There are certain people who were just meant to come into your life and make it feel like you have known them forever. That has been my friendship with Meaghan. We have been best friends since 2011. Anyone that knows us knows that we come as a package deal. I’m pretty sure we have spoken every day for the past five years and have so many weird and wonderful memories together that I wouldn’t even know where to begin.Meaghan is a photographer (meaghanking.com) and after years of being behind the camera, she is rarely ever in front of it. When she graduated high school, she never had professional senior photos taken and always said she regretted it. I have wanted to get her in front of the camera and take the portraits she wanted, even if it was six years later.

One minor thing about Meaghan is that she lives her life on wheels. After knowing her for so long, I don’t even notice it anymore. In fact, if you talked to her for five minutes you probably would forget about it too. She and I have had a lot of conversations about how to handle portraits of someone in a wheelchair. Although it is a big part of her daily life, it isn’t her entire identity. I was determined to capture that through her photos!

We ended up shooting on the most beautiful March day. It was almost 60 degrees! We went around to some side streets in Newcastle, Maine and found a few really pretty areas to shoot. The noontime lighting can be tough to photograph in, but we managed to work around it! I am so happy with how her photos came out. They really show how beautiful she is. I did her hair and makeup, and as someone with limited skills in either of those departments, I am pretty proud of myself!

For any photographers who get the chance to photograph someone in a wheelchair, DO IT. It will challenge you and make you really think outside the box. Sometimes you can fall in the trap of using the same poses over and over. Limited mobility gives you the opportunity to focus on bringing out the emotions and personality in your images.

If you’re looking for an awesome blog to follow, check out The Wheel Deal! Meaghan is a hilarious writer and gives new perspective to her situation. The struggle of being handicapped is a whole lot more than just not being able to walk and is sometimes so ridiculous you just have to laugh!
I hope you enjoyed a few shots of my afternoon with Meaghan! Keep updated by liking Melissa Gebert Photography on Facebook. If you are interested in booking a session of your own, please contact me!