Southeast Missouri Child Baby Senior Photography | Stephanie Greenwell Photography

Meet Alyssa. The all-grown up Alyssa.

I’ve known this tiny beauty since she was born. And imagine how taken back I was when her grandmother approached me about a session for “Alyssa.”

“Alyssa who?” I said.

“My granddaughter Alyssa!” exclaimed her grandmother.

And the shock hit me like a ton of bricks. Was she really a senior already? My mouth dropped and I felt a little bit embarrassed that I didn’t know she had grown up. So darn fast.

Sure! I couldn’t wait to book her – she was my first Senior in the City client to book and I couldn’t wait to see her. (She doesn’t live here, but not too far away, however I hadn’t seen her in a few years.) Anyways, we got the ball rolling, we became Facebook friends, and I got to see her posted pictures and I was just…shocked. She had really grown up, and into a beautiful young lady and I was excited to see her in Memphis.

She showed up with her equally beautiful mother, a little shy at first. Of course, my assistants had also known her since birth so we were all quite shocked to see her as an 18-year-old (mostly because that meant we were older too). We picked out outfits and then headed down to Beale Street, in the hottest part of the day, but we made it work. Considering I had already shot two sessions by the time Alyssa’s session rolled around, we were still able to get very different shots and location, all while on Beale St. We then moved along to the back alleys and side streets for a different look. One of my favorite images is of the the music notes stairway rail we found that led down to a basement. Perfect outfit, perfect reflection of Memphis.

As I mentioned in my previous Senior in the City post, Alyssa also opted for a split session for hair – straight and curly. So in the second part of the session, we went down to the trolley area and shot in some different nooks and crannies and even found and little traveled brick road, which I loved. The funniest part about this part of her session was trying to hurriedly get a shot of her sitting on the trolley, and we had to move fast because the trolley only stops for about 20-30 seconds! We had quite the laughs over trying to get her seated properly in a short dress on the side of a trolley that was about to move! We nailed the shot, with a little breeze blowing in her hair – PERFECTION!!!

Since Alyssa was the last session of the day, when we were done shooting, we popped into a little make-your-own frozen yogurt place to cool off and reward ourselves on a job well done. And boy, was it refreshing and relaxing for us! We sat and chatted about girl stuff, you know, being parents and such, while Alyssa just listened to us. The break proved to be hard to get up and start moving again, but we managed to make it back to the hotel in one, sweaty piece.

Alyssa, you’ve certainly grown into a beautiful, fun young lady. I’m so happy you chose me to capture you senior session and I had a blast getting to know you (again). Best wishes on the rest of your senior year and in college – I know you’ll do great wherever you end up going, especially if you continue with your soccer skills. Keep in touch (on Facebook, of course!) and most of all, have fun!

Remember my Memphis Senior in the City sessions from August? Well, I’m finally getting around to blogging the first of three sessions took place on Beale Street. I had three awesome and beautiful seniors that booked this special session, and while it was THE.HOTTEST.DAY. of the year so far in Memphis (not to mention, I had just found out I was 8 weeks pregnant!), we really had such a great time!

Today, I’m showcasing a Hayti High School senior, Katelyn. Miss Style Maven. And beautiful. And gorgeous golden locks. I could end this blog post now with just that.

Well, she quite the selection of clothing and thanks to my two assistants, they helped her choose the best of the best to use for her session. Between being casually dressed (but still hot!), to the gorgeous dresses, this tall beauty made my job extremely easy and I was ecstatic with the images I captured. I won’t even mention her walking in those 4 in. heels – it exhausted me to even watch her. Katelyn did a split session, which was to shoot the first part of her session with straight hair, then the second part of her session with slightly curly, slightly tousled hair. (While she got ready for her second part of the session, I went out and shot another senior client who also opted for the split session.)

For the first part, we shot right on Beale Street, with tons of passers-by checking us out. Well, not me because I was a hot mess, but more than likely, my client. We also spotted a gorgeous Rolls Royce parked on Beale Street, so of course, we had to incorporate that into her session. Then we shot off of an alley behind Beale, and of course you just see all kinds of randomness down there on Beale St.

During the second part of her session, which was late afternoon, we shot a few blocks away from Beale, where the trolley runs. There were so many nooks and crannies and alleyways that provided awesome backdrops to the whole “city” feel for these sessions. We even made use of the trolley as a backdrop when it stopped.

To say that I loved these Senior in the City sessions would be an understatement. I loved being in Downtown Memphis, with its urban feel and contemporary settings. I loved having such beautiful senior clients that wanted something different. I hope to be able to offer them again for 2013 seniors, but with the new baby coming up, I’ll have to see what I can do – stay tuned on here or on my Facebook page for announcements.

Katelyn, as always, you totally pulled off my ideas with ease and totally rocked your urban session from head to long-ways-down toes (you and your fabulous legs just make me envious!)! I’m so happy to have you as a client, but also a friend and as a babysitter that my kids adore. May you enjoy the rest of your senior year and totally make the best of your college career at Ole Miss!