The Editorial Icon: Catherine Harju’s Cinematic Portraits at Stadium High (Tacoma, WA)
A fun, wide-angle moment with Catherine Harju in front of the iconic "Castle" at Stadium High School in Tacoma.
My gear was already loaded. I was fresh off a frosty, gritty morning shoot in Gig Harbor with Max Dower (read about that session here), and I was headed north across the Narrows Bridge. The sun was high, the fog had burned off, and it was time to shift gears from "The Grit" to "The Editorial."
The Subject: Catherine Harju Catherine is a standout Sophomore athlete at Stadium High School. We had worked together before down in the iconic "Bowl," but this time, the mission was different. The construction scaffolding that had shrouded the historic school for months was finally gone. It was time to capture the "Castle" in all its glory.
Sector 01: High Noon at The Castle
I arrived early to scout the courtyard. Stadium High School is a magnet for tourists; passerby stop constantly to marvel at the architecture. I worried the foot traffic might kill the vibe, but when Catherine arrived—fresh letterman jacket, denim, and a white crop top—we locked in immediately.
The Challenge: The Sun We were shooting at high noon. In photography terms, this is usually a nightmare—harsh shadows and "raccoon eyes." But I don't hide from hard light; I control it. I set up my strobes to overpower the sun, turning that harsh midday blast into a controlled, high-fashion spotlight.
I swapped to my 16mm wide-angle lens to capture the sheer scale of the building. We played with the shadows of the brick arches, moving around the courtyard to find pockets of interesting light. The result wasn't just a portrait; it was environmental architecture. We chatted naturally through the technical tweaks, capturing those elusive "look away" candids that feel more like a magazine spread than a posed portrait.
Sector 02: The Steeplechase at UPS
We packed up and moved to the University of Puget Sound (UPS) to utilize their track facility. Catherine runs steeplechase, and I wanted to incorporate the barriers for a specific athletic editorial look.
Own the space. Catherine relaxing on a steeplechase barrier at the UPS track in Tacoma.
We started with some relaxed poses—Catherine owning the space, lounging on the barriers with a cool, casual confidence. Then, we tried to add some motion. Steeplechase is a brutal event, and even in a photoshoot, the risks are real. During one action sequence, Catherine clipped the barrier. It was a heart-stopping second for me (and her mom), but she popped right back up, brushed it off, and laughed it off. That’s the athlete mindset—you hit the ground, you get back up.
The Experiment: Radioactive Glass
As we were wrapping up, the sun began to dip, casting a golden backlight across the track. I remembered I had packed a secret weapon: my Asahi Pentax Super-Takumar 50mm f/1.4.
Chasing the light. Captured with a vintage Takumar lens to create a natural, cinematic flare.
This is a vintage manual-focus lens from the 1960s (often called the "Radioactive Lens" due to the thorium glass). It doesn't shoot like modern digital lenses. It flares. It glows. It's soft in a way that feels like a memory.
I fumbled with the manual focus, fighting the glare of the sun, unsure if I was nailing the sharpness. But when I pulled the files up later, I realized we had struck gold. The image isn't "perfectly sharp" by modern standards—it’s better. It has a warm, distinct vibe that you can feel. It was the perfect ending to a marathon creative day.
Technical Intel
Camera: Canon 1DX
Lenses: Sigma 85mm f/1.4, Rokinon 16mm Wide Angle (Architecture), Super-Takumar 50mm f/1.4 (Vintage Portraits)
Lighting: Paul C. Buff Alienbees B1600 with Beauty Dish Modifier + a second B1600 with a reflector
Locations: Stadium High School & University of Puget Sound, Tacoma, WA
