Fun Senior Photo Session with Sofia at Pike Place Market

I love senior photo sessions!  The kids are invariably a lot of fun to work with, and the vibe is so different from shooting a wedding that it is a wonderful change of pace.  This session was a great example.  Sofia is starting her Senior year of high school, and already has made many of her plans for “what happens once High School is over”.  Talking with her about where she plans to go to school (and why), and what she might like to do once she finishes her college career was a delight.  And she also turned out to be a wonderful subject/model during our session together!

We started the day by meeting at the Pig next to the Fish Market at the Pike Place Market.  Her mom Mary Jane had also come along for the session, and when we located each other at the Market I started as I usually do by explaining my methodology for a Senior session, and the options for where we might go for photos during our time together.  When I am working with someone who is willing to move quickly I love to not only explore the Market, but to also make my way to the nearby waterfront area to take advantage of the many photo opps that can be found there.  Sofia and Mary Jane said they were ready to move fast so we could maximize our photo possibilities, and off we went.

We began by taking photos in the upper part of Post Alley.  I like to start off by trying to find out how comfortable the Senior is with being photographed, so I have a better idea of what we might do during our session.  It was clear very quickly that Sofia was very comfortable in front of the camera, and as we talked I discovered that she was active in Drama at her school.  I really like it when I am working with an actor as they already understand about not only facial expressions but the body language of different poses.  And as you will see as you look at the photos Sofia had simply incredible hair, and I was excited about the possibilities her hair offered with the lighting conditions we had that day.

The conditions that we had were actually not exactly optimal.  Quite sunny and bright, which meant the possibility for squinting and overly high contrast unless I was very careful about where we took photos.  Fortunately I know this area very well, and how to make use of the various backgrounds under a variety of lighting conditions.

We moved through Post Alley, taking photos as we went.  We did avoid the infamous Gum Wall, which has spread out so badly that it has ruined much of the Alley  🙁  After we finished in the Alley we moved down toward the Waterfront.  There is a staircase called the Pike Street Hillclimb that runs from Western Ave down to Alaskan Way that I knew would be mostly in the shade, so we took that route to the waterfront.  The lighting along the Hillclimb was wonderful as you’ll see when you look through the photos at the end of this posting.

Once we made it under the Viaduct and across Alaskan Way we took advantage of the wonderful fountain located next to the Aquarium; the sun angle was perfect for some great shots.  As our session continued and Sofia got more comfortable, she continued to surprise me with her natural sense of posing.  I did give her some direction to make sure she was located in the best places to take advantage of the lighting, but she was wonderful at coming up with some of her own poses.

All too soon our time was running short, so we took the elevator back up to the Market for some final photos there before our session ended.  And now you can check out a selection of the photos from the session, I hope that you enjoy them!