Milestones Archives - Joan Marie Photography

High School Senior Portraits | Model Call | Scotch Plains, NJ

September 3, 2023

Where my Seniors at??

So I don’t know about you, but I’m just going to come right out and say it. High School Seniors today are WAY cooler than when I was a Senior! From the makeup to their taste in style. They seem so much more grown up looking than I did in the goofy picture that I have to remember my Senior year.

Maybe that is part of the problem? Photography has evolved so much since I was 17! Like there was only one way of doing Senior portraits. Put on an outfit that is SO NOT who you are as a person, go lean up against a tree in a weird way that you would never do in real life, and smile akwardly at some random dude you’ve never met or talked to in your whole life as if this is all natural. Ugh! NOPE! Hard PASS!

And when I THINK back to my Senior year, I have GREAT memories! Memories of my friends, my favorite band, the sports I played, my family <3. THAT’S what we should have captured in my Senior Portraits! Me wearing my favorite pair of jeans and my favorite hippie band shirt! That’s who I was! THAT’S the person that I remember, and it surely is NOT the person I see in those Senior Portrait photos I took and that my parents paid ALOT of money for!

What makes my Senior Portraits stand out?

What I do for my High School Seniors is much different. It’s not just about taking pictures. It is about TRULY connecting with them. Listening to them. I want to learn about the UNIQUE person that they are and I want to capture the REAL them! It is an EXPERIENCE. Not only do we have a great time during our shoot, but we all leave on cloud nine, feeling confident, seen, heard, loved and valued. I swear, I am not exaggerating! It is a major feeling of empowerment! I think EVERYONE should experience this!

I invite Families to come and join in for a family portrait, encourage my Senior to bring a bestie along for the experience and a portrait of the 2 of them. Because THESE are the things that matter.

So why invest in a High School Senior portrait session? Because it only happens once. And it is a HUGE milestone for our babies! They are about to set off onto the next phase of their lives, whatever and WHEREVER that may be! It is exciting and new and these images help us encapsulate the NOW.

Model Call Opportunity!

I am currently looking for 12th graders to do a model call for an upcoming promotional shoot. The dates are TBD, but I am looking to schedule 1 or 2 dates in September. Each child will have about 10 minutes in front of the camera and will receive 4 files that they can share on social media. But that’s not all! The models that we select will also receive $100 off of a full Senior Session!

Do you want to apply for our model call? Do you know a High School Senior who would be interested in this opportunity? Please share and click the link below to apply:

CLICK HERE

The Senior Experience | Carly

April 14, 2023

Senior Sessions have my Heart <3

What can I say, I literally get the best of both worlds. I have the opportunity to take the first photos of your babies and then I get to take their last pics as kids before they move onto the next chapter of their lives and embark on their journey into adulthood. It is truly a very special experience I get to have and it is not lost on me.

Carly is one of the coolest kids I have had the opportunity to meet. We had a ton of fun at their Senior Session and just played around as the sun dipped down on the last hours of daylight. We did this session in March so it was actually a bit cold and windy that evening, but Carly didn’t mind and neither did I!

These sessions are really just fun hanging out, talking about their future, their dreams, their plans, dancing to music if we feel like it and me being their hype girl! That’s what these are all about! Capturing your child, their personality, THEM as they are today, in this very moment. I always find that they leave these sessions not only feeling excited about what their futures hold, but a sense of feeling empowered and SEEN! Isn’t that what we all want?

So even though we got a TON of amazing photos from this session, I am going to share the ones that I love the most.

Oh, and Carly also had a more “formal” portrait in The Studio beforehand. Those are also some of my most favorite shoots to do. It’s a new take on a classic shot. You can see some of those further down this page!

The Studio Experience

While I’m at it, let’s take a look at some of the awesome shots we got from the Studio portion of her shoot!

Scotch Plains, NJ | Cake Smash | First Birthday

September 20, 2022

One thing I love about my job is the people I meet and the connections I make! I met Leanne last summer when she was expecting her first baby. She scheduled me to do both Maternity and Newborn shoots. She and her husband are the sweetest couple and are so adorably in love. And I feel blessed that they chose me to capture that for them!

So fast forward to a year later and little baby Violet is ONE! So of course we had to do a Cake Smash session to document this milestone! We chose hues of Purple for her special session and I love the way the setup came out!

What about the cake?

Leanne has a baker that she uses for her special events, Allie’s Kitchen, and she made this beautiful cake for Violet! Isn’t it gorgeous?!? I do prefer to have parents bring the cake because they know their child best and with allergies I just think it’s the best bet. I like to use “naked” cakes because the star of the show is your little one, not the cake!

Just like her momma!

Momma owns her own Pilates Studio locally called M pilates + Yoga. What I found to be the most adorable thing is that Violet is always pointing her toes and showing off her form! She definitely takes after her momma in that respect!

Leanne and Rich, thank you for trusting me to document your journey with Violet! I always love seeing you and making the magic happen! And I will be in touch soon because your Album and prints are IN!!! And they are GORGEOUS!!!