Nova isn’t just any senior bounding into her last first day of high school.
Nova is gorgeous; that’s a given. She is kind and charming, a delightful surprise. Nova is a complex bundle of talent, enthusiasm and adventure.
Nova’s passion is snowboarding. She is exceptional. In her spare time, when temperatures warm up exponentially in Minnesota, you can find Nova lifeguarding or wake surfing depending on the time, the day.
There has not, yet, been an adventure Nova has declined. There isn’t an animal she doesn’t love, well, maybe some in the rodent species, but who can blame her.
Photographers share the most intimate chapters of our clients’ lives. We might spend eight to ten hours immersed in a couple’s wedding day, getting to know the bride, the groom, and the intricate web of their families and friends. We are there to capture the moment a father sees his daughter in her wedding dress for the first time, and when he walks her down the aisle, transitioning her hand from his own to the person she loves—not more than her dad, just differently. We blink away our tears that match his own as our lens provides access into his water filled eyes.
We document the squeals of best friends competing for the bouquet, the energy of those vying for the best moves on the dance floor, and the heartfelt or humorous roasts during the Best Man’s toast. We capture smiles during the first dance and the emotional beauty of the groom’s dance with his mother, where rarely a dry eye remains with women in the audience. We are up close in it all.
Our lenses witness birthday parties, baptisms, reunions, and those poignant rites of passage like senior sessions. These sessions memorialize a fleeting moment in time, where a teenager stands on the precipice of their future. I can see the question in the parents’ eyes: How did we get here so quickly? It feels as though only yesterday we were packing lunchboxes, signing homework, and cheering wins and some losses from the sidelines.
We are present in these milestones, sharing hugs, wiping away tears, laughing with the families, joining in on the dance floor with our cameras to capture the joy. The day ends. People move on, and clients grow older. The images are digitized, printed, and framed. As a photographer, it’s on to another client and the next intimate moments. Yet, even after years in this profession, I find myself drawn in every single time—captivated by the shared intimacy and the deep dive into a life, even if only for a few hours.
Much of our work happens in the quiet hours of post-processing. This is where we meticulously cull the collection, removing shots that might be unflattering or inadvertently embarrassing. We pour over every frame for hours at a time, ensuring only the best representation of the day remains. The important images that will become these peoples’ memories.
During this process, I find myself becoming attached. I wonder: How is that high school senior faring in college? I feel a pang of sadness if I learn a couple has separated, or find myself hoping a grandfather won his battle with cancer. There is a profound connection between the photographer, the image, and the subjects. It is a shared memory and a feeling—the photographers’ feelings and perspective influence each shot.
Nova is one of those special clients. While vacationing in the Florida Keys, she sought a unique session with a specific vision in mind. We met for ninety minutes on a narrow strip of land, flanked by the Atlantic and the Florida bays, where the island is barely as wide as a football field is long.
In those magical moments, as we created these exquisite images, a friendship formed among me, Nova and her family. A connection—texts were exchanged on the way back from the session before they reached their hotel, followed by social media connections and check-ins on flight statuses until they were safely home.
Sometimes, when we are exceptionally fortunate, the connection between a photographer and a client becomes exactly what we dream it will be: a lasting one.
Nova Joy is a senior. She’ll graduate from high school in the Class of 2027.
She is a snowboarder, wakeboarder, animal lover, adventurer, sister, daughter, friend, and lifeguard.
She is a photographer’s dream client.
She is all of the above, and so much more……
This is Nova.
