Alright, so we’ve officially signed up for a date to take your senior photos. What’s next?!
Fortunately for you, I’ve made this handy little checklist of what to do to be prepared and to get the most of out of your senior photos.
Brainstorming your session
Every once in awhile clients will ask to meet with me for coffee and then we’ll talk about their session, locations, clothing, themes and styles.
This option is included on my remix sessions. If you chose the original session we can still brainstorm, but we can do that over a phone call.
Not every client will want to meet up, but I’ve found that the ones that do get the most creative and inspiring session. At the meeting you can tell me about yourself and what you want and then I can tell you how we can translate those ideas into photos.
Choosing a location
This is your first step and is super important, because choosing a location will really change the vibe and the feel and the look of your entire session.
You definitely want to pick a place that fits your personality and most importantly your style. If you’re a down-to-earth country type of person then it makes much more sense to take your photos at a park or in the woods. But, if you like dressing up and being a bit more glamorous we should choose a place in the city to show off.
It’s also important to choose a spot that matches your outfit. If you already have in mind what you wanted to wear and it involves light sneakers, shorts and a flowy shirt then we should definitely choose the beach! However, if you wanted to wear your football jersey or your letterman’s jacket maybe we should choose your football stadium.
How to Decide
I like to ask a series of questions to determine where’s the best spot to take your photos.
- Do you already have a spot in mind, either because it’s personal to you (your school, home, hangout spot) or because of its look and style.
- If not, I’ll suggest some options.
- Do you have any outfits that’d go well in particular locations?
- Woods, beach or urban?
- Woods: Park or Rustic
- Urban: Downtown or Neighborhood? Grungy and artistic or pretty and clean
A dress or suit is better in an urban location.
Casual attire works better in nature.
Here are some of my longstanding go-to locations that I love
Woods: Seven Bridges and Grant Park, Menomonee Park, Doctors Park and Lapham Peak
Beach: Seven Bridges, Atwater Park
City: Third Ward Neighborhood, Fiserv Forum, Lakefront Brewery area and the Fifth Ward
Choosing your outfits
Once you’ve decided on the location or as you’re deciding, you’ll also want to pick outfits. For the original session, bring one outfit, and for the remix session you can bring 2-3 outfits. Even if you only choose one location but want to show off your style in multiple outfits, I recommend booking the remix session.
The first thing you’ll want to remember is to pick something you feel comfortable wearing or can be confident in. Confidence is most important. If that means going with one of your go to outfits you wear on the regular definitely do that. If that means buying something new and you’re excited to show it off, do that!
If you buy a new outfit, I’d wear it once or twice and run through some poses just so you won’t be surprised at the fit. You don’t want to suddenly be at your session and you’re tugging the bottom of the dress down or pulling the fabric in and out and up and down, because you feel self conscience.
If you have multiple outfits, I’d wear a dressy outfit, a casual outfit and a third wildcard outfit that shows off your interests or personality. (Maybe a 70s thrift store ensemble or a sports uniform or jersey.)
Themes and props: yay or nay?
I would say on average I have seniors bring props, not including outfit items, 20% of the time. This could include a musical instrument, a car or sports equipment. I’ve also had others bring items that represent their hobbies, from mixing music to video games to reading books and to pets.
The nice thing about bringing something is that many times it can be an easy addition to the photo session. We can take a couple pictures of you with your saxophone or football for 10 minutes and then move on without it.
If you think of anything else or have any other questions, please reach out!