The week I left the States, I photographed Kendall for her high school senior photos. Fast forward a few weeks and I’ve just moved in to my new home and am finishing up the editing process. My flatmate (roommate) Kayla is looking at the photos and the conversation goes like this:
Me: Her name’s Kendall – these are her senior photos.
Kayla: She’s gorgeous… pause… Did she ask you to take all these photos?
Me: Well, yeah. They’re her senior photos.
Kayla: So is she like… your Muse?
Me: …Awkward pause… I mean, it’s just a senior photo shoot.
We stare at each other for a second then I can’t stop laughing as I realize that, for Kayla, “senior photos” is an unknown concept. It’s our first ‘difference in culture’ moment.
Since a high schooler getting their own photo shoot is a completely foreign idea in New Zealand, I won’t be officially photographing anything like this for awhile. I’m a little sad, because this is such a fun stage of life to photograph… fresh faced youth and beauty on the verge of adulthood.
