A Letter to Seniors as They Prepare for Their Photo Session

Dear Senior,

Before we talk about locations, outfits, or what time the sun is going to set...

I want you to know something.

This is your photo session.

Not your parents'.

Not your friends'.

Not whatever happens to be trending on Instagram this month.

Yours.

If you've already got ideas, bring them. I want to hear them.

If you don't have a clue where to start, that's perfectly okay too. I'll ask questions until we start discovering what feels like you.

Some seniors walk into our first conversation with a whole Pinterest board of ideas. Others shrug and say, "I don't know...I just don't want them to be awkward."

Both are completely normal.

The goal isn't to make you fit some idea of what a senior portrait should look like.

The goal is to create images that feel honest.

Let's Build Something That Doesn't Look Like Everyone Else's

One of my favorite parts of this process happens long before I ever pick up a camera.

We sit down over coffee or wherever we can have a real conversation. We talk about who you are, what you've loved (or hated) about high school, what you're looking forward to next, the things that make you laugh, the places that feel like home, and the adventures that make your eyes light up.

Sometimes I ask one question that changes everything.

Are you looking for photos that celebrate everything you've accomplished...or photos that say, "Here I come, adulthood. Watch what I'm going to do."

Most seniors smile.

Then they choose the second one.

That answer changes everything about the session.

If It Takes More Work...

...I'm probably interested.

Some of my favorite locations don't even have names.

I've driven forty miles and carried camera equipment up steep hills because the view was worth it.

I've met seniors before sunrise on winter mornings when the temperature never climbed above 20 degrees.

I've hiked miles to reach cliffs before the last light disappeared.

I've climbed onto rooftops overlooking town.

I've photographed in bookstores and coffee shops, after asking permission, while customers were coming and going.

I've wandered through abandoned buildings, hip-high fields, downtown streets, rivers, mountain trails, and places most people drive right past.

I've even ridden in the back of a moving truck to photograph riders on horseback— and if your story calls for something equally memorable, I'm listening.

Not because adventure is the point.

Because sometimes the right place tells your story better than any backdrop ever could.

What If You're Not Comfortable in Front of a Camera?

Almost nobody is.

Seriously.

You don't need to know how to pose.

You don't need to practice facial expressions in the mirror.

You don't need to become someone you're not.

I'll help you with the details, but I'm never interested in turning you into someone else's idea of confidence.

Some people are loud, adventurous, and impossible to miss.

Others are thoughtful, quiet, observant, and steady.

Neither needs fixing.

Both deserve to be photographed honestly.

I'll guide you, but I won't ask you to pretend.

And Yes...Your Mom Is Going to Love Them Too.

Parents usually have a few pictures they've been dreaming about for years.

I get it.

I always promise parents we'll create the classic portraits they'll treasure.

Then I quietly promise you something too.

We'll create the unexpected ones.

The photographs that make your friends say, "That is so you."

The ones that feel like an adventure instead of an obligation.

The ones you'll still like years from now because they captured who you actually were—not who someone else thought you should be.

One of My Favorite Stories

Last year I met a senior who had already decided senior portraits were going to be boring.

He was bright, curious, energetic, and completely unconvinced this would be worth his time.

So we sat down over coffee.

For an hour we talked about possibilities.

His interests.

His ideas.

The places we could go.

The kind of photographs we could create together.

Here's the important part.

I don't remember telling him "no" even once.

When we finished, he was genuinely excited.

Later his mom called me.

She said she couldn't believe how excited he was about his senior pictures.

Honestly?

That's one of my favorite compliments I've ever received.

Because that's exactly what I hope happens.

Here's What I Hope You Remember

Senior portraits aren't really about senior portraits.

They're about capturing this remarkable moment between who you've been and who you're becoming.

So bring your ideas.

Bring your curiosity.

Bring the places you've always wanted to explore.

If you've got a vision that's a little different, tell me.

If I can do it, I'll do everything I can to make it happen.

Because years from now, I don't want you to look back and think, "Those are nice pictures."

I want you to look back and think,

"That was me."

— Susan Beth
Elements of Light Photography