WHAT TO WEAR FOR YOUR SENIOR PORTRAITS

1. Avoid the Neon colors, especially if you are using a natural or garden setting. If you are surrounded by a lush green forest or the perfect overgrown field and wearing bright red, everything will have a Christmas-time look that is hard to get away from. As for those neon colors, they are hard to blend and match to almost any surrounding. Natural, solid colors will photograph the best (blues, greens, grays, whites, solid red). One exception to this is if we are doing a studio shoot, if it is a sports/performance dress, cultural dress, or if it is your prom dress! 

2. Wear your glasses, but avoid these mistakes. If you wear glasses every day, you should wear them for your senior pictures. With that said, there are two things that are hard to photograph with glasses: glare and transition lenses. The easiest solution? Remove the lenses before your session. You'll still look like you but without the glare in the lens. Transition lenses are extremely difficult to photograph. If you can't remove the lenses and you don't have a pair that doesn't have progressive lenses, you can try keeping them in your pocket until right before the shutter clicks. This will give us the best chance to show off your eyes in your senior portraits before your glasses turn to shades.

3. Stick with clothes that  you already own, and love. We know picking out what to wear for your senior pictures can seem like a fun opportunity for a shopping trip but you run the risk of picking something too trendy or that you won't love as much the second or third time you see it. We all have that outfit that we wore only once or twice and never wore again. You don't want the clothes you are wearing in your senior portraits to distract you later. The perfect outfit, looks like you on your very best day. Now is not the time to be someone other than who you are. 

4. Bring all the gear. If you are going to wear a sports uniform, bring the whole thing, including the equipment. No one believes the football player with the perfect hair and jeans, holding a football in his jersey actually just got done playing football. Bring your full uniform for your senior portraits and whatever racket, bat, la crosse stick, or golf club goes with it...and don't forget the ball! If you like to go camping, bring your camping pack and make sure it is full of gear, there is nothing more obvious than an empty backpack. 

5. Get that underwear right y'all. From bras to boxers, what you are wearing under your clothes is as important as what you're wearing for your senior portraits. Make sure that bra has your boobs in the right place, the straps aren't visible, and the color isn't showing through. If you are wearing white, you should be wearing flesh-colored undergarments. Guys, you are not off the hook here either and while won't get into the mechanics, let's just say make sure that your boxers aren't peeking out from your shorts when you sit down, and nothing is bunching up under your clothes. When you are laying out your outfits, make sure you have pulled the undergarments you'll need too. You'll look and feel more comfortable when you are not fighting with your bra straps. 

6. Mix it up. Make sure there are different styles and levels of dressy in your outfits. In our senior portraits, we have time for multiple outfits. We encourage you to give a diversity of styles in those outfits. A more dressy outfit, a work-casual outfit, and a totally casual outfit is what most people bring. If you have a cultural dress or sport performance dress, bring those as well. If you love dresses and only want to wear dresses for your session, that is great, but make sure there is variety in lengths, textures, and features (like pockets!) to give us diverse posing options. You don't want your portraits for all three outfits to look the same and giving your photographer a variety of styles and looks will help. 

7. Still Overwhelmed? Use the "First Day of School" theory. We suggest thinking about the clothes you like to wear on the first day of school, when you have had months to prepare and are still trying to look extra cute. This is a great place to start for inspiration. If you'd wear it on the first day of school, it probably matches your personality and style and would be a great choice for your senior portraits.