While most of Ellie’s NYC senior pictures were thoroughly planned, her Senior Pictures at the W Hotel were not. I’ve always loved staying at W Hotels when I travel. I’m a Marriott lifetime loyal member because of the W Hotel. The W belonged to SPG, but was later acquired by Marriott. Yes, they bought my loyalty. Anyway, the W Hotel has always been my jam and I’ve stayed at the W Hotel in Times Square tons of times.

Every time I stay at the W Hotel NYC, it’s redesigned. You might remember when I shot Lindsey Stavely’s bridal portraits in NYC and we shot at the W Hotel. When Ellie and I checked in and I saw how unique it looked, I knew we would use it for some of her senior portraits in NYC.

I needed to bring my own lighting to photograph her senior pictures at the W Hotel. After all, it’s super dark in all the common spaces 24 hours a day. I love the photo above and the one directly below because they look like natural lighting. That’s one of the great little tricks I can do anytime, anywhere with my portable studio.

The shot below is one of my super favorites because of its simplicity in lighting, ambiance, and composition… but mostly because of Ellie’s pose. I should say that in 75 percent of her senior pictures, Ellie poses herself. I’ll put her where I need in terms of composition and set the lighting, and then she does the rest. She really is a rockstar.

Talk to you soon,
Dale

Looking for more of Ellie’s Senior Pictures?

Ellie’s Senior Pictures in a Bookstore
NYC Senior Photos in the Hudson River
Ellie’s Senior Pictures at NYU
Senior pictures in a record store
Ellie’s Senior pictures at the Museum of Ice Cream
Senior pictures in a subway station