Why you should take professional senior pictures (even if you already have 292,499 selfies)

Why you should take professional senior pictures

If you’re wondering why you should take professional senior pictures, I’ve got some thoughts for you.  

Now recognize that this advice comes from a professional photographer.  I obviously have a vested interest in people paying for professional senior pictures.    But I really do believe that senior pictures are an important milestone worth investing in.

Here’s why…

This year is bigger and more important than selfies.

Yes, your camera roll is full of photos of you.  But this year, this moment and your accomplishments are bigger than a pouty face selfie with crazy filters.  It just is.

Your family wants great senior pictures

Selfies are fine for sharing with friends and posting to Snapchat.  But your parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, guardians, and more want to see and have tangible photos of you.  They WANT photos to hang on their walls, fill an album, and show off to their friends at bingo. 

They’d love it no matter what because it’s you.  But don’t they deserve a little bit more than a cheesy picture of you pretending to hold up Devils Tower or some goofy photo where you’re posed like a rap star they’ve never heard of throwing non-gang signs?  They want an honest-to-goodness portrait of you that shows off your personality, smile and inner and outer beauty.

Someday, you’ll understand why.  But for now, trust me when I say parents, relatives, and all those old school folks in your life want actual, honest-to-goodness photos of you.

Maybe having senior pictures taken isn’t important to you.  But if it’s important to your parents or the other people you love, it’s probably worth making the effort to take senior pictures for them.

You get all kinds of digitals to share

All of my senior portrait collections, or packages, include the digitals for you to keep.  You can download them and share a bunch at once, or trickle them out over a few weeks of #seniorsunday.  Or set them to music in a super creative IG reel.  

The choice is yours.  But you’ll have LOTS of really beautiful images to share!

You need a more professional headshot

There will be times in your life from senior year through college that require you to submit a portrait.  You want it to be a good one!  Things like:  

• The yearbook
• Scholarship applications
• Awards
• Service organization or club recognition
• Newspaper articles
• Graduation programs
• Graduation announcements
• LinkdIn bio (yes, one day you might want one of those)
• Newspaper articles detailing your accomplishments
• Social media feeds you’re proud to show future employers

Which would you rather send off for these opportunities and see on a big screen?  A less-than-stellar DIY effort or a professional photo shot and edited to make you look your best?

I always take a few images with these things in mind, so that when you need a great head-and-shoulders photo, you have one at the ready.  

See yourself through someone else’s eyes

We all have a tendency to take photos in the same way from the same angle and focal length.  We hide the parts we don’t want to be seen or are self-conscious about.  So we only see ourselves through one lens, so to speak.

But having someone else take your senior pictures allows you the really cool opportunity of seeing yourself through someone else’s eyes.  

A great photographer comes into the session free of your baggage or insecurities.  We see you as you are and work to make you look and feel beautiful in your images.  

We’ll also push you out of your comfort zone occasionally, having you stand or look a certain way.  It might not be something you’d ever do yourself, but often those end up being your favorite images!

Together, we create an environment that is safe and a place where you can move beyond stereotypes and show the real you.  We’ll be silly and serious.  I’ll ask you to smile, then smolder, to show me confidence, and be vulnerable.  All without judgment or critique.

Professional photographers deliver professional service

You probably wouldn’t ask a friend who’s got a nice pair of scissors to give you an important haircut.  Nor would you go to the bargain basement tattoo parlor that just started up a few weeks ago to give you a piercing.  You’d find a professional with a good reputation and references.

So why in the world would you settle for anything less for your senior pictures that are going still be around when you’re the same age as your principal?

Professional photographers will provide a higher level of service.  We study, practice, and even train in all different aspects of photography.  I know how to pose you to flatter your body, how to use the light, and can offer creative suggestions about how to use your props and location.

Professional portraits stand the test of time

The final product will also be more professional.  Your images will be cohesive and look consistent from photo to photo and even session to session.

I shoot with the idea of creating big, beautiful wall art, so your files will have enough resolution and detail to print everything from graduation announcements to a large canvas or metal print.  

I can help choose paper types, design albums, and advise you on choosing which photos to print and how to mount them. 

And I go to great lengths to protect your images. I use a camera that shoots dual memory cards for redundancy.  I also have a well-established backup system, ensuring your images are backed up on multiple drives in multiple places, including one that’s off-site.  

That means I’ll still have your images in sixty days, six months and even in six years.  Those aren’t the kinds of services or protections hobbyists or budget photographers offer, and it’s much more secure than just having images live on your phone.

Senior photos record this really cool moment in your life

Senior year is a big deal.  It’s a point in time that you always remember with clarity and in detail.  Senior pictures help document this time in your life and record those memories forever. 

Yes, it sounds cheesy.  But that doesn’t mean it’s not true!

This year, and you in this moment, are worth documenting.  I’ll work to tell your story, show what’s important to you right now, and do it beautifully.

Senior pictures are fun!

As weird and awkward as you might feel at first, by the end of your session, my goal is to make sure you’re having fun!  

If you like to get dressed up and take photos, senior pictures are an excuse to do that to the max!  And even if photos aren’t really your thing, it’s still fun.  You get to bring out all the facets of your personality in a senior photo session and move beyond everyone’s expectations.

Even the most recalcitrant senior boys tell me “Hey, that was actually kind of cool!” when we are done.

Why should you take professional senior pictures?  Because it’s a one-of-a-kind experience for a watershed moment in your life.  You’ll love the experience and your family will love having physical printed memories of you!

Ready to take professional senior pictures?

If you’re ready to book your senior photo session, contact me today!  I’d love to visit with you about your ideas for pictures, your plans for the future, and more about you!