Mesquite Senior Pictures

If you’re a high school senior, you’ll definitely want to include your favorite sport for your senior pictures. That was the case with Aaron, a track athlete at Mesquite High School in Gilbert, AZ. Aaron, who graduated a few years ago came to us at the very beginning of his senior year. We didn’t actually do his photo shoot until January, but this gave him plenty of time to prepare and finalize exactly what he wanted.

Even though his mom and dad live in different states, they decided that the professional senior pictures, experience, and heirloom quality artwork was something that was important enough to splurge on for their only son. I knew after our consultation that the 5×7 Signature Image Box would be a great product for this family since it would hold a lot of pictures and give them the flexibility to display and change out photos easily. I wanted to be sure we had a wide variety of images that could fill their image box with beautiful senior pictures.

Senior Pictures at the Track

We started Aaron’s photo shoot at Mesquite High School so we could take some amazing sports images of Aaron in action. He was fully prepared with his track uniform, warm ups, and all his gear. After showing samples during their in-person consultation, I knew Melissa (mom) wanted a gorgeous sun flare image showing the Mesquite High School scoreboard, as well as images of Aaron sprinting.

Now, it wasn’t terribly hot that day but in Arizona…well, it can be warm just about any day! I hadn’t really planned on him going all out for me, but he did, and boy did it pay off! The intensity and drive on his face shows exactly how determined he is!

Tumbleweed Park in Chandler

We had decided ahead of time that Downtown Chandler and Tumbleweed Park would be great locations to include for Aaron’s senior pictures. Aaron loved the idea of this old, rustic truck, which is quite popular for our seniors. Mom will always love a gorgeous images of her son smiling, and with a smile like this, it was definitely a favorite! I probably had to crack a few dumb jokes to get these authentic smiles, but that’s part of my job. I’ll give you tips to look natural instead of stiff and posed.

Composite Sports Artwork

While I’ve been creating these images for years, my clients still love them! We take a simple image of the senior in front of a textured wall, leaving enough room to add a sports image next to him. Then we find a great sports image, superimpose, magic, and voilá! Definitely one of my most requested ideas and it looks amazing as a metal print!

Senior Pictures with Your Skateboard

If you know me, you know I love The Big Bang Theory, so this shirt made me smile. While it isn’t part of his normal wardrobe, both Aaron and his mom wanted to incorporate his skateboard and clothing from his younger teen years. Rather than just taking some basic holding his board, we put him in action again, and again, and again, in order to catch the perfect shot! Fancy location? Nope, just the side of the road with a street light behind him, but with proper off camera lighting, we were able to create this great shot at dusk!

Suit and Tie for the Guys

I’m a very casual person, I live in t-shirts and denim shorts nearly all year here in AZ. I didn’t used to push too hard to my seniors to bring nice clothes, since I wanted to capture their true essence. Then I had a senior guy a few years ago with a white shirt, tie, and suspenders, and that was the beginning of my love for these images! Especially at night, the guys just look stunning and it really helps boost their self confidence. They’re adults now, so to see themselves looking all handsome in a suit and tie and think of them heading into the adult world? It’s nothing short of fantastic! If I can encourage even a little extra self confidence in every senior that walks through my door, I’ll be a happy camper!

Featured in Senior Guys Style

Just after I finished editing Aaron’s images, I posted this gorgeous shot to my Instagram and it wasn’t long before it was selected to be featured on Senior Guys Style! Their account features high school senior guys from the the best senior portrait photographers worldwide. I was excited, Aaron was excited, and of course mom got to show off her son even more!

Include Mom for Your Senior Pictures

She’s been there for you since day one. She loves you more than you’ll ever know. So yes, this needed to happen. I haven’t done it very often but for some reason this night, I asked Melissa to step in for a just a few quick shots. Instead of fussing over her hair and makeup saying she wasn’t ready, she proudly stepped in beaming with pride! I hope this picture brings them smiles and tears for years to come. Yes, mom cried when she saw it for the first time.

Boys have a very special relationship with their moms which is truly evident in this picture. I found a poem that fit perfectly, and we used it on Aaron’s image box.

Sons do grow into men
and no longer play with toys.
But in our hearts as mothers,
they’ll always be our little boys.

Want to see more senior pictures that were taken in the Chandler area? Here are some blog posts you might enjoy! These sessions all include images taken at night in Downtown Chandler.

Noah, Desert Ridge High School
Jasmine, Gilbert High School
Briana, Hamilton High School