Not sure what exactly it is, I guess... but sometimes I think it's when I do my best work.
Maureen Kratoska told me at the very beginning of her daughter's session that I was gonna have to work at it to get her Allison to open up a bit and have fun with her session.
Translation: Good luck buddy, because she can be a tough nut to crack.
Sure, I got lots of one word answers and could tell that my over-the-top personality was a bit too much for her right out of the gate... but there was NO way I was gonna let this gal's images be any less than spectacular.
Four AWESOME outfits, a variety of expressions and just enough wind to give us a small-town version of a supermodel effect... it felt like everything we did turned out. Sometimes athletes will claim to be "in the zone" on a night when they suddenly drain nine 3-pointers from downtown... well... not quite sure that i know how THAT feels... but I'm guessing it may feel something like having all the elements fall together like they did with Allison's session.
Sure, we've had plenty of sessions over the years where things have gone well... otherwise we'd be not-for-long in keeping our doors open... but there's a particular satisfaction that comes from getting an unassuming type to let loose and find their way into a comfort zone of their own.
It wasn't the first time I had ever photographed Miss Kratoska... I had seen her as part of the South Tama basketball cheer squad this past winter when we did their team images... and then again this spring for the girls' track team. Sometimes I take that kinda stuff for granted as our crank-it-out heard-em-thru assembly line photography that often times is called for when the coach is standing there tapping their foot waiting for you to finish so they can get to more "important" stuff like actual practice.... but evidently I did something right there, too... because I'm pretty sure that the way THOSE images turned out last winter and spring convinced Allison to come our way for her once-in-a-lifetime senior session.
Undoubtedly, if Mama Maureen's claims about her daughter's disposition are accurate, I'm probably just embarrassing her baby girl even more by going on and on in this blog... but that's ok... she only has to do this once... and I'm glad that she chose us for this event in her life... One look at the finished product, I think most will agree that I was successful at getting her out of her shell for a few hours on Wednesday. I told Allison that all she had to do to ensure that the ball kept rolling was to keep on listening and cooperating... and above all else... always agree with me...
If I could get her to answer "yes" one more time after the question, "do you like your images?"... I'd feel like we came through on the challenge set forth by Mrs. Kratoska.
I know what my eyes tell me... but I'll let Allison be the judge... thanks for the fun day, Team Kratoska. :)
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