Good portrait photography captures the essence of the subject’s personality, and that’s what Gretchen Carter aims for in her senior portraits. Carter is a portrait photographer at Newbrough Photo, a studio that’s been an anchor in the town of Weirton, W.V. for more than 60 years.

“I want to make the kids comfortable when they come here. If they’re stoic or serious, or if they’re bubbly, I want to capture that. If the mom looks at me and says, ‘You really captured who they are,’ then I feel I’ve done my job,” says Carter.

The judges at the recent Triangle Photographers Association meeting and print competition agreed, awarding Carter with the top prize in the Portrait Category. LexJet’s Sunset Award was also awarded to Carter for winning that category. The Triangle Photographers Association represents photographers in Pennsylvania, Ohio and West Virginia.

The subject was Kacie Craig, a senior at Weir High, who’s also one of Newbrough Photo’s ambassadors. She was photographed in her “Cinderella dress,” a dress she used in a play. Craig is involved in drama and music in the school and Carter says “she’s a really sweet girl with a great personality who’s really fun to photograph.”

Carter shot the portrait from above on a ladder with the dress flowing behind Craig. The effect, along with the lighting and posing of the subject, caught the judge’s eyes. The image was printed for the competition on a glossy photo paper on the studio’s wide format Epson printer.