Urban Senior Portraits in Opera Alley

These urban senior portraits in Opera Alley are from one of my favorite sessions. Cute, shy Anya came out of her shell for this session and brought it all! We scheduled her session for early August – one of the many perks of being an AHP Model Team member is early access to my schedule – and the sun was out.

Sports Inspired

Anya attends Bellarmine Prep School and has plans to study architecture or design. I love her creativity and passion for all that she does. Anya is a gymnast, just like Kami who I featured recently on the blog! I love my sporty seniors, who do everything from gymnastics to softball, fastpitch, cheerleading, water polo, and soccer. As every gymnast and sporty girl does, Anya wore sport shorts underneath her outfits so she could run around, climb walls, and strike different poses. The result is great photos that show off her strength and personality. She even did “the pretzel pose”, which we learned from Holli True. And with an added boost of confidence from her fav outfits and glam makeup, Anya began leaping through the air (literally!).

Exploring Tacoma

Anya started her session in a rocking pink pleather skirt and metallic summer sandals as we wandered down a street in Tacoma I hadn’t explored before. I am all about variety and good light! Then she changed into her favorite outfit, a purple shorts jumper, and OMG she came alive. If you know me, you know purple is my fav color, and I loved how Anya rocked it. We swapped out her sandals and ventured over to the Spanish Steps. These have been out of commission for months as the new McMenamins was being built. I am glad to say we can use them again, but alas there is now a bar in the middle of them. Sigh.

But the late summer light was oh so yummy. Natural bokeh radiated behind Miss Anya for some dreamy downtown portraits. We had such a fun group along for her senior portraits, including her mom and sister. We even found a hidden air vent in the street – perfect for some Marilyn Monroe inspired portraits! We found awesome backgrounds for each of her outfits, including black, purple, and orange walls, and silver metal siding.

We wandered over to the Chinese Reconciliation Park because Anya has fond memories of classes there and spends time there relaxing. And of course, we found more awesome light!

Fashion Forward

Anya has an eye for design and creates her own garments. She brought along a jean jacket that she added fringe to – so cool! It looked so great paired with her romper, and her earrings were to die for. It’s the little things that can totally change up your outfit.

Part of the fun of senior sessions is all the different outfits and ways to change up your look. I always tell my seniors to have fun, experiment, and step outside the box. Anya changed into a dress and added a hat for her photos in the park, because why not?? Dresses are fun because you can twirl, spin, and float along. They’re so feminine and ethereal! And for dancers and gymnasts like Anya, jumping and “levitating” makes for unique and personalized senior photos.

If you don’t have dresses or heels you’re excited about, you can always borrow from the AHP Style Closet before your session! We have amazing clothes from all different brands, including Free People and American Eagle. I recommend pairing a dress with heels to make your legs look longer and fit. Try on different styles, laugh, be playful, and most importantly, be yourself.

Professional Hair & Makeup

Having your hair and makeup done for your senior portraits makes such a difference! Anya had hers done by Kara of Inspired Radiance Beauty. Kara also came along to assist during the shoot, which is something I offer with my Le Diva sessions! Kara is my HMUA, lighting assistant, changing tent guru, wagon puller, and helper extraordinaire. She gives an extra boost of confidence. We both encouraged Anya and watched her blossom.

Anya really wanted her eyes to be seen for her senior portraits, especially the whites of her eyes when she squints. The benefit of having a trained makeup artist and professional photographer is that we listen to your concerns and know how to accentuate your features. So we were able to make sure her eyes popped!

Sunset Ending

We ended this urban senior portrait session as the sun was dipping behind the hills of Tacoma. Anya changed into her orange dress and this girl was instantly on fire! We got down near the water so she could dance barefoot on the sand near the “warm” Washington water (haha). The light turned orange and made Anya’s dress look even more like it was on fire. Just as we were getting ready to leave, I spotted an entire pile of boulders. I figured since I had a gymnast with me, why not ask her to climb the rocks like a cat? We both climbed up and caught the awesome last rays of magical sunlight in the boulder pit. Anya, on top of the rocks in her favorite orange dress, looked like she owned the world.

Let’s Connect!

To schedule your senior portrait session in Opera Alley, it’s super easy to reach out on my website. You can also send me an email at [email protected] or call/text 530-412-0730 to schedule your shoot!