08/28/2026
Tall trees, favorite records, a Smashing Pumpkins concert tee and one absolutely INSANE sunset. This session was so Sydney. đ¤
And honestly, those are my favorite kinds of senior sessions. The ones where we take all the things you love, mix in a few ideas of my own and just see where the evening takes us.
Sydney knew she wanted to start in the tall trees, and luckily we have the most beautiful spot for that right here at Veteran Acres in Crystal Lake. There is just something about being tucked into those trees that doesnât even feel like Illinois. đ˛
Music is a big part of who Sydney is, so of course we had to incorporate some of her favorite vinyl records. And the timing was kind of perfect because she had been at the Smashing Pumpkins concert the NIGHT before our session. Naturally, the new concert tee came along too. đś
She also asked me if we could do some of her images in black and white. I honestly havenât played around with black and white photography in quite a while, and Iâm so glad she asked because I had forgotten how much I LOVE it.
As the evening went on, the skies got more and more overcast, which I actually loved because it gave us the prettiest soft light. I was perfectly happy with our soft gray sky and figured that was how we were going to end the night.
And then, in about 10 minutes, EVERYTHING changed.
The sky went from soft gray to the most incredible sunset and we were literally dying over how gorgeous it was. đđ
We knew we had to move FAST, so we ran to our last spot, got Sydney into her final outfit and took advantage of every last second of that sky. I could not have painted a prettier sunset if I tried.
And thatâs kind of the magic of senior sessions. We can plan the outfits and locations and bring along all the little things that tell your story, but we also leave a little room for the unexpected.
And sometimes the unexpected is really, really good.
Sydney, I absolutely loved creating these for youđ¤
Class of 2027, if senior photos are still sitting on your âI need to do thatâ, fall dates are filling! Send me a DM and letâs start planning a senior session that feels completely like YOU.