As Ohio University’s spring 2026 commencement draws near, popped champagne caps cover the Court Street bricks, and caps and gowns fill College Green.
Graduation photos have been considered a rite of passage for multiple Bobcats, hiring local photographers or students to capture their final weeks on campus.
Plenty of students plan their pictures months ahead in hopes of achieving a memorable photoshoot.
“I have them send me a Pinterest board, show me what they kind of want, as well as locations they really want, especially on campus,” said Kelly Prim, a junior studying commercial photography who captures senior portraits.
Pinterest is a popular app where users can find and save images based on their aesthetic or interests. Prim, who's taken photographs since the pandemic, does graduation shoots for other colleges, notably Marietta College.
Prim’s senior packages cost $300 for a two to three hour shoot, according to her website. Prim’s graduation season schedule for OU shoots fluctuates by year, affected by how many graduates she knows personally.
“My freshman year, I had no photos here,” Prim said. “My sophomore year, I did about 20 people ... this year I have two people, close friends that are graduating.”
Prim said with a typical graduation session, clients will receive about 50 photos.
Anna Spence, a senior studying hearing, speech and language sciences, had a friend from her hometown visit Athens to take photos the weekend before the final week of classes.
“She’s a photography minor at another school,” Spence said.
To prepare for the shoot, Spence said she made a mood board and planned her outfit, which is the same she plans to wear for the ceremony.
When finding her inspiration photos, Spence considered what color palettes her friends used and how her preferences compare.
“I was going for more of an airy look,” Spence said. “One of my friends went for a more darker, dark academia type of look. But I’m not really into that, so I went with a lighter look.”
As for location, Spence planned to mostly stick with outdoor settings including College Green, Alumni Gateway and Emeriti Park.
“I think I’m going to stay outside mostly, but maybe go to the (Vernon R. Alden) Library,” Spence said.
Although Spence had the shoot planned for a few weeks preceding, many of her friends do not plan on doing the same.
“I don’t think all of my friends are getting photos taken,” she said. “I think some of them are just gonna have a photo or two after graduation when we’re in our gowns.”
When planning the shoot, Spence anticipated waiting for a turn at the more popular photo locations, given that many graduates have spent the final weekends of the semester with the same plans.
“Everyone at this time of year, no matter what time of day, what day it is, someone is taking pictures, and you’re probably in the back of it if you’re on College Green,” Spence said.
Jacki Brinsley, a local full-time photographer since 2001, began doing senior shoots last year. Her first senior client was a mutual friend's daughter.
“We did her grad pictures, and then did a surprise proposal for her brother,” Brinsley said.
Before last year, Brinsley was mostly shooting couples and families, but made the switch to full-time senior photography.
“I just enjoy their energy and their creativeness that they have for their photos,” Brinsley said. “They just have so much fun in their pictures.”
This graduation season has been especially busy for Brinsley as she took photos for fall commencement as well.
“It’s busy in the fall, and then we get a little break,” she said. “If somebody wants to do pictures in the winter, it’s inside. Then in the spring, it starts picking back up again.”
Brinsley charges $25 for a 30-minute session at any campus location of the client’s choosing.
Brinsley said she tries to make shoots as affordable as possible, keeping in mind that many college students cannot afford expensive sessions.
“I normally do College Green, I just feel like there’s more space there,” Brinsley said. “But if you want to switch it up, that’s fine.”
Brinsley said that she enjoys capturing the graduation milestone and student accomplishments.
“Everybody makes a more big deal of it now than it was when I was growing up,” she said. “I just think it’s so much fun now.”
Brinsley explained that when her husband graduates from OU, they plan to take photos on campus.
“You only graduate once from college,” Prim said. “Getting a senior photo, or just a photo of yourself, is a very large accomplishment.”
Cv592923@ohio.edu
