One of the biggest questions seniors and parents have before a photography session is: What should you wear for senior pictures?
The best answer is surprisingly simple: wear clothing that looks good on you and represents who you really are.
Senior pictures aren’t about dressing like someone else for a day. They’re about creating photographs that still feel like you years from now. Bringing several different outfits can also give your senior pictures much more variety, especially when combining indoor and outdoor photography.
At Michael Photography in Clio, Michigan, we encourage seniors to think about clothing before their session, but you don’t need to make it complicated. A little planning can make a noticeable difference.
How Many Outfits Should You Bring?
Having more than one outfit gives you the opportunity to create several different looks during your senior session.
Consider bringing a combination such as:
- A favorite everyday or casual outfit
- Something dressier
- An outfit connected to a sport, activity or interest
- A jacket, sweater, hoodie or other layered option
You don’t necessarily need to purchase new clothing specifically for senior pictures. Some of the best choices may already be hanging in your closet.
The important thing is that the clothing fits properly, makes you comfortable, and looks like something you would actually wear.
Solid Colors or Patterns?
Solid colors are usually a safe choice for senior photography because they keep attention on your face rather than your clothing.
That doesn’t mean patterns should always be avoided. A pattern can work very well when it fits your personality and isn’t so busy that it becomes the first thing you notice in the photograph.
Large logos, extremely busy patterns, and clothing covered with words can sometimes distract from the person being photographed.
When you’re uncertain, bring both options. Having additional clothing available gives us more choices.
Bring Both Casual and Dressier Clothing
Your senior pictures don’t all have to have the same appearance.
A casual outfit such as jeans and a favorite shirt can create a relaxed look. A dress, jacket, button-down shirt or other dressier clothing can produce a completely different style.
That’s one advantage of planning for variety.
Years from now, you may appreciate having both casual photographs that capture your personality and more traditional portraits that parents and grandparents often enjoy displaying.
Think About the Season
Michigan weather should be considered when choosing clothing for outdoor senior pictures.
Summer sessions work well with lighter clothing and provide plenty of opportunities for different outfits. Early fall allows you to introduce sweaters, jackets and layered clothing while temperatures are still comfortable.
Later fall creates opportunities for clothing that works with Michigan’s changing colors.
If your session is during colder weather, don’t choose an outfit simply because it looks good if you’re going to be visibly uncomfortable wearing it outside.
Indoor senior photography gives you considerably more freedom because temperature and weather aren’t factors.
Clothing Should Fit the Location
Think about where your senior pictures will be taken.
An outfit that looks great against a contemporary indoor background may create a very different impression outdoors in a field, park, downtown setting or another location.
That’s not necessarily a problem. In fact, changing clothing to complement different settings is one way to create more variety from a senior session.
If you’re planning both indoor and outdoor senior pictures, bring enough clothing choices that we aren’t forced to make one outfit work everywhere.
Don’t Forget Your Shoes
Shoes are easy to overlook when planning senior pictures.
Even if you think most photographs will be from the waist up, some images may show your entire outfit. Make sure the shoes you bring work with the clothing you’ve selected.
If you’re bringing several outfits, check the shoes for each one before leaving home.
For outdoor sessions, you may also want an extra pair of comfortable shoes forwalking between locations.
Sports, Activities and Hobbies
Senior photography is an opportunity to include the things that have been important during your high school years.
If you play a sport, consider bringing your uniform, jersey or equipment. Musicians may want to bring an instrument. Other seniors may want photographs involving dance, art, hunting, fishing, equestrian activities, motorsports or another hobby.
Your vehicle can even become part of your senior pictures if it’s meaningful to you.
These photographs don’t have to make up the entire session. They can simply become another part of the variety we create.
The goal is to show more than what you looked like during senior year. We also want some of your photographs to reflect what you enjoyed and what made this period of your life yours.
What About Jewelry and Accessories?
Jewelry, watches, hats and other accessories can work well, but think about whether they’re adding something to the photograph or becoming a distraction.
If you normally wear a particular necklace, watch or other piece of jewelry, there’s usually no reason to remove it just because you’re having senior pictures taken.
The same principle applies throughout the session: you should still look like yourself.
Glasses or No Glasses?
If you normally wear glasses, you may want to wear them for your senior pictures.
Glasses can sometimes create reflections, but professional lighting, positioning and camera angles can help manage glare. Your optometrist might loan you a pair of frames without lenses if needed.
If you have both regular glasses and another pair with non-reflective lenses, you can bring both. Don’t feel that you automatically have to remove your glasses if they’re part of your everyday appearance.
Check Your Clothing Before Your Session
A few days before your senior photography appointment, try on everything you’re considering.
Look for wrinkles, stains, missing buttons, pet hair or anything else that might become noticeable in a high-resolution photograph.
Make sure everything still fits the way you expect.
It’s much easier to discover a problem at home several days before your session than when you’re getting ready to be photographed.
Should You Buy New Clothes for Senior Pictures?
You certainly can, but you don’t have to.
A senior photography session isn’t a fashion catalog. Clothing should support the photograph rather than become the entire point of it.
A favorite shirt, jacket, pair of jeans or dress that you’ve worn many times may represent you better than an expensive new outfit purchased only for senior pictures.
If you do buy something new, wear it before the session. Make sure you’re comfortable sitting, standing and moving in it.
Bring More Choices Than You Think You’ll Need
If you’re uncertain between two shirts, bring both.
If you don’t know which jacket works better, bring both.
Having choices available is much better than wishing you’d brought something after the session has started.
We can look at the clothing together and determine what will work with the backgrounds, locations and different types of photographs we’re creating. We don’t have to use every outfit, but it is good to have a variety to select from.
You don’t have to make every decision before arriving.
Senior Pictures Should