By Ilana Habib, ’11, Photo Editor

Senior portraits are something our parents say we will have for the rest of our lives.  While not everyone may agree on how everlasting a simple photograph taken during our last year of high school is, there is something to be said for that final picture. It is displayed prominently; in our homes, in our yearbooks and, in some cases, on our Facebook pages.

Over the last couple of weeks, I have had the incredible experience of helping several members of the senior class create these enduring images.  While most students know that I am an avid sports photographer and can rarely be found without a camera, few are aware that I also do a lot of portrait work outside school.  This summer I started taking head shots for the Cincinnati Actors Studio (the same program Alyssa Magarian, ’10, Ali Breneman, ’11, and Catherine Smith, ’12, recently did a show with).  From there I have expanded my clientele, and I can’t even begin to say how excited I’ve been to have had the opportunity to work for other CCDS students.

Taking senior portraits is actually pretty simple.  Basically, how the shot ends up is in the hands of the subject.  Getting the personality of the person to show through is imperative.  Part of the magic of a senior portrait is seeing the soul of that person in the eyes.  By the time we graduate from high school, we have a much better idea of who we are as people, and if that’s not reflected in the picture, there’s something missing.

However, senior portraits can be quite costly.  Most places around town charge anywhere from $300 to $500 for a fully edited portrait.  As a student, I felt that it would make more sense for me to have a more manageable price.  Working with my dad, I developed a price structure that charges $85 for one outfit (and one digital copy of a final picture) and $10 for each additional outfit.  I also developed several package systems that involve prints, other digital copies, and family photos (all of which can be purchased separately).

So far the response has been great.  I’ve completed two sessions and am in the process of scheduling three others.  While portrait photography is not what I intend to do for a living , this has given me great experience in working with clients and managing workloads.

For more information, please visit ilanahabibphotography.com.

Sample photograph provided by Ilana Habib.