A couple of summers ago a good friend of mine asked me if I would be willing to come by and take some pre-prom party photos of her daughter’s party. Of course, I’d be happy to. I had watched Emily grow up over the years and thought it would great fun to part of the party. As a photographer who is more comfortable taking photos of landscapes and family at Christmas I didn’t want to disappoint Emily and her mother.
On the day of the party, the weather was perfect, not too hot or sunny. I did have a couple of issues: Karen’s backyard is beautiful but there is a pool in the middle of the yard with only a small path around the pool. Trying to get all the kids around the pool and keep them focused on me and not from falling into the pool. The other small issue was getting everyone to have some fun. It didn’t take long for them to relax and start having fun with the photos.
Of course, we did the traditional photos of Mom and daughter, Dad and daughter, dates together but I also wanted happy, laughing “school’s over” shots. In the end, I was having as much fun as they were.
I took all the pre-prom party photos with natural light, no umbrellas or flashes. I did have to keep moving and having the kids move to keep the sun out of their eyes but overall I was very happy with the results. For my last shots before the kids got into their limo and went off to the prom was an idea I had – I wanted them all to walk down the street towards me. It took some convincing and there was a lot of “what” “really” but I reminded them that I had just spent the 2 hours taking their photos and this one was for me. They finally agreed and in the end, I got the shot that I had envisioned. I blew the photo up and Emily still has it hanging in her bedroom.
“Sometimes you will never know the true value of a moment until it becomes a memory.”
Dr. Seuss