Hey, Dogwrangler

By Lia Bensley

Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about the experience behind a

photograph, especially as AI-generated images are starting to show up

everywhere... headshots, senior photos, family portraits, sports

images. It’s getting harder to tell what’s real anymore.

This summer will be 20 years (!!) since my own senior photo session,

and I still remember it clearly. I brought my dog with me and we took

pictures at some of my favorite spots in my hometown in Pennsylvania.

I even remember the voicemail the photographer left when my photos

were ready. My dad still jokes that he opened it with “Hey, dog

wrangler...” which, for whatever reason, made me feel strangely seen.

More than anything, I remember how that session made me feel. I wasn’t

someone who felt particularly confident in front of a camera, but

something about that hour brought out a version of me that did. It

felt easy and momentous at the same time.

Looking back now, I’m also really aware of the gift my parents gave me

as I looked toward my senior year. They invested in that experience...

a milestone worth marking. They gave me that hour of feeling

comfortable, seen, and a little buoyed at a time when everything felt

like it was about to change. I still have those photos, and I still

love them, especially the ones with my dog. But what sticks with me is

memory attached to it.. And it’s probably why, two decades later, I

still make the effort to be in photos even though I don’t naturally

love being in front of the camera. I find myself asking, usually a

little shyly, one of the other Mercy Street photographers — some of my

closest friends — to take photos of me, my husband, and yes, of course

our dog (and goats and chickens and cat...) every year at our house. I

wait for my gallery just like everyone else, refreshing my email until

it comes through a few days later. Every time, I’m blown away by what

I see... not just how it looks, but how I feel.

And that’s what I hope you’ll consider as you book your photo sessions

this year.

You’re spending an hour (or 15 minutes or 30..) with the people you

love most in some of the most beautiful spots in New England, and for

that stretch of time, nothing else is competing for your attention.

It’s one of the best gifts you can give yourself and your family.

Seniors come in unsure and leave asking how soon until they can see

their sneak peek. Families show up thinking it might be chaotic and

end up having an hour together that we’re often told is one of the

best of the summer — no phones, no other commitments, and usually with

the bribe of ice cream together after. People come in for headshots

thinking it’s just something they need to check off a list, and then

they see themselves in a way that matches how hard they’ve worked to

get where they are.

That’s the part we live for. Not just the photo, but how we get to

make you feel while you’re in it. You can create an image now without

ever stepping in front of a camera, but you can’t recreate that

experience of being there, feeling like yourself, and having that

version of your life reflected back to you years from now.

P.S. Always bring your dog to your photoshoot.

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