Photographing High School Seniors:  Now that school is in full swing, many of us are being bombarded with high school senior sessions. Today we are going to talk about helping high school senior girls choose their outfits, although most of these rules apply to the guys as well.

With these particular clients, I would highly suggest trying to set up a pre-consultation, whether it be via email, phone, or in person. It is amazing the difference a pre-consultation can make. Not only can you find out more about your client and put them at ease about their upcoming session but you can also collaborate together (along with their parents, of course) about the specific look they are going for in their session. With that information on hand you can go stylize outfits and plan out locations and/or props.

What to Wear

I always suggest to my high school seniors that they bring at least three outfits:

1. Something classic. By that I mean an outfit that will stand the test of time AND make their parents happy. Find out the decor of your client’s home – what colors they use to decorate – and build the outfit and the location off of that. This will ultimately be THE photo(s) that mom and dad want to have blown up and displayed prominently in their home.
   
2. Something that is them. Something that they might wear on a day-to-day basis or at least when they go out with friends. Think layers and accessories!
   
3. Something crazy or uniquely them. Whether it be a sports jersey, a cheerleading uniform, a college t-shirt or concert t-shirt, a prom dress, or an outfit that they’ve always wanted to wear but have never had the place (or possibly the nerves) to wear it. Let their imagination (and yours) run wild. The possibilities are endless.
   

Fashion Inspiration

By no means are you or your high school senior limited to these three outfits (in fact, I encourage my clients to bring everything but the kitchen sink). These three outfits are however, a great place to start in not only stylizing your high school senior session, but also making both mom and senior happy with their experience and their photos.

Outfits from: shopruche.com, wetseal.com, forever21.com

Inspire Your Clients

You are given permission to use these beautiful stylized boards to inspire your own clients! We just ask that you link back to both of us (Melinda Brookshire Photography and I Heart Faces) if you use them on your website/blog or you can send your clients right here to this post on I Heart Faces. Enjoy!

Melinda Brookshire is a born-and-bred Georgia girl now residing with her husband, two boys, and her dog in a small town in Western Oklahoma running her own photography business.   Become a fan on Facebook and/or follow her on Twitter.

Tagged as: high school senior girls, high school senior portraits, Seniors, stylized fashion boards, what to wear