Grand Rapids, Michigan Senior Photography | Darren Senior Session | Sparta High School

This summer has been a busy one, for sure! In the span of the last 3 months, I have left my day job working at the local university, traveled to Italy and Michigan, and have started to create the life that I have pictured for quite a while.

During my travels to Michigan, I had the privilege of taking senior photos for my cousin, Darren. I can’t believe that he is going to be a senior this year! Of all of the grandchildren on my mom’s side of the family, he is the youngest, so it seems that we are now all grown up and moving on to the next stage in life.

I really enjoyed taking photos for Darren because I am really proud of the person that he has become and am excited for him in his future endeavors. We started the session at the high school to celebrate first all of the sports that he enjoys playing and the fact that being a part of the football and rugby teams has played a huge part of his life. This also took my down memory lane, as I also went to Sparta High School, but he is in a much newer building than I ever was!

Sparta High School Senior Photos - Sports

After being at the high school for some photos, we went to downtown Grand Rapids to take the rest of his photos. I loved this setting because Darren is looking to go to college of Engineering.He is unsure which kind of Engineering yet, but Engineering nonetheless. I am very excited for him, as this is a lucrative career and one that I know he will work really hard at doing well in. There are so many school options, so once he does choose a university, he will definitely take flight and learn so much in his new line of academia.

I think that is one of my favorite parts of being a Colorado and Michigan Senior Photography, is that I get to meet all of these pretty amazing students and hear about all of their plans for the future. That was always my favorite part about teaching too, to help guide students towards choosing their life path after high school. It is a big decision, and yet one that doesn’t have to be so planned because things can also change, but overall, the idea is to have the student’s interest be piqued and their hopes and ambitions help to lead them onto a path that they are proud of themselves for taking.

I hope all of this and more for Darren. I hope that my once little cousin makes himself proud of the things that he intends to accomplish both in high senior year and in college. No matter where he chooses, he will be a great addition to that university and their Engineering program. I am so glad that I was able to help commemorate this time in his life. I can’t wait to work with more students, especially some more from Michigan too!

I love that we went to this blue and white bridge (I can’t remember the name of it, but I am sure it is probably important in Grand Rapids) and it was perfect because it is the school colors for Sparta High School. We also really liked this spot because of the industrial feel to the photos that we were able to create. As a future Engineering student, the structure of buildings and was the perfect setting, not to mention that the lighting was gorgeous that morning.

This last picture is one of my favorites!

Jacob senior session | Colorado Springs Senior Photography | Cheyenne Canyon

I had the privilege of meeting Jacob and his family in Cheyenne Canyon for his senior photos. We started near Helen Hunt Falls and worked our way up to Gold Camp Road where the road runs through the rocks. We ended at a section of Cheyenne Canyon where we had access to some of the running water from the creek and a stone bridge. Jacob was fun to work with. As the session continued on, we chatted more about some of his goals for the future, and is was easy to tell that he was adventurous - which is how I imagine him to continue on in his future.

Two things that stuck out to me about Jacob was his passion for playing in band and his career goals. He is planning on joining the military to follow in the footsteps of his dad, a person that he truly admires. Throughout his senior questionnaire, Jacob mentions the military often and his desire to travel the world. I think these two things together will bring him many great experiences and opportunities to do just that, adventure and explore the world in a variety of ways. In regards to band, one of his favorite memories in high school was going to his first marching band competition and performing.

Some of Jacob’s best advise to other students in high school is to be proud of who you are and brush it off if someone is picking on you for being different. This is such good wisdom, for really anyone of any age. He would also tell his peers to turn in their school work, that even though it can be tough at times, they can still do it. With an attitude like that, I can see how Jacob will be successful in staying true to who he is, move forward with confidence, and knows what work needs to be done to reach his goals. He thanks his family for helping to shape him into the person that he is today. Jacob has such a great spirit and his outlook on life will help him go far.

I loved how Jacob climbed and walked around among the trees. He loved the new perspective of his surroundings, and it was fun to work with a senior who was adventurous and appreciative of the things around him. I can’t wait for him to take hold of all of life’s opportunities ahead of him!