Really run.
And it never came in more handy than for her senior session.
Ok,.. maybe being able to run for Coach David Lee at the State Softball Tournament while winning a state championship might be a LITTLE more important... or perhaps leading off a state track relay out of the blocks... All that being accomplished, I couldn't have been more thrilled that I had a gal with some quicks in late October for her senior pictures.
Why is that?
Not surprisingly... the weather.
Kendall Scurr's session was in late October when the window of opportunity is rapidly closing for quality outdoor pictures. The brilliant reds, browns, oranges and yellows are transitioning quickly to dark and unflattering shades of brown and black (let's be honest... outdoor in November often turns into a big fat brown turdburger). So when Kendall and her amazing mom, Nikki showed up that Wednesday morning and John McLaughlin of KCCI was calling for all rain, all the time, I figured we were staring a let's-get-the-indoor-done-and-reschedule-the-outdoor straight in the face.
If I were photographing a senior guy? They may have said... "Hey... it might be cold, windy, foggy and damp... but let's do this!" But I can guarantee you, most gals... of the more... ummmm... girlee-girl variety would have opted for the reschedule option.
But Kendall?
No way. I opened the door a crack... and she RAN right through it.
Her photographer suggested that if she were tough enough... and just crazy enough... we could give it a shot on the outdoor. And instead of running through a 20 minute pre-session game plan, the contract got thrown down... her outfits got thrown in the back of the Hummer, and we were tearing out of Montour like a vegetarian running from Rube's Steakhouse with their hair on fire.
;)
I was instantly a big fan of the girl for her moxie and willingness to roll with the punches. She knew that a reschedule was most certainly only going to worsen her chances for decent outdoor images (even though the temps might be warmer... and the conditions might be drier), so it was survive and advance time for Team Kendall. She knew it... and was willing to go the extra mile to give us all a chance to succeed.
That called being a gamer.
It didn't surprise me. I had watched this girl compete for BCLUW's Comets for the past four years at a high level. Not just in softball. But in volleyball, basketball and track, too. Always a hustler... always giving 100+ percent... Why should I have thought that her senior session would have been any different?
It wasn't.
Kendall, her mom and I quite literally sprinted though her outfits to successfully conquer mother nature and avoid the impending cold rain. Looking at her images, you would never know it was a raw morning as she warmed the view finder right up like a day that was sunny and 75. If she hadn't won me over already, when she agreed to slip off her sandals and stand in the frigid Iowa River like it was the middle of summer... I might have only been her photography "coach" but this girl could start on my team any day that ends in Y.
Our speedy outdoor extravaganza was complete... and not far after, the forecast rains did come. But we didn't care at that point. Sure, I had to stand out the back door and shoot some long lens studio images in the rain, but it was a small consolation at that point.
I had asked Kendall recently if she had any memorable recollections about her session, and she once again put a smile on my face.
"I had seen you at multiple sporting events all different sports and I've always seen you but never met or talk to so it was cool to finally meet you!"
The funny thing is... I could say the same but opposite about Miss Scurr as well.
Very cool.
Thanks for playing on my team, Kendall. ;)
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