Twins Graduating in the Time of COVID – Raina
Graduation photos are, to some, considered a staple of the graduation experience. With Covid running rampant canceling graduations left right and center photos seemed to become much more important to help provide a proper sense of closure and celebration. Not only for the grads but also for the parents. And I’m proud to be the Saskatoon grad photographer to provide this service to the beautiful graduate that I’m featuring in this blog (and her sister and Mom in other blogs).
We spent a couple of days together. The Casual portrait session took us around Saskatoon to basketball courts, Riversdale, and Kinsmen Park. The formal session found us at Boffins Garden on a day threatening rain.
Let’s dive in and chat with Raina about her graduation experience during Covid.
Saskatoon Grad Photographer
Casual Seniors Portraits
R & S: Hi Raina! Let’s start with where you went to high school.
Raina: I attended Warman Highschool in Warman, Saskatchewan.
R & S: What is your favorite memory from high school? What will you miss the most?
Raina: My favorite memory will always be my grade 11 history class and all the shenanigans that took place throughout that semester, I especially enjoyed making the teacher as surprised as possible whenever he entered the room. I will miss sharing classes with my friend group and all the fun and different teachers I’ve had the honor of learning from.
R & S: How did you feel when you learned your grad festivities were being canceled because of Covid?
Raina: I was honestly heartbroken. Not necessarily for walking across the stage with an expensive dress on, but for the fact I wouldn’t be able to make my final year a full one. There are certain experiences that I, as a senior, will not be able to experience that other seniors have. Though knowing I wasn’t going to be appreciated or celebrated in any way, shape, or form for completing a chapter of my life was devastating.
Saskatoon Grad Photographer
Saskatoon Graduation Photos
R & S: Did you still celebrate your graduation in spite of Covid?
Raina: My mother along with a couple of other parents for our school formed a group on Facebook to find a way to celebrate grad, and they were quite successful!
R & S: What sorts of celebrations and events were planned?
Raina: Our senior class ended up having a parade around town that went so well that parents if future grads are considering to redo it for the future grad classes. We also held a socially distant grad at the Wyant Group Raceway, which in almost all aspects, was a real grad. As for what the school ended up doing was a 2-hour long video with a valedictorian speech and a little tidbit from each of the grads (which was very emotional).
Saskatoon Grad Photographer
Formal Grad Seniors Portraits
Seniors Casual Portraits
R & S: Part of your grad celebrations was to have casual and formal portraits done with me (your Mom asked me to do them before you even started 12th grade lol). Tell me, were the portraits mostly for your Mom or were you both excited to be having portraits done?
Raina: I think it was more of a 50/50 split. My mom wanted more updated photos of her babies (as we often don’t get school photos) and I was glad to get dressed up and look nice for once!
R & S: Tell me a little more about your Casual portrait experience. What was your favorite part? What did you think of the images?
Raina: The casual session was a lot of fun! It took most of the day but went by very quickly. If I had to sum it up in a sentence, it was like a field trip, but a good field trip! My favorite part was definitely making weird faces at my sister so she would smile. There were some poses I didn’t think felt as natural, but they definitely made sense by the time I saw the photos. The photos themselves were fantastic! They captured both the fun and serious sides of my sister and me very well.
R & S: Tell me a little more about your Formal portrait experience. What was your favorite part? What did you think of the images?
Raina: The formal photos took much less time to do, but looked just as stunning! It was definitely more uncomfortable to take the photos, just because I normally don’t wear heels, dresses or anything remotely fancy. My favorite part was being able to stand confidently or playing around with the smoke bombs! The pictures were absolutely ravishing and made me look like I wear dresses and heels everyday! The images just radiate confidence and I couldn’t be happier with the photos!
R & S: Do you think your graduation was made better or worse because of Covid?
Raina: I feel that even though we were left out of a traditional graduation, what ended being in its place, was just as grand (if not better)! Though I may not be able to make the same memories other grads have, that just means the memories I’ve made will make a much greater impact on my life.
R & S: What are your plans for after graduation, for summer? Post-secondary? Gap year? Work?
Raina: For summer, I will be relaxing and taking a much-needed break from the stress that is online school and then get back into it immediately after by preparing for university! I have been accepted into the college of engineering in the fall and plan on branching out into the engineering physics path so I will be able to study space! Though that plan is a little crumbly and I’ll just wait and see what the first year is like!
Congratulations on your graduation, Raina! You’re going to do amazing things and I’m glad I could make you feel ravishing and confident!
Here are more of Raina’s images from our two sessions together! Look for her twin sisters’ experience in another blog!
Graduation Photos
Saskatoon Casual Seniors Portraits
Saskatoon Formal Grad Portraits
Interested in booking your Casual or Formal Portrait Sessions for the 2021 year? It’s never too early 😉
I invite you to Contact me using the forms and/or contact information on my Contact Page.
Don’t be afraid to reach out! I don’t bite.
Promise 😉