Senior Pictures

[dugarner]

I've been asked to do a senior photo shoot for a friend at church. It's for one young man, 16 years old. I am no good at posed shots so I thought we'd go outside and just have him do something casual.

I have a location (a train bridge going over the river), but the problem is it's due east/west.

He would be facing due west if I put his back to the river. I am pretty sure I need to have the sun at my back. I originally thought we needed to do them in the morning, but that would put the sun at his back, and I think I'd have lens flare.

Am I correct to think I need the sun at my back? Or will it matter too much early in the morning or late in the afternoon?

If anyone has tips, I'd love to hear them! There are 2 other spots right near these train tracks that will also work, and I don't think the time of day will affect either other spot.

Thanks!

[KerryMac]

Sarah, can you do a mix of shots? Some with the sun behind you, some with lens flare, some with the sun angled?
When I do any kind of outdoor shoot, I move the subject and myself around a lot! Sometimes, when you have one idea about what will look best, ie the bridge and water in the background, it turns out that something else looks even better once you get going!
On the other hand, maybe it will be cloudy and you can shoot in any direction you want!
And there's always the option of using a bit of fill flash if the sun is behind him.

[dugarner]

Originally Posted by KerryMac

Sarah, can you do a mix of shots? Some with the sun behind you, some with lens flare, some with the sun angled?
When I do any kind of outdoor shoot, I move the subject and myself around a lot! Sometimes, when you have one idea about what will look best, ie the bridge and water in the background, it turns out that something else looks even better once you get going!
On the other hand, maybe it will be cloudy and you can shoot in any direction you want!
And there's always the option of using a bit of fill flash if the sun is behind him.

Kerry, I can move him to different places, but we're kind of limited with the spot the mom wants---the train bridge crosses the river and the river runs north-south. For at least just the bridge shots, I can't really move him around much. I guess I can just take pictures from all angles and hope something works---but my biggest concern is, should I schedule this for the morning, when the light would be at his back, or should I schedule it for the afternoon, when the light would be at my back? I'm thinking I'll go with afternoon, and we can still move around. We can always cross the bridge and do some with the sun at his back. Now I know why photographers tell the parents to pick the spot, and pick the time. I'm not taking money for these, but I'd still like to do something they're happy with.

[anke]

Oh you ladies are so good, I would have never even thought about the placement I love getting tips like these (one never knows, right?) Sarah, I would imagine that no matter what you do, they will look gorgeous, I have seen your stuff Kerry had some great thoughts though!

[KerryMac]

Sorry! I forgot to add in my answer above that I think you should schedule for the afternoon when the sun is at your back.
Honestly, though, I don't know any photographers who turn location and timing over to the client. I think that's something that needs to stay in our hands with some input from the customer. If they have a special location request then I'll check it out to make sure it will work. If not, I'll suggest an alternative.
Good luck and let us know how it goes!

[dugarner]

Originally Posted by KerryMac

Honestly, though, I don't know any photographers who turn location and timing over to the client. I think that's something that needs to stay in our hands with some input from the customer. If they have a special location request then I'll check it out to make sure it will work. If not, I'll suggest an alternative.
Good luck and let us know how it goes!

Kerry, thanks for all your input, it will be very helpful---I had made a passing suggestion about the train, and the mother was really excited about it. I've been over there and did a whole boatload of Project 365 pictures last year, it's a great spot, but I'm glad I thought about the light! There are several other locations right there that would work great---grungy metal corrugated buildings, and a brick wall that had cement over it that is now chipped and tattered. I'll suggest we walk that way, too, and get some where the light will be more at an angle (both of those locations would have him facing south).

I will be sure to be prepared---I sure hope it's sunny, if it's cloudy, I think they won't work well. I may tell the mom to be prepared to press pause if it's cloudy. At least I don't have to worry about the wind messing up his hair!

I don't ever take $$ for photography, because I can't stand the pressure of having to produce a product I know they're happy with. And if they don't really like it, would they be afraid to tell me they didn't? One time, I was an "accidental" wedding photographer and it wound up being the story of the year for me, but I could never, ever do one-off events like that for money.

Since all my "customers" (read: "Can you take our Christmas picture, we'll buy you dinner!") are dear friends, I don't want to introduce that angle into the friendships. I'm happy doing pictures for them, we all barter for stuff, they are always so grateful, and I get better at it!

Thanks again, if they work, I'll post some on my Flickr page.

[KerryMac]

That sounds like a good plan, Sarah!
I love grungy metal stuff for backgrounds, too
And you're right, the paying jobs can be very stressful...it's good that you are happy and getting dinners as payment AND having fun!

[geekgirl415]

Good Luck Sarah- it sounds like a challenge and that's scary/fun. I'm sure they'll like what you do! I like the grungy corrugated metal background idea- great place!

[carollee]

Good luck with it all, I hope it goes well.

[dugarner]

Thank you for your input---I'm prepared now! We'll head over there Friday afternoon.

[dugarner]

Okay, we had our little shoot. The light was good, though I think I should have waited another hour or so. What I discovered was that I thought we were due west, but the sun was actually west northwest, which posed significant problems in order to get him facing the right direction without the sun in his eyes. As a result, I could not get good catchlights (they were straight up at 12:00 instead of 10 or 2), but I think these turned out well. I did minor retouching (teeth, a little EV + on a few in the shade). I did learn a lot just from the 20-minute session---enough that I know I don't want to do it under pressure! He is a great kid, a little goober-y, and that came through in a lot of the shots.

[DonnaNJ]

Oh great shots... you did a fantastic job

[Debbyo]

Sarah -they are wonderful. You did a great shot that would be worth more than dinner!

[roxygirl78]

great job! what a wonderful accomplishment!

[katrinak]

Beautiful light and color Sarah! I think you really captured him in the third photo, that is by far my favorite!

[Lwoods87]

Sarah, you did a wonderful job. I think the first photo is fabulous!

[elseepe]

These are great, Sarah. He looks so young, hard to believe he is a senior, but then I have a hard time believing my daughter is too.

Now you've got me thinking about locations for my own daughter's senior snapshots. I love the kind-of grungy building in the background.

[dugarner]

Originally Posted by elseepe

These are great, Sarah. He looks so young, hard to believe he is a senior, but then I have a hard time believing my daughter is too.

Now you've got me thinking about locations for my own daughter's senior snapshots. I love the kind-of grungy building in the background.

Thank you all for your comments! Katrina, I did really try to take all the different factors into consideration. It's a lot to think about! I asked his mom not to put him in solid white, and her color choice was perfect.

There are so many places around town that work so well! Sometimes I pack the kids up and go driving around to try to find different places.

He is actually just 16---he and his other classmate in this graduating class started high school when they were 11. (They are both exceptionally bright and well-disciplined.) They defended their senior thesis two years ago, but our school's policy is that they can't graduate before they are 16. So they've actually stayed two extra years doing post-secondary classes (extra rhetoric, philosophy/omnibus, and math and science). He'll finish this May and is ready to be done! I don't blame him.

[geekgirl415]

Those are great Sarah!!! He's a cutie - i like the 2nd photo best - fun expression!