Kya | State College Senior photographer

When I discovered my niche in photography was pets, I swore I would photograph only animals (no people). Since then, I've had a few clients who wanted to be included in the photos as well. Capturing the bond between the pets and the people who love them has turned out to be something I thoroughly enjoy and want to incorporate into more of my sessions. And that includes our high school seniors who have a special fur sibling in their life. Like Kya. 

I’ve known Kya and her family for a couple of years now. We attend the same agility class and sometimes competed at the same agility trials. When Kya was about to become a senior in high school, her mom knew she wanted me to do her senior photos. And when I learned that Kya’s pup Tux would be joining her, I was super excited to be a part of this time in her life!

Kya and her mom had a location in mind for the session, so we met there one beautiful summer afternoon. Driving down the lane I could see immediately why. We walked the grounds looking at the gardens, sculptures, gazebo and pond. This location was a photographer’s dream! After brainstorming photo ideas, wardrobe suggestions and best time of day for the session, we kept in touch waiting for the right day in between our busy schedules and Mother Nature’s plans.

The possibilities were endless and on the day of the session I hoped I would have enough time to shoot everything I envisioned. We did run out of light, but not before taking more than enough shots for Kya and her family to choose from.

Kya's family is all about the dogs. In addition to training and competing in agility, Kya is also a dog show handler competing with her own dogs as well as other people's dogs in the confirmation ring. I've lost count of how many fur siblings she has, but it's at least in the teens! From labradors, collies, chihuahuas and affenpinschers, they have quite the variety. And thus, I could understand why it was so important to Kya to include a very special one in her photo session. While Tux wasn't as thrilled to be there as she was, we still got some great images of the two of them together! 

Even though I haven’t photographed many seniors, I thoroughly enjoyed working with Kya and her mom - who also stepped in as my assistant at times when I needed an extra hand. I tend to gravitate toward the younger age group, like toddlers, but the more I work with high school seniors, the more I love getting to know them. This is such an exciting time in their lives. They have their whole future in front of them, a world of possibilities to chart a path of their very own doing. This is one part of my business I truly would like to expand, especially those seniors who want to include their fur siblings in the session. 

Here are a few favorites from Kya’s session.