Tips for Senior Portraits
(printable version)

• Arrive on time! If you’re late, it cuts down on camera time!

CLOTHING
• Avoid stripes & plaids! Solids photograph much better! Bring a variety of color and avoid clothing with words (except for school logo). Vary the style, you don’t want all your pictures looking the same. Bring dressy, medium, and casual – it’s best to please Mom first, then we can get to your style!
• Our sessions allow you unlimited dressing changes, as time allows. Bring more than what you think we can do, it really depends on how fast you can change.
• We do both up close shots and full-length. Bring matching shoes!
• As a rule, light colors do best on light backgrounds, dark colors on dark backgrounds. Bring the style you prefer, or bring both just in case.
• Black & White glamour shots are best with black clothing. The contrast between the skin and the black is what makes them look so dramatic. Bring black – mild to wild! There’s no limit to the extreme!
• Girls – keep in mind that if you bring in light or white pants, your underwear WILL be seen through, so keep the flowered or stripes at home! Also, a natural colored bra is best – we don’t need to be editing brightly contrasting straps.
• Be careful with baggy clothes, they may make you look larger than you are. Make sure your clothes flatter you. A little sexy is ok, but make sure you have some that Mom and relatives will like, too. We photograph formals to swimsuits. As long as it is rated PG, the sky is the limit.

HAIR
• Avoid changing your hairstyle or cutting your hair right before the session. Artificially bleached hair is often not best, and years down the road you will be wondering, “What was I thinking??”
• Keep it natural. The more you work on your hair, the less camera time you will have.

NAILS
• Nails DO show, so make sure they look nice. If they are chipping off or some funky color, they will show. Many of your casual shots are done barefoot, so same applies to toes. Light or natural color works best.

FACE
• Girls, wear a LITTLE more than your normal makeup – kinda what you would wear in the evening. Make sure your mascara is clean with no clumps.
• Guys, please make sure you are clean shaven. Stubble retouching takes time and never looks as good as a close shave.
• We retouch blemishes at no extra charge, so don’t fret about a minor breakout!

JEWELRY
• Keep it simple to keep the attention on YOU. We don’t want attention drawn to bright and shiny jewelry.

GLASSES
• Let’s face it – glasses glare. If possible, remove the lenses before you get here. Some optometrists will loan you an empty pair of frames similar to your. Check with them.

SUNBURN / TANNING
• AVOID SUNBURN! Sunburn and peeling skin do not photograph well! Tan is OK, but burning is bad. Don’t overdo it – skin that looks dark and leathery doesn’t look too attractive.
• Tan lines also don’t look good in photos – we suggest you vary your swimsuit or use a tanning bed to minimize any marks.

PROPS
• Bring them!!
• Bring props that tell us who you are. Popular choices are: Sports equipment (soccer balls, basketball, baseballs & bats, hockey stick, hurdle, golf clubs), uniforms, instruments (tuba to rock guitar), school jackets, dance outfits, you name it!!
• Cars or motorcycles – best if taken at the park, so we suggest the at least the 2 hour session for this one.

PETS
• Pets are good, just make sure you bring someone with you that can control them while we are busy taking the rest of your pictures. You may want to bring a pet carrier. Treats are good to keep a dog’s attention.

FRIENDS OR PARENTS
• A friend or parent is good as long as they are not a distraction. You can have a few shots taken with a boyfriend or girlfriend, best friend or sibling at no extra cost if you would like.