Kayra found me on Google and needed an environmental senior portrait session as well as a studio shoot. This all took place when I was putting together my home studio and I was excited to balance the two. We decided Henry Ford Estate was the best spot since it has so much going on in terms of the environment. There are gates, stones, water, and lush fields as far as the eye can see.
Here we are at the gate at Henry Ford Estate. This served as one of the planned shots we mapped out while discussing ideas. I used a strobe to balance the shadows that were on her face, as without this she would have been cast entirely in shadow (the sun was behind her).
Now not every picture needs to have a person smiling, and this is an example of that. Kayra was actually a pretty serious person and she wasn’t looking for the typical “smiley” portraits that many of her peers were getting from other photographers. I was more than happy to play along; using the environment to my advantage.
Moving off the estate and into Henry Ford’s backyard (if you can call it that — it’s huge) we moved into the stone walkways and played with the winding pathway. Kayra had this shot in mind, too, as we walked and scoped out scenic shots that would look good. She was a big fan of the “environmental portrait” look.
