This isn’t just any senior.  Nadera is one of my past students.  It’s a good story, so please keep reading…

In 2003, I was a twenty-four-year-old first-year teacher at Brookside Elementary in Nicholasville, KY.  I was assigned to the position of reading teacher for the entire fifth grade.  Over 120 kids.  Yikes.

I wasn’t exactly a conventional teacher.  I played music in the classroom…alot.  We had a lot of free reading days.  After all, what better way to teach reading than to let the students bring in books they were interested in and not be tested?  We also read Bridge To Terabithia together.  We had some cool discussions about some pretty intense topics in that book.  And they got it.  Lightbulbs going off.  Thinking.  That’s the part of teaching I miss.

Give me a classroom full of people, whether five-years-old or seventy-five, and I can teach them.  Still, to this day, I love lecturing, mentoring, being hands-on with leading projects.  Trying my best to inspire.

That, I was good at.  All the other stuff?  The classroom management, lesson-planning, teacher meetings…not so much.  That’s why I chose to walk away from the profession after two years.  I had an opportunity to jump into real estate, so I leaped.  It went well, and it freed me up schedule-wise to start building my photography business.  I’ve never been happier.

So that brings us to Nadera.  She was an awesome student.  Still is.  More than that, though, she’s a really nice person.  Even as a 10-year-old, she was the peacemaker in the classroom.  Wise beyond her years.  I wasn’t exactly a disciplinarian, but Nadera never really took advantage of the leniency.  Can’t say that for all the students!  But I couldn’t be mad at any of them.  I was a bit of a challenge to my own teachers when I was that age.  It’s all good.

Here a three of my favorite shots from Nadera’s portrait session.  To see the rest of the highlights, be sure to check out the slideshow.  Then check out the bottom of the post for a cool surprise.

So now for the surprise…If you were one of my first-year students in the 2003-2004 school year, then I’m going to offer you a special incentive to book me for your senior portraits.  The last shot of Nadera was shot after sunset using some pretty cool lighting techniques.  Typically, my senior sessions are two hours long, and end at sunset.  For any of my past students, I will keep the camera going after sunset (at least an extra 30 minutes) and we’ll make sure you get some killer shots like these, too.  At no extra cost.  Cool, right?

So give me a shout!  Let’s get your senior sessions scheduled while there’s still time left this fall.  Prefer a winter or spring session?  No worries!  We can set that up, too.

Thanks for reading ’til the end!  Can’t wait to hear from you all.  Connect with me on Facebook and Twitter.  And be sure to leave a comment!  Bye!

I’ve known Jim now for almost 10 years.  I was a server at Chili’s while he was managing there, and we always seemed to click pretty well.  Jim’s intriguing. Whether discussing wine, macs, cars, weight-training, horses, vacation spots, photography or real estate, he always seems to be able to speak confidently, if not eloquently, on any topic imaginable.  I’m a big ol’ geek and love learning from others, so I could sit and chat with him for days about all of his life experiences.  Awesome guy.

We’ve stayed in touch, and I’ve been able to get to know his wife Myra, who is equally as cool.  I run into them from time to time while frequenting Bronte Bistro (the cafe at Joseph-Beth) where Jim is the general manager.  Love that place.

I’m really happy that they thought of me when it came time for a family session and some senior portraits of their daughter Ashton.  I still can’t believe how big Emily is, too!  Seems like yesterday that she was born.  To Tori—Wish you could have been here! Congrats on the engagement!

HUGE thanks to Mrs. Abercrombie for letting us come out to Pin Oak Stud farm in Versailles.  It’s honest-to-God breathtaking out there.  Mrs. Abercrombie—Jim and Myra always speak so highly of you.  I’m glad we met.  You’re a delight to be around. Stay in touch!

Here are some of my faves from the family session:

Once we wrapped up the family portraits, Ashton and I ran around the farm a bit shooting and then drove into downtown Lexington for the remainder of the senior portrait session.  It was really nice meeting you, Ashton!  You’ve got a bright future ahead of you!

Here are a few of my favorite images of Ashton.  Be sure to click on the slideshow to see the whole collection!  Bye, y’all! 

And here’s the slideshow.  Enjoy, and please everybody, hook up with me on Facebook and Twitter.  I love staying in touch! Bye!