So we have a high school senior portrait coming up, eh? Have no idea what to wear? Or do? Or bring? Well…we can help with that!
First off – what is the purpose of these??
Well, seniors, these are mostly for your parents. You just can’t get around it. They love you, want to remember you in your “sweet and innocent” high school stage, and they want to show you off to their friends. Graduating high school is a rite of passage from childhood into adulthood, from being under your parent’s wing to doing your own thing. High school senior portrait sessions are subconsciously emotional for parents, and they honestly deserve extra thought and care for your pictures. So needless to say, we want you seniors to look cool, while making you parents proud and happy. Parents, these photos are for you to show off and to frame to keep in your house for years to come. Show the world all of the care and effort you gave them and your commitment to their development for a sport or hobby. Think of it as featured images of their childhood in this pivotal point in their life.
Now – let’s get down to the good stuff. What should you do to make your high school senior portrait shoot easy breezy and awesome?
(I am just giving a general tip guide. There are not that many do’s vs. don’ts here.)
- Do bring many outfits. These outfits should vary in degrees of casualness.
- 1 outfit pretty casual: jeans/shorts and a cute top. Guys and gals, feel free to bring a school shirt. It can be a high school shirt AND/OR a college shirt!
- 1-3 outfits snappy casual: what you would wear for a date night. Don’t forget shoes. Bring some options here in case something doesn’t work out.
- 1 outfit your parents picked out. Just do it. If they say they love you in that hat, bring it! Hats make for cool pictures, anyways.
- 1-3 options for sports/hobby clothes. For me, I played competitive tennis. In fact, I played tennis every single day and had more tennis clothes than regular clothes. Bring a few options and show us your moves. (Don’t forget shoes here either. It looks weird if you are all geared up for a soccer pic or something and you’re wearing flipflops – bring the cleats!)
- Props – We don’t typically need props, but as I said, if you are in a sport – bring your gear. A soccer ball, tennis rackets/bag, golf gear, you name it. In Theatre? Bring something from your favorite scene. Also, purses and scarves make for cute accessories. And even – your car. Let’s say you love your car. It’s your metaphorical baby; mine is named Chester. Get’em all cleaned up and let’s take some pics in/around your car. It’s fun and not as dorky as it sounds…
- Hair brush/bands and make-up. I have said this before, and it still applies. You will need this for touchups and quick fixes.
- And lastly a Letterman jacket, if you have it/want it photographed.
- Scope out a place to shoot your pictures. For our sessions in particular, unless you specify otherwise, our default location is our studio. There are great places to shoot there, but if you want a picture of you on a field or at golf course or riding a horse or something, you should let your photographer know. Make it personal for you and your family. Pick a meaningful spot. And your photographer should advise on a good time of day for lighting purposes.
- Girls – think about starting with your hair down and then change it to up. It changes the feel and doesn’t make the pictures seem as if they were all done at one time.
- Think about the kind of personality you want to convey through these pictures. If you just want pretty pictures, we can absolutely do that. If you want bad ass pictures, or serious pictures, or light-hearted pictures, we can do that too. Just let us know. It’s all about the lighting here, folks.
- This last one sounds lame, but it’s important! Have a good time with it! Bring your tunes. Dance around, goof off, be carefree and happy. Times have changed, and we are no longer in the times of school photographer pictures and stuffy fake backgrounds. These are real life, cool, and artistic. So be ready to BE YOU!
Ok, there was my list of tips and suggestions! Hope you liked it, and feel free to call/email me to book your senior portrait session today! madison@yenstudios.com 901-412-4482
