He Used to Show My Son the Fish Tanks. Now he's Graduating from Benedictine.
- Melody Smith
- 3 hours ago
- 3 min read
I first photographed the Buffa family
fifteen years ago.
Nino was three years old. His mother Tillary was eight months pregnant with her youngest son. I remember pulling her into a few of the frames that day and she definitely wasn't planning to be in the photos, but I wasn't going to let that moment pass without her in it.
The Buffa family has deep roots in this community. Tillary and Sal own The Reserve at the Highlands and Riptides Seafood.
Nino grew up in those restaurants, working alongside his family from the time he was old enough to help. When my son Perrin was young, I used to bring him in and Nino would walk him over to the tropical fish tanks and show him every single one.
That little boy just graduated from Benedictine in Richmond.
He is headed to Hampden-Sydney College
in the fall.
For his senior session at the studio in Historic Old Town Petersburg, Nino came in with his Benedictine military dress uniform, his wrestling letterman jacket, his Hampden-Sydney shirt, and a few other looks. He was nervous walking in and; honestly, most people are.
What happened over the course of those few hours is something his mother described better than I ever could.
In her own words:
"What surprised me most was watching that uncertainty slowly turn into confidence. As the session went on, he relaxed and started trusting himself more in front of the camera.
Melody created an environment that felt calm, comfortable, and encouraging, which allowed his personality to come through naturally."
She also wrote something that I have been thinking about since she left it:
"It's hard to explain, but the experience makes you pause and realize you're in the middle of a chapter that you will never get back."
That is exactly what senior portraits are supposed to do. Not just document what someone looks like at 18. Document who they are at the end of one chapter and the start of the next — before life moves on and this version of them is gone.
Tillary saw that in the portraits. Nino saw it too.
"When we saw the portraits for the first time, I realized these weren't just photographs of my son smiling for a camera. They captured something deeper in him. His confidence, his maturity, and the emotion that comes through his eyes. He saw himself differently too."
Fifteen years.
A pregnant mom I pulled into the frame.
A little boy pointing out fish in a tank.
A young man in a military uniform headed to college.
That is what this work is.
If your son or daughter is a high school senior this year, the session calendar for fall is open.
These portraits are not school pictures.
They are a record of who your student is right now just before everything changes.
Sessions begin at $489
and include
professional hair, makeup, and styling.
The studio is located in
Historic Old Town Petersburg, Virginia,
serving Richmond, Chesterfield, Midlothian, and across Central Virginia.
About Melody Smith Portrait
Melody Smith Portrait is an award-winning portrait studio in Historic Old Town Petersburg, Virginia. Sessions are available for women, men, teens, and children ages 10 and up.
Every session includes professional hair, makeup, and styling.
3 N. Sycamore Street, Petersburg, VA 23803 (804) 396-4206 melodysmithportrait.com
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