Stepping into school with a fresh and trendy haircut is an instant boost of confidence for any young lad. This extensive collection of boys' haircuts is your
Kevin Dockendorf describes himself as a "big-time choir nerd" which makes me smile and relate as I was always in choir and musical theatre. He also played tennis competitively until his junior year. Like most teenage boys he most enjoys hanging out with friends and video games, but ask a musician what their favorite music is and you have messed with their head. He couldn't begin to list them all, so he settled on Twenty-One Pilots... right now, but his favorite genre is alternative and he'll listen to almost anything. It seems like Kevin, like most of my favorite kids list "kindness" as their favorite personality trait. How cool is that? His favorite quote is: "Expect the unexpected," and his favorite memory is precious to all who love animals. "Losing my dog and then watching him come back down our street later that day. That was a good memory." If you're in the Dallas Fort Worth area and need senior pictures, you can find me at Lisa McNiel Photography! Here's some perspective from his mom, Tammy: Since infancy, Kevin has always been such a sweet boy with a kind heart! One of the first activities he started (at 6 weeks old) was Kindermusik. He absolutely enjoyed the variety of music, being introduced to rhythm/tempo, and using music to relate to cultures and emotions. We would sing and dance to the fast paced music all day and rock him to sleep to the lullabies at night. I recently found his lullaby album and was shocked when Kevin said he remembered a lot of the songs. Meanwhile I am in tears as those days seem like yesterday. ;) Kevin followed the kindermusik program all the way to the end and followed it up with choir at school. Being around peers and musical role models has heightened his love for music. Even though he has done soccer, basketball, swimming, and tennis - music was always with him through it all. He currently enjoys being in the all male á Capella group at school, musicals on stage, and countless vocal competitions throughout the year. Kevin is a true friend, animal lover, environmental supporter, character builder, Christian follower, and the BEST son we could ever ask for. We can't wait to see where his collegiate future takes him. Many endless thanks to Lisa for putting on film the love we see in him everyday!
Dawson has been in more theatre productions than I can name and I majored in vocal music and minored in drama. He may become a producer or go into politics or acting, directing... who knows? He will be grabbing a cup of coffee from "Re:defined" in Grapevine on his way up though! Mr. Holder just graduated from Grapevine Faith High school in between Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas. He was looking at some swanky schools and settled on Texas Christian University. I bet his family is grateful he'll be close by and that he received so much scholarship from the TCU Horned Frogs! He enjoys theatre, singing, writing, debate, dancing, reading and politics. His favorite songs are Stars and the Moon by Jason Robert Brown, Evergreen by YEBBA, Still in Love by Thirdstory, and Pretty Funny by Lindsay Mendez. His mom posted a video of his performance as the beast in "Beauty and the Beast" and it was just jaw-dropping! His favorite quote is from A Brave New World by Aldous Huxley- "“But I don't want comfort. I want God, I want poetry, I want real danger, I want freedom, I want goodness. I want sin.” Because of his interest in drama and musical theatre, we began his session on stage and in the audience seats as seen in the top photos. He wore a suit, which I always recommend for boys. He chose an olive green button down shirt and charcoal pants for the more casual photos around town. Follow me on Pinterest here: DallasPhotographer To see more photos from senior photographer Lisa McNiel, click Dallas-Photographer or follow DFW-Senior-Photographer on Facebook or Senior Pictures on Instagram. One of my favorite outfits was this maroon zippered sweater over a checkered navy shirt with jeans. We finished up his shoot at his favorite coffee shop where he likes to hang out, study, and visit with friends. PS. Everyone is a potential friend for Dawson! His mom's perspective on Dawson: Dawson has always been beyond his years. He is an avid reader, loves to sing and listen to music and has been acting since he was seven. He enjoys having conservations all day long!
It's time to freshen up those locks for school! Let's face it - the right haircut can be a total game-changer. It should be easy to maintain, look sharp all
Book your Allen Senior Pictures & Sports Portraits with us and $100 will be donated to the Allen Eagles Football team. Reserve your date by July 1 for all 2019
Graham Santilli is a fairly quiet, not shy, but not loud. He's a thinker. He's pondering what I say to him during the photo session, and figuring out the best approach. I'm much more of a feeler, but we find a way to communicate so that he gives me killer expressions and great poses, and we capture the essence of this terrific young Allen track star. When he's not running or training, he enjoys watching TV, play computer games and hanging out with family and friends. His favorite quote is, "Every Battle is won before it is ever fought." I love that he has enough self-awareness to list his as his favorite personality trait: Heart/Quirkiness/Discipline/Odd sense of humor. He is a 4 year member of National Honor Society, Awarded as an "Eagle Scholar", a 4 year member of Allen Young Men's Service League. 2 year member of Allen Eagle football team, 4 year track team member. 2 year Athletic Trainer. Life update... he may be your pilot on your next flight! To see more recent work or book me, here's my website: Lisa McNiel Seniors As usually happens, mom had more to say about her son. This is her perspective: Graham has always been my disciplined and self motivated son. He is an introvert, but when he does have something to say, it's well thought out. If you get to know him, he is surprisingly witty and funny. Dry sense of humor. He has always led others by Example. i.e...Hardest worker, hates to miss practice, always gives 110%, listens to what the coaches say, is coachable. He's always been the kid the coaches use as a good example. He has always loved to run. It energizes him. If he isn't running, he looks like an amped up race horse who needs to run... He began running track at age 10. He won various district races, but didn't see a lot of success until 2013 when at 11 years old, He advanced through District and then Regionals and moved on to the AAU Junior Olympics in the 800M. Although he loved track, he also loved football and in our highly competitive Allen School District, he decided to focus entirely on football. He had dreamed of playing for the Allen Eagles since a player came into his kindergarten class to read to them. He always ran track for Allen, but he focused all of his attention year round on football and his football training. He played recreational football and then moved into Select Football in the DFW area in Elementary and Middle School. Was Selected by Football University to represent Dallas Forth on Team DFW and was chosen as one of the Captains. We traveled all over the country to watch him play football. His room is plastered wall to wall with football equipment and trophies. Graham was a great player and teammate.... But, during his Sophomore year, was advised by the team physician to quit playing football. He had too many concussions and he was getting them easier and easier. He was utterly devastated. It caused a deep sadness in him that is just now beginning to lift. He couldn't bring himself to walk into the athletic facility to clean out his locker, and after a month, the coaches did it for him. That event was life changing for him. The coaches begged him to stay on in any capacity: coaches helper, videographer, team manager? He turned everything down but Athletic Trainer. He hadn't a stitch of athletic trainer training..but he has had a ton of broken bones from football and he knows a thing or two about concussions...so he worked extra hard to get caught up, and has spent the past two years as an athletic trainer for the football and track program. Running and Track has always been there for him... He won the District 6A Championship for Allen in the 800M in 2015, but following that, was plagued by a bunch of growth injuries. He ran one race for Allen last year and right away tore an achilles. He sat out the entire track season for Allen except for District. He was so disappointed in missing his track season, that on a whim I asked him if he would consider running Summer track... The rest is history. He put his nose to the grindstone and within 2 months, he had advanced through District, and then through Regionals and landed the USATF Hershey National Junior Olympics. Graham has never had one coach (not one) that isn't amazed by his grit, determination, and heart. Every Coach he's ever had repeats the same thing to Gregg and I, He has the heart of a lion.
