5 tips for choosing outfits for your senior portraits

Senior year is probably one of the most important years of your life so far. So many changes will happen after this year. It is a time to both reflect on all that you have accomplished and celebrate the new chapter in your life that is about to begin.

So of course you want to capture this special time in a senior photo session. The first thing after choosing your photographer is deciding what to wear. So where do you start? What looks good in photos? How do you decide?

The first thing I tell seniors to do when they come to me for the outfit consultation is to look at their closet and the kinds of things they like to wear. You want to be comfortable during your session. If you are wearing something you normally wouldn’t look at twice then it will show all over your face. When you are not comfortable with how you look it can make you look awkward and stiff. So embrace your style as much as possible when choosing your clothes for your portrait session. If you like to wear casual clothes and never would think to wear a dress then stick to jeans and a cute top. Just because you are sticking to what you normally wear doesn’t mean you can’t treat yourself to a new outfit or dress up your casual look a little more from what you wear everyday. The best test is to ask yourself when you are at the store is if you would wear it again. If the answer is “yes” then it is definitely an outfit to consider.

The second thing to consider when choosing outfits for your senior session is color. There is tons of information on the internet about what to wear based on your skin tone, hair and eye color. Here is a quick little video I found on Youtube that talks about skin tone, how to figure out what your skin tone is and what looks best. Most of time though I find that you will be drawn to colors that look best on you. If you are not big into colorful clothing then that is ok too. Black, grey and other neutral colors are great to wear for most people. A pop of color whether it is a pastel or a bright color can really add interest to your outfit. If you choose a black dress for example you can add a little pop to your photos by adding bright red shoes. I tell seniors to try to choose a few different color outfits so all your outfits don’t look the same.

Number three on the tip list for choosing clothing for your photos is thinking about fit. Try on your outfits ahead of time. Make sure they fit properly. If clothing is baggy it will hide your body shape and often times make you look like a box. So be sure to stay away from baggy, oversized clothing. I do always encourage clothes that have some movement however. Long dresses and skirts are always fun to photograph.

The fourth thing to think about when choosing your outfits is don’t forget to express yourself. If you play a sport, are into trendy fashion, or have any extra curricular activities then think about incorporating them into your session. I have had plenty of seniors wear their sports uniform, dance costumes, pageant gowns, etc. I love it when seniors incorporate these things into their session. A lot of times it will be the last year they play a certain sport or participate in an activity and that makes it all the more reason to use them in their session.

The last thing I tell my seniors is to look at your outfit choices and make sure there is variety. If your session includes four outfits for example then have one casual, one in between dressy and casual, one dressy and one either trendy or relating to something you participated in your senior year. If you are someone that only wears tee shirts and jeans then you can still dress up the jeans or find a casual dress or skirt. The more looks you have the more variety you will have to pick from when choosing your final photos.

I hope this post gave some useful tips when planning your senior portrait session. If you would like to book a session with me I would love to take your senior portraits! You can email me at kim@kimgarciaphotography.com or click here and fill out my contact form. I plan on writing more posts in the future. If you have any ideas or topics you would like me to cover please contact me or leave a comment below.