Mellon Park Walled Garden Senior Photos | Brooke
Mellon Park’s Walled Garden is one of my favorite spots in Pittsburgh for senior photos. Every single time I am here (which can be multiple times a week in the summer and fall!) I find myself thinking, “I can’t believe this is just a place we get to enjoy. For free.” It is that beautiful (and based on all the other photographers there with their clients at the same time as me, I’m not the only one who thinks so). Yes, Mellon Park can get a little bit crowded at golden hour in the fall, but it’s also big enough that there is always a different backdrop to move to, and we Pittsburgh photographers are really good at sharing :)
One of my favorite little facts about Mellon Park is that it went through a restoration process in 2009-2010 in memory of a young woman named Ann Katharine Seamans, who loved visiting the Garden, especially at night when she could look up at the stars. If you walk around the grass in front of the fountain, you may have noticed these little circles embedded in the grass. They’re easy to overlook, and a bit curious in the daytime since they seem quite random and don’t seem to do anything. But at night, all 150 points light up on the lawn to represent the stars and planets over Pittsburgh the night Annie was born. What an incredibly special memorial! So if you ever get a chance to visit Mellon Park in the evening, you should certainly take it!
Golden Hour
I must admit that usually I’m long gone by the time the stars come out, and that’s because golden hour is when I’m there the most for senior photos. “Golden hour” is so aptly named because it is the time of day (usually the 2 hours or so) before the official sunset, when the sun is lowest in the sky. The angle and quality of light shifts dramatically from overhead and harsh, to flattering, golden side lighting. It is my favorite time of day to photograph because everything feels a bit more magical in that golden light!
So why is Mellon Park one of my favorite Pittsburgh locations for senior portrait sessions? This little area packs a big punch. Something I’m always looking for, especially during senior photos, is diversity in backdrops. You are the star of the show in your senior pictures, and it’s true that your grandma is going to love any image with you in them. But a final gallery of 100 photos with you in the same outfit in front of the exact same background (no matter how beautiful both are!) is going to start to feel a bit….boring. And we certainly can’t have that.
No Boring Senior Photos
My rule is “no boring senior photos.” It’s such an easy goal to achieve because I have NEVER worked with a boring senior! Oh sure, I’ve worked with seniors who say they feel a little awkward in front of the camera in the beginning, but the minute I start digging down and getting to know them, their personality, their humor, their goals and interests, it’s so blindingly clear that they contain multitudes. My job is translating that complexity into a gallery of images that makes each senior say “this is so ME!” I’m a photographer with over a decade of experience at senior photos, and I’ve never had a boring session or made a boring gallery. I’m serious! How do I make sure your senior photos aren’t boring? By having you include 2-3 different outfit changes, making you feel comfortable enough to be your true self at your senior session, and giving you space and time to play and interact with your environment to make your images come alive.
Looking for diverse backdrops
Mellon Park is one of the best spots in Pittsburgh for senior photos because just moving a few feet over in any direction gives us a stunning new background to work with. From the fountain on the green grassy lawn, to the stone wall architecture, to the wrought-iron gates, to the gorgeous flowers lining stone-paved walkways: Mellon Park is a goldmine of visual interest. There are gorgeous brick walls and winding stone staircases, tree-lined horizons and shadowy alcoves. Brilliant golds and greens and rusty browns and chic greige. Each new backdrop adds visual interest to your gallery, and naturally gives us new and effortless pose ideas. Sitting on steps, and leaning through iron gates, using the shadows to create something moody and creative. You can find it all at Mellon Park.
Brooke’s Senior Session
Brooke is a senior at Shaler High School, and we worked together one gorgeous golden hour in early September for her senior photos at Mellon Park! It was one of my favorite nights all year, and I'm so excited to finally be sharing her session on the blog! After high school school, Brooke is hoping to go to college to become a sonogram technician, a job I have a tremendous amount of respect and gratitude for after God placed some incredibly empathetic sonogram technicians in my own life. She is so vibrant and fun and confident that it was immediately clear she’s the type of person who would achieve any goal she set out for herself.
I give credit for Brooke introducing me to my first Labubu— never before had I seen something that straddled the line of horrifying and adorable so effectively. She had one on her purse, and though now I see them everywhere and the jump scare is a little less, I’m afraid I’m still not much closer to understanding. So we established that yes I am old, but also: no matter the decade, teenagers continue to be, as ever, so completely cool and weird.
Some people may look at me a little crazy, but I love teens — for quite a bit of time in college I was studying to be a high school English teacher because I love working with teenagers! Life took a different path for me, but I’ve never stopped loving working with humans in this stage of life. Everything is so full of possibility and sarcasm and confidence and contradictions and wonder. I will never get tired of making cool and sometimes weird and never boring senior photos with them. Like this incredible golden hour in early September with Brooke— one of my absolute favorite nights.
“Rachel is amazing! She made Brooke’s senior photo session effortless, fun, and relaxed. No pressure at all. Her passion and eye for photography are incredible, and the photos turned out absolutely stunning and professional. She made my Brooke feel confident, beautiful, and like a true model, with location suggestions that were perfect and no sense of being rushed. I would 100% recommend her to anyone looking for a senior photographer!”
