☆ First and foremost, BE YOURSELF!! I want your session to tell the story of who you are, and the best way to come as yourself and let your personality shine through! It will make the experience more enjoyable and the pictures more natural.
☆ Dress with comfortability, your style, the location, lighting, and coordination in mind! While you should absolutely dress in what you are most physically and mentally comfortable in, there is a loose guide you can follow to ensure the pictures come out best. I generally suggest wearing neutral colors or earth tones. Neons and super bright whites can become easily overexposed in photos, especially if you're in direct sunlight. If you are getting your photos done with other people, decide on a color scheme and coordinate!! Avoid clashing patterns are vasty opposing colors. Lastly, try not to match the colors of your location. For example, if you want pictures in front of a red brick wall, wearing brick red will cause you to blend in with the backdrop, so try to avoid that.
☆ If you haven't booked yet, keep in mind lighting when selecting time of day. For outdoor shoots, it's generally best to take photos within an hour of sunrise or sunset for the best outcome. During cloudy days or under shade, this is not as big of a thing to worry about. Photos during midday are possible, but lighting can be quite harsh! If your location is indoors, this does not apply.
☆ I know that many people are uncomfortable in front of the camera and maybe aren't sure what to do, I get it! My sessions are always incredibly laid back and I actually encourage not posing! Be yourself and do whatever feels natural, even if this means rarely ever looking at the camera. I will come with poses, reference photos, and prompts to keep it moving smoothly, but please do not worry if you get nervous having photos taken!
☆ Ultimately, you spent the money and booked the time, so it's 100% your time to use how you would like! This means that if you book enough time, you can incorporate as many location and outfit changes as you would like. But, keep in mind that if your session is 5-6pm, if you are 10 minutes late or take 10 minutes to change your outfit, for example, that is 10 minutes out of your session time. I am generally really flexible and don't mind running over the time we booked, but please don't rely on this! Show up on time and book your time slot with the plans you have in mind so you can maximize your time getting photos actually done. The more prepared you come, the more photos you will receive!!
☆ If you have a deadline for photos, book sooner rather than later! For example, if your senior photo need to be submitted by January 1st, please do no wait until December 27th to get your pictures done. I typically get full galleries back to my clients within 2 weeks, but I am a full time student with another job so I can't always have such a quick turn around. I would suggest having your session booked a minimum of 2-3 weeks before any deadlines, but I book out 3 months so if you want to get them done extra early, that's great too!