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By Elizabeth Rexing, Print Editor
CLIQUE
MATTHEW ORBAUGH PHOTOGRAPHY
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ophomore Matthew Orbaugh started his “journey with photography” in May 2020. “After being locked in my house, I was itching for something creative to do,” Orbaugh said. “So, I picked up my camera and started shooting.” Orbaugh currently focuses his attention on senior portraits. Future graduates of 2023 make up his current group of senior ambassadors. The ambassadors applied and were selected by Orbaugh to be a part of the team. He plans on having 10 to 14 senior models each year, chosen from a variety of high schools in central Indiana. As an ambassador, each model will get to participate in four or five themed shoots with all the reps as well as an individual senior portrait session, Orbaugh said. One of his models this year is junior Amelia Loewer. After meeting through show choir and using Orbaugh for a surprise photoshoot for her best friend’s birthday, Loewer decided to apply to be on his team. Loewer remembers her photoshoot with her best friend as being “super professional” but yet “super casual.” “It was the best of both worlds,” Loewer said. “Matthew made the shoot fun and comfortable. Our smiles were so genuine.” Loewer is excited but notes that modeling is “unlike anything” she’s ever done and a “little out of her comfort zone.” “A lot of times when I’m taking pictures by myself, I am pretty self conscious,” Loewer said. “I’m an extremely extroverted person and I’m confident but there are times that I’m insecure.” When Loewer did her first shoot with her friend, she said it was
10 Student Life
Loewer smiles for the camera in her best friend photo shoot with Orbaugh. photo submitted by Orbaugh
“nerve-wracking.” But, working with Orbaugh helped her to relax. “He is such an uplifting photographer,” Loewer said. “Eventually, I didn’t even notice the camera. It was just me being myself and getting my personality caught on camera.” Capturing more than a pretty picture is one of Orbaugh’s favorite parts of being a photographer. “I love being able to work with new clients and capturing their true authentic self,” Orbaugh said. “Being able to connect with [the models] is so important to capture who they are.” In the end, Orbaugh’s goal is to not only to “grow as a photographer” through this experience, he said, but to give his models something to remember. “I want them to be able to look back on these images and know who they were as a senior and who they have become since their senior year,” Orbaugh said.
IMAGES BY AMBER
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hat really attracted me towards Amber’s company was her eye for photos,” senior Charlie Steiner said. “They aren’t just the typical senior photos; she is able to capture each individual person’s essence in their photos.” As one of local photographer Amber Bryant’s senior reps, Steiner said he is responsible for promoting Bryant’s company. “Senior photography is such a word of mouth business,” Steiner said. Steiner will model in an individual senior portrait shoot along with several themed group shoots with other senior ambassadors, one being senior Carly Seward. Seward said she was drawn to Bryant’s business after interacting with her at church and because she “does a great job of showcasing her work on Instagram.” Group shoots are her favorite, Seward said. Seward especially loved rollerblading for their pastel shoot and the fall shoot. “We made s’mores and had so much fun together,” Seward said. Seward said by being an ambassador she has gained “confidence and new friends.” “I don’t like taking pictures by myself because I often don’t know how to pose,” Seward said. “But Amber helps guide us. She really hypes you up and is always in awe of her models’ beauty.” Steiner said during his first shoot that he “definitely” had some insecurities too, but Bryant is “one of the most genuine people to work with.” “Modeling for Amber makes me feel really special,” Steiner said. Seward has grown closer with the other models
