Family, friends, and photography brought be back to the US during its summer months. I had a blast photographing Class of 2024 graduates and a couple from the upcoming Class of 2025. This group of teens are extra special because I’ve been photographing many for over ten years! So to do their senior portraits and see them on the cusp of adulthood and all the things that comes with graduating high school is one of the most fulfilling part of working with tweens and teens.

This is Sophie.

She is one of the amazing American teens I’ve known since she was in 7th grade. We caught up in Yosemite National Park this summer where we did an epic photoshoot in at Housekeeping Camp in a deeply meaningful place for her.

Tell us about Yosemite for those who have never been there. Yosemite is one of the best national parks in my opinion. It’s a place where you can sit back and listen to nature. One of my favorite things to do is just chill in silence next to the river and listen, look, and think. It also has amazing rock climbing. My dad and I always go on a few climbs whenever we visit.

Why is Yosemite so special to you?I’ve been going to Yosemite every summer (except for 2020 because of the lockdown) for around seven years now. It’s been a tradition to go there with my family and friends. I’ve had a lot of meaningful and relationship-defining conversations there, along with countless memories and jokes that I still reference with my friends.

What are some of your favorite memories here? Since there’s barely any service in Yosemite, almost no one has their phones. So one of my favorite things is coming up with weird games to play with my friends. A few years ago me and my friends built this whole fantasy world with elaborate lore, where our bikes were horses and this one big puddle in the road could give you magical powers.I don’t remember much except for the fact that it was a lot of fun. 

We did a photo shoot when you were about 13. Tell me what you remember from that time of life. One thing is that I was a completely different person then than I am now. I’ve discovered things about myself and changed in a lot of ways, but honestly I think 13-year-old me would think that I’m pretty chill now. I don’t really remember a lot from then, except that I had my first pet rat, Stardust. Looking back, I should not have been allowed to have my own pet and didn’t really know how to properly take care of an animal, haha. 

What would you tell 13-year-old Sophie if you could talk to her? I’d tell myself to be more questioning about the things in my life. I used to always just accept the things that happened to and around me and I would rarely inquire or challenge them. I think quite a lot of good would have come from asking more questions. I’ve gotten much better now at challenging ideas and not just taking them at face value, but I really do wish I started doing that more sooner. 

I think your dad has been a huge rock for you in the past few years. Tell me what you admire about your dad. I absolutely love my dad, he’s been such a great influence in my life and is one of my best friends now. He’s my rock climbing buddy, the first person I go to for advice, my role model, and honestly one of my favorite people. He is a really spontaneous, live-in-the-moment kind of person, and I admire him alot. 

You are finishing high school this year! That is exciting. What are some of your hopes and interests in the foreseeable future? I really hope to find new friendships. I think there are a lot of cool people in the world and I hope to find them and make friends with them. I also really hope that I can get into the piercing industry. My career goal is to be a professional body piercer, but it’s a pretty hard industry to get into, so I need to have a lot of hope that I will make it, haha.

What are some of your favorite photos from the session and what do you like about them? I really like the ones we took on the roof, I LOVE hanging out on roofs and high places, and I think I look really happy and like myself in those photos.

What would you say to anyone considering doing senior photos or sometime during high school? It’s really fun to get professional photos of yourself when you’re a senior and to look back on in a few years. We all grow and change, so often and it can be fun to see how you used to look like and remember what life was like back then.