing for the rest of your adult life. On top of all of that, you have your full-time job as a student. 

When I think back to my own high school experience, it wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows. My family uprooted and moved after my freshman year of high school. I went from being at the top of my class with friends I had since elementary school to being the weird new girl at a school with a more challenging curriculum and a student body that was very competitive academically. 

To say I felt lost and like a fish out of water, floundering to get by is an understatement. There were days I would tell my mom I was refusing to go to school (she still made me go), days I would hold back tears sitting among my new friends as it all seemed so easy for them, thinking there was no one who could relate to what I was going through, and so so many visits to my guidance counselor completely overwhelmed by my class schedule. 

Over the next three years, things slowly changed. I adapted and matured. I still struggled a bit academically (honors chemistry, I’m looking at you), but found classes that excited me, made genuine friends, went to proms, joined the track team (and struggled athletically lol), and got early acceptance into my first choice college. 

I remember the excitement, nervousness, pride, and slightly insecure sense of maturity I felt as my junior year ended and my senior year was about to begin. For the first time in a long time, my peers and I would all be experiencing a major life change at the same time. The question of “what do you want to be when you grow up?” was directly in front of us. We would all have to make decisions - go to college or not go to college, stay local or move away. For most of us, this is the first time we truly have to make a potentially life-altering decision. 

I can feel those same emotions during senior portrait sessions. The photos are a reminder of a period of time that is relatively brief in the grand scheme of a lifetime, but so incredibly impactful. A moment where one adventure is ending and another is beginning, and a first glimpse into adulthood. It’s so exciting to see and be a part of, even if only for a short photo session.  

If you are located in the Boston area or the South Shore of Massachusetts and are interested in booking a senior photo session, please contact me! You can also email me directly: info@melissakimberlyphoto.com. 

You can view more of my senior portrait work here: Senior Portraits

Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario

After spending Canada Day in Montreal, I drove about 6 hours west to spend the 4th of July a little closer to the border in Burlington, Ontario. I spent a few days visiting with family and headed out for a couple of day trips with my aunts.

First up was a day at Niagara-on-the-Lake, a town on Lake Ontario that directly borders the US. As we drove toward Queen Street we passed through quaint streets with houses that varied from historic and modest to modern and gigantic. As someone who has always lived near the ocean, I think I could be easily fooled by this view of the lake if I didn’t know I was about 8 hours from the coast.

Lake Ontario

I imagine the scene is very different in the winter, but on a beautiful July day Queen Street was bursting with color and character. Hanging flowers adorned the lamp posts and street signs. After making our way through numerous cafes and shops, we stopped at the Royal George Theater to take in a play, Dancing at Lughnasa.

Queen Street, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario

Royal George Theatre

Queen Street, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario

A bright, historic, and picturesque town, Niagara-on-the-Lake checks a lot of boxes.

Montreal

This July 4th has been relatively quiet for me and I’m a tad regretful that I didn’t take advantage of the longer holiday weekend to get away for a few days. The “memories” and “on this day” notifications through multiple social media platforms rubbed salt in that wound by reminding me that I went on a road trip to Montreal, Toronto, and the Niagara Falls area over the long weekend. There are many photos to share, so I’m going to start with Montreal. 

This trip will always be a special one for me as it’s the first time I truly travelled on my own outside of work. Traveling solo was something I was hesitant to do. I’m a single woman in my 30s without children. I have a great group of close friends that I spend a lot of time with, but with work schedules, differing interests, families, etc. it’s becoming increasingly difficult to organize trips and activities together. I was starting to think if I didn’t start doing some of these things on my own, I might never get to them. It was a case of FOMO and YOLO all rolled into one. 

I worried about people thinking it was odd, but friends and family were supportive and encouraging. I’m so glad I went through with it. All in all, I had a great time in Montreal and have gone on to travel quite a bit on my own. I really love being able to do exactly what I want to do, on my own schedule. 

 Montreal is a lovely city, and bigger than I had expected. My Fitbit tracked numerous miles each of the 3 days as I wandered up and down streets through different neighborhoods. It’s a colorful city with a mix of historic and modern architecture, and pleasantly surprised by the elaborate street art found on the sides of buildings. 

The city was alive with visitors as there was a trifecta of events going on in the city: It was Canada Day (July 1st), Canada 150 (the 150th anniversary of Canada), and the annual Montreal International Jazz Festival was in full-swing. You need tickets for the headliners and bigger acts, but there were stages set up in parks around the city, some with beer gardens and food trucks, that only required a quick security check to gain entrance. 

Montreal is only a little over 5 hours away from Boston by car. Close enough for a quick getaway, but far enough that you can justify staying for a few days.

Hello and Welcome!

Thanks for stopping by! I’m new to blogging and have made a resolution (just a little late for New Years, or just really proactive about next year? haha) to do a better job of updating my website and give this blogging stuff a try. 

Introductions seem like a good first step. 

My name is Melissa and I live just south of Boston. Just for fun, I took photography classes in high school and never imagined then that I would go on to study photography in college, nor that I would eventually leave the darkroom and be able to sit on my sofa editing photos digitally on my laptop. 

Although the photographic process has changed for me, I always try to adhere to really elementary design principles when I take photos, regardless of the subject(s). I typically take a more documentary approach, rather than posed and structured. I love natural light and how it impacts the mood of a scene. Every photo is an opportunity to capture a unique moment in time, which I think is kind of amazing. 

One stumbling block for me in getting started on a blog was trying to figure out how to curate the content. As someone who studied communications and art in college, I know the value of adapting your message to your target audience, but I was having trouble figuring out how to zero in on a theme; always feeling like something was missing and insincere as it didn’t truly encompass me and my portfolio. Here’s hoping my target audience has interests just as diverse as I do.

As a freelance photographer, I’ve only ever worked in portrait photography: families, newborns, senior photos, etc. As a fine art photographer, my interests embrace not only people, but places and architecture. As someone who loves to cook and bake, food sometimes sneaks into my photo roll. 

So, what to expect here? 

• Portraits - Insight into some of my work with families, children, newborns, and seniors. 

• Travel - Photos from my travels, past and present

• Architecture - I’m fascinated by architecture and the stories it tells about a place

• Food - Photos of memorable meals and favorite recipes. 

I’m looking forward to “meeting” you and learning from you, as well. 

-- M