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Northern York Senior: Keith

🏈 Authentic, driven, and determined Northern York senior, Keith, doesn’t let cerebral palsy stand in the way of his dreams and aspirations! He is kind, dedicated, down-to-earth and living his best life.  He is involved on high school football team as a coach. With CP affecting his right side, he plays a left-handed instrument, the French horn, in the concert band.  He also enjoys the outdoors.

Northern York Senior Portrait Photographer, rhinehart photography, captures this unique silhouette of this french horn player as he stands on the kings gap overlook while playing his instrument
I love playing with silhouettes and vibrant colors like this blue sky. Here his French horn shows up so dramatically in silhouette.
kings gap mansion portrait photographer, lisa rhinehart, captures this portrait of this high school senior as he looks off the overlook at kings gap surrounded by vibrant fall foliage in pa
I love this stonewall and the incredible view– for me, it shows his strength, determination, and the mountains he has climbed in his life
Image this high school senior as he stands on the Northern York football field while he coaches the football team during his portrait session
I enjoyed being able to meet at the Northern York High School football stadium. The backgrounds of the players and the field goalpost along with him, and his coaching attire and whistle are such a perfect tribute to this moment in his life.

Why Rhinehart Photography?

Keith smiles, “I chose Lisa as my photographer because I liked her creativity in using the environment around us. I knew she could capture my interests in a unique way.  She made me feel comfortable and I actually enjoyed having my pictures taken.

Northern York senior portrait photographer, lisa rhinehart, captures this creative, unique, reflective image of his cerebral palsy senior as he shows off his french horn at kings gap mansion in central pa
I love playing with the reflections. To have the beautiful fall backdrop, and all the lovely oranges and greens, accompanied by the gold of Keith’s French horn and the green-yellow of his sweatshirt–so much to work with!
creative, unique image of this senior as he looks at the colorful, vibrant fall leaves during this creative, unique portrait session in northern york pa
Here I was getting creative and seeing if I could capture the reflection of the colorful leaves in the sky and bring it down to Keith’s level with a prism. I enjoy thinking creatively to bring unique photography to my clients.
northern york senior portrait photographer, lisa rhinehart, captures this creative, unique image of this senior through his french horn as he is surrounded by the fall foliage of kings gap mansion in central pa
Even from our initial meeting, I knew I wanted to do something like this for this Northern York senior portrait session. Shooting through the French horn brought the French horn into the photo without being completely on the nose… I used it as a frame, and again those gold colors were music to my eyes 😉
creative, unique image of this cerebral palsy male portrait session as he explores the vibrant, colorful outdoors of kings gap mansion
I actually shot this one through the French horn as well but with a much more shallow depth of field… You can see it just vaguely, and it’s a very subtle reference, more of a feeling.

Why the French Horn?

Keith shares, “I chose to play the French Horn because it’s the only truly left-handed instrument. Since my Cerebral Palsy affects the right side of my body, it is hard for me to use my right hand for fine motor skills. When playing the French Horn, I can use my right hand to hold onto it and play the keys with my left hand. I have been playing since 4th grade, this was the first year students could sign up to play an instrument. For many years, I took music lessons to help improve my ability to read music.”

Creative portrait photographer, lisa rhinehart, captures this close up image of this french horn player as he shows off how he can play his instrument with cerebral palsy
I like that you can see the detailing of the French horn here along with Keith’s bit nails… Sometimes it’s the little things that make us human and our loved ones want to remember… It makes me curious if it’s caused by the game, stress, or a challenging math test, sometimes little things can say a lot…

Creative portrait photographer, lisa rhinehart, captures this image of this french horn player as he shows off how he can play his instrument with cerebral palsy ontop of the mountain at kings gap mansion in central pa surrounded by the vibrant, colorful fall foliage

Cerebral Palsy & Epilepsy: A Challenging Journey

Keith’s mom shares, “Keith has cerebral palsy, epilepsy, and developmental delays. School has not come easy to him, and has often been a very big struggle, but he has pushed through. I want his pictures to be a reflection of his (often) difficult journey.”

She adds, “Keith is a very determined person who has pursued interests without letting physical limitations slow him down. He has adapted his life to fit him. He is very polite, and positive, and makes the best out of any situation.” 

creative portrait photographer, lisa rhinehart, captures this unique, reflective image of this senior as he stares at a reflection of himself and the vibrant fall foliage found ontop of kings gap mansion
More reflection, this time I lined up his beard, hair, and clothing with the leaves of a tree him being against the bark of the tree… It’s a photo that’s pretty out there, and really shows his natural side, haha!
traditional portrait of this senior as he smiles at the camera while holding his french horn at kings gap mansion in central pa
While I post my more creative photos on my blog, of course, take nice smiling shots as well. Here is one of those as he holds his instrument.
creative, close up image of the french horn with the reflection of this senior on it as he shows off his skills during this creative northern york senior portrait session
Haha, this one was really hard to achieve. It required a very narrow aperture, maybe F 16 or so, to get his full reflection and focus. I love the contrast of the blue sky and his yellow sweatshirt in the golden instrument. You probably have to look pretty closely to see him!
vibrant, colorful image of this senior as he stands ontop of kings gap in central pa surrounded by vibrant fall foliage during this outdoor senior portrait session
I love his attitude here! I was trying to bring out his inner supermodel and dang I believe it showed up! Helping my seniors feel comfortable in front of the camera is something I really love to do! Check out those beautiful trees in the background, and leaves in the foreground!
traditional, timeless portrait of this senior as he looks off into the distance at kings gap mansion in central pa
I wanted to give him something that was timeless. Something that could’ve been taken in 1960 or today and this is that shot. I love how this light hits his cheekbones and brightens his eyes!

