Adam Johannsen came our way from Gladbrook-Reinbeck's Class of 2014 and judging from his first impression, he seemed none too thrilled about being here.
I couldn't quite figure it out, but all I did know was the dude wasn't too hip on smiling for me.
I stopped about 3 shots in and asked Mama Jodi if that was going to be ok, and she assured me that she and her husband John were used to it by now.... So, I proceeded.
Like most guys... Adam had one thing with him that REALLY meant alot. But in this case... it was kinda of 1) and 1a).
A future mechanic that's looking forward to going through the ag/diesel program at Hawkeye Community College a year from now, it then came as little surprise that Adam wanted to feature his pickup truck and his car.
Papa John had informed me, and without hesitation, that his boy was excelling at being a redneck. Naturally then, a have-to image at the top of the list was sittin' on the tailgate. Team Johannsen and I got the pickup in place... positioned our strobes and BAM. B.A. Country Boy to a T. (you're welcome for the brand new bumper I "installed" on your truck, Adam!) :)
The one-A portion of Adam session was something I wasn't expecting... a couple actually.
The first was that Adam is the proud owner of a green 1970 Cornet 440. A sweet vintage ride to be sure... but what you DON'T know is that his photographer drove a red 1967 Cornet 440 back and forth from Gilman to LeGrand my entire senior year back in 1989-90. Instantly we had a Dodge-bond then. My hope here is that my sister down in Kansas isn't having instant flashbacks to being made to ride in the back with Guns-N-Roses Appetite for Destruction BLARING the entire nine mile ride while her brother and her future sister in law snuggled in the front seat. :)
The OTHER thing I was unaware of, was something far less funny. And much more serious.... and that would how or why Adam acquired this vintage vehicle.
One thing that no parent should ever have to hear from a doctor is, "Mr. and Mrs. Johannsen... your son has leukemia."
Days and weeks of being lethargic and weak had plagued what, up until that point, had been a pretty normal and active childhood for Adam. A budding wrestler (like his pops back in the day), Adam suddenly seemed out of gas and when mom and dad looked into it... their worst fears became reality.
As someone who has had his mother go through the same disease recently... I know how trying this can be... and I know that this had to be the trial of all trials on the Johannsens.
When the Make a Wish Foundation gets involved... it's generally not a good sign... but when the organization asked good ol' boy, Adam (and HUGE "Dukes of Hazzard" fan) what he dreamed of... it was, of course... owning a General Lee (Plymouth Charger).
What I didn't know was, Make a Wish doesn't deal with cars... but the good news is, Grandma and Grandpa's sometimes DO. So it was grandma and grandpa to the rescue, and while it was EXACTLY a Charger... it was the next best thing... the Dodge version... and it's been Adam's since the cancer survivor was eleven years old.
So, I then KNEW how important this vehicle was to him. Not only did we have something in common, but this car symbolized his struggle and victory over leukemia. January 21, 2014 will mark the five year anniversary of Adam being cancer free. Pretty cool if you ask me.
All that being said... I was STILL struggling getting our survivor to smile. I needed an angle... a spark... SOMETHING.... anything!
And then it happened.
As rare as it is to have senior dad's at their boy's session, one thing I can almost ALWAYS count on when they do make an appearance is a healthy dose of razzing. It's a father/son thing I think. Mom's usually not over there relentlessly poking and prodding at the young man and then laughing to herself about how much crap (the words have been dumbed down here to protect our PG-13 status) they've just flicked their kid. But dads? Heck yeah... it's on, baby. You can almost take it to the bank.
And while John Johannsen tried his hand at this approach to get his first son to laugh or smile (or to atleast look down and shake his head like "why are you KILLING me, pops!") neither ONE of us could crack this tough nut.
What we both needed, unbeknownst to us... was a bird.
Or maybe it was a flock of birds?
If you spy the shot of Adam leaning on a orange wall... you'll see it. Plain as day... a big ol' country boy smile. What had been hidden all day... that GENIUNE smile... finally surfaced. Why you ask?
Again.. treading lightly here... Papa John was at my side behind the studio for this aforementioned shot... and went to lean on one of Rube's Steakhouse's garbage dumpsters when, at the last second... he avoided a near disaster.
Coming just mere millimeters from dropping his elbow into... well.... bird droppings... a whole MESS of them... John's reaction was priceless. And from then on... my job was easy. All I had to do at that point was evoke the memory of dad stumbling and stammering in order to avoid the poop splash and here came the dental work bigger than life.
Thanks John. :) And the "helpful" birds... where ever you are.
One after another... pearly white smiles came like there was no tomorrow... and lucky for Adam and all the Johannsen family... there are plenty of tomorrows in the back of pickup trucks and the front seat of Coronets to be savored.
No comments:
Post a Comment