Meet Megan | DSHA Class of 2018 | Waukesha Senior Photo Session There is just something so comforting about going home. It’s been SIX years since we moved away from Wisconsin, but it will always be home. The air is sweeter and I can just breathe. So, when I met Megan last December while I was home for...
Let’s Hear it for the Boys | Sarasota Senior Boy Photography It’s been a busy fall here at Michaela Ristaino Photography! I had the distinct pleasure of photographing not one, but FOUR senior guys! Hanging out with these guys was awesome. These young men are all going places, and I can’t wait to cheer them...
Alice’s Senior photos speak for themselves. A beautiful girl with an even more beautiful spirit. When Alice asked if we could do her senior photos at Beer Can Island I was ecstatic. It felt like a Florida rite of passage to trek through the grove of downed mangroves to reach this secluded beach. Huge driftwood...
Yesterday Beauty Revived announced the photographers and seniors whose senior portraits would be featured in the January 2016 “Most Beautiful Seniors” edition of the Beauty Revived Magazine. Photographers from all over the country ran campaigns in search of high school seniors who exemplify real beauty. Senior portraits created in force to showcase honest to goodness...
August, die she must. The autumn winds blow chilly and cold. September, I’ll remember. A love once new has now grown old. {Paul Simon} Another month has come and gone. How did the summer fly so fast? It always feels like we hit June and then the universe enters warp drive and suddenly the summer...
You pulled out your phone to grab a quick photo and suddenly you`re the worst person in the room. You`re not doing anything wrong. You just want to remember this. And yeah, that`s a little inconvenient for her right now.
Swipe through for the one shift that actually helps, no camera settings, no tricks, no bribing.
And if you want more of this, the free 5-day email series is at the link in my bio. Five short emails about how to take better photos of your teen without turning every moment into a whole thing.
I hear it every single time. “I’m not really a photo person.”
And then golden hour hits and she can’t stop laughing and I catch the shot and she is absolutely a photo person. Always was.
That part never changes, no matter how many sessions I do.
If you have a class of 2026 or 2027 senior, let’s start dreaming up her perfect session. Link in bio.
Your teen isn`t being difficult. They`re being a teenager.
There`s a reason they shut down the second you pull out your phone. And once you understand it, getting photos of them actually gets easier.
Swipe through to see what`s really going on, then grab the free 5-day email series at the link in my bio.
Five short emails. Real shifts. No camera gear required.
Swipe through. If any of this sounds familiar, you`re exactly who I made this for.
Free 5-day email series for moms of teens who want better photos without the pressure. Linktree: Snapshots to Stories
She showed up knowing exactly who she was. That energy, that confidence, that specific kind of ‘I’m not trying to be anyone else’ - it made my job easy.
This is what I love most about senior sessions. When a senior walks in feeling like herself, the photos just follow. We moved around, laughed a little, and by the end we had a whole gallery that actually looked like her.
Not a generic senior portrait. Her.
If your senior has a session coming up - or you’re just starting to think about it - I’d love to hear about her. What is she into? What does she want her photos to feel like? Let’s start there.
Here`s what I hear most after a session wraps up: "I didn`t expect to feel like that."
And honestly, that`s my favorite part.
Not the gallery reveal, not the final edits. The moment a mom sees a photo and says, "That`s her. That`s really her."
Senior portraits aren`t just a box to check before graduation. They`re a record of who your daughter is right now, in this specific, fleeting, irreplaceable season of her life.
The way she carries herself. The style that`s completely her own. The look she gives the camera when she forgets to feel awkward and just exists.
That`s what I`m always chasing.
If your senior is class of 2026 or 2027, my calendar is filling up and fall books faster than most families expect. Where are you at in the planning process?
Drop a comment or send me a message. I`m happy to chat, no commitment needed. 🤍
Michaela Ristaino Photography
michaela@ristainophotography.com | 941-957-8088 | Sarasota FL
You are simply amazing, Michaela! How blessed and lucky both Megan and I to have discovered you! You are in our lives forever now!! Love you so much!!!
So happy to two got connected!! Always a joy to share my favorite headshot photographer with others who appreciate her gifts.