Why the Stadium & Kings Gap?

Keith says, “I wanted to have pictures taken at the football stadium where I help coach and have had a lot of good memories over the past two years.  I also wanted to have pictures taken with my French Horn, since I have been playing it since I was in 4th grade.  King’s Gap is very scenic and my French Horn fit in nicely with the fall colors.”

vibrant, colorful image of this northern senior as he stands in nature at kings gap in central pa surrounded by vibrant fall foliage captured by central pa portrait photographer, lisa rhinehart
I could not get over the colors! The same tree had this neon green and neon orange that gave me flashbacks to the 1990s! Just unreal!
traditional portrait of this male with cerebral palsy at kings gap mansion as he sits on the overlook and watches off into the distance looking at the vibrant, colorful full foliage
I really think his confidence and kindness come across in this photo. It also has that symbolism of climbing mountains, and reaching a beautiful view!
image of this male with cerebral palsy as he shows how he can play his french horn and does not let a disability stop him during this creative portrait session in central pa
Again that traditional 1960s vibe… I could see his grandfather having this photo or something like that. There’s something so traditional about the instruments and his luck. If you look very closely, you can also see his reflection 🙂
traditional portrait of this senior with cerebral palsy as he smiles at the camera in kings gap mansion during this portrait session
I usually try to get something that would work on family members’ mantles or in the yearbook (if you’re allowed to bring in your own photos). I really like this classic photo of him.
northern york senior portrait photographer, lisa rhinehart, captures this creative, unique image of this senior with cerebral palsy through his french horn as he is surrounded by the fall foliage of kings gap mansion in central pa
Playing with a French horn as a frame again– I love the glistening and gold it brings to the foreground
epic landscape shot of kings gap mansion taken during this northern york session portrait session with this fun, kind cerebral palsy senior
An epic landscape shot is something I also usually aim for, in this case, I wanted to show off the mountain. Keith is framed by waving strands of tall grass and anchored by a large rock. This would make a gorgeous canvas! A piece of art that Keith could bring with him throughout his life to remind him of the beauty of his home and his accomplishments as a Northern York senior.

Why Coach Football?

Keith says, “I have been coaching since 11th grade, and I wish I would have gotten into it sooner. I’ve made great friendships and have learned all the hard work and dedication it takes to develop a winning team.”

image of this high school football coach as he stands directly facing the camera with a straight face and arms crossed during this outdoor portrait session
Coaching brings out a different side of Keith that I really wanted to capture… Here we have the team and goalposts subtly behind him and he’s wearing his coaching gear
creative, unique image of this high school football coach as he is coaching the players and wearing his headset during this authentic portrait session at northern high school in pa
Here, you can see the school stadium suddenly in the background with players and the yard lines as well as the headset that he wears during games
northern york senior portrait photographer, lisa rhinehart, captures this picture of this high school football coach with cerebral palsy demonstrating how not even a disability can stop him from chasing his dreams
The scoreboard, headphones, and whistle, along with his bright smile, and the green field in the background say so much about this central Pennsylvania senior and his passions
black and white image of this cerebral palsy senior as he watches through the fence as his team practices football
I wanted to show a bit of grit and struggle here. The black-and-white photo brought that out, as well as the chain-link fence that provides texture in the foreground.

Dreams and Aspirations

Keith continues, “I would like to continue coaching at Northern in the future and have been welcomed back after graduation. I have learned so much from my fellow coaches, and they have taken the time to help me succeed with my own plays and ideas.”

high school football coach with cerebral palsy as he stands on the sideline at northern york football stadium watching his team practice during this unique, authentic portrait session

black and white traditional portrait of this senior with cerebral palsy as he smiles at the camera while wear a football jersey for this fun portrait session

authentic portrait photographer, lisa rhinehart, captures this senior with cerebral palsy doing what he loves-- coaching football for his high school team

Drive and Determination

Determination and drive are something this Northern York senior definitely has. At this point in the shoot, I told him to stare me down like I was the coach on the other team!

black and white image of this high school football coach as he stares down the camera as if its his opponent while holding a football during this high school portrait session at northern york football stadium

northern york senior portrait photographer, lisa rhinehart, captures this creative, unique image of this high school senior with cerebral palsy as he looks off into the distance while being back lit for this fun, unique end of the night shot
Here I am using my off-camera flash as a rim light. I wanted it to be edgy, high contrast, and just be something outside of the box and an iconic profile for him. I could totally see him using that simple outline as a logo or something in the future ;). Maybe even for his YouTube channel!

It was such a pleasure for me to photograph Keith’s football coaching dreams coming true. Excited to see what the future holds for this kind, honest, down-to-earth Northern York senior!

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