Doctorate Graduation Portraits at San Diego State University with Dr. Jena
Graduation sessions always carry an interesting mix of emotions — relief, pride, excitement, and nervousness all at once.
I had the honor of photographing Jena’s graduation portraits when she earned her bachelor’s degree from San Diego State University and four years later, we reunited to commemorate another milestone — her doctorate! (Insert me aggressively clapping here.)
We spent the morning exploring campus for graduation portraits that felt fun, unique, and true to her personality. We chased flowers, found exquisite backdrops, negotiated with locked buildings, and somehow ended up getting VIP access to one of the best views on campus.
Not a bad way to start the day, eh?
Exploring the SDSU Campus
When we started planning her SDSU graduation photos, we knew we wanted to explore parts of campus that felt interesting and personal while still getting some iconic San Diego State spots in the mix, like the famous Hepner Hall. We focused on finding textures, colors, and little corners of campus that felt fun and different.
We started in front of a wall of blooming flowers that perfectly complemented Jena’s dress and the SDSU colors. The pink florals with Jena draped in red and gold was a vision. Her outfit was complete with meaningful pieces of pearl jewelry she got in Southeast Asia.
Then, we found some incredible doors around campus that provided the coolest backdrops. SDSU has some wildly underrated architecture!
The Hepner Hall Adventure
Of course, we eventually made our way over to Hepner Hall, because if you’re taking graduation photos at SDSU, it simply has to happen.
Our plan was to head upstairs onto the balcony for those gorgeous views over campus except dun dun dunnnnn… the doors were locked. But then — plot twist — we spotted two campus officers nearby and decided to shoot our shot. They gave major “girl dad energy” and were up for the mission! Not only did they let us upstairs, but they also asked if we wanted to go even higher to the giant bell tower, which we were all gung-ho to do!
Unfortunately, after one of the officers climbed up the ladder to test it, they said it was too unstable and they didn’t feel comfortable letting us climb it wah wahhhhh. The balcony was still incredible and as many times as I’ve shot on SDSU, this was the first time I had made it up there! We reveled in the soft light, the campus views, and Jena looking incredible in her regalia — it was well worth the mini adventure.
Four Years Later
Through out our session, I couldn’t help but have flashes back to four years ago, walking the same parts of campus with Jena when she earned her bachelor’s. Jena is one of those people who makes the world a better place. She is warm, funny, kind, wildly photogenic without trying — just genuinely lovely inside and out. Photographing milestones for such amazing people is an incredible honor and to be trusted with multiple is so special to me. Witnessing the evolution of someone’s life after all the growth and hard work is one of the many reasons why I adore my job.
If you’re graduating in San Diego or anywhere in Southern California and looking for graduation photos that feel relaxed, natural, and true to your authentic self, I’m here to help! Reach out here to chat about your own graduation session!
