Client Appreciation: Josh

Once upon a time, back in my days living in Winona, Minnesota, I shot a senior portrait session for a young man named Josh. Josh was a straightforward young man. He only wanted to incorporate two outfits in his session, and he wanted it to be as brief as possible, so we opted for the Half Semester session: 30 minutes.

We started off on the bridge down in Lake Park. Getting these bridge shots can be tricky, as there is usually a lot of foot traffic. Thankfully, when people see that you're trying to get a photograph, most of them will stop and let you get the shots you're looking for. Otherwise, it's just all about timing, and sometimes a little bit of PhotoShop ;)

I was able to walk along the bank of the lake to get the shot with him leaning on the railing of the bridge. Don't worry, I wasn't swimming to get the photo!

1. Highly recommend NOT swimming in the lakes in Winona.
2. Water is not friends with cameras.

After getting a few shots in the park, we got into my vehicle and drove over to Winona State University, my Alma Mater. The ivy in the two photos next to each other above runs along the walls of the oldest building on campus - Phelps. Phelps is also where I spent a majority of my time on campus as that is where the Mass Communications department is, along with the dark room! 

The steps Josh is sitting on in the photo directly above lead into another one of the oldest buildings on campus - Somsen Hall. The steps are made out of Limestone taken from Sugar Loaf, Winona's landmark and tourism draw as you enter the town.

The story of Sugar Loaf is really interesting in how it helped rebuild the town of Winona after the great fire of 1862. Here are a few great articles on Sugar Loaf and the Fire of 1862 if you are interested:

https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/sugar-loaf

https://www.winonadailynews.com/the-unconquerable-fiery-demon-that-destroyed-downtown-winona/article_06793913-54a7-576d-9d3d-36a2bd5e6bec.html

https://www.geocaching.com/geocache/GC15538_a-look-at-winonas-past-sugarloaf?guid=cde79a27-cd42-4f59-baff-0594acf7cb8a

Anyway, I'm going off on a tangent here. Josh was a wonderful client and was super easy to work with. Thank you, Josh, for being my first male senior portrait client! It really helped open up the doors to a wider audience and clientele, and I will always be grateful for the experience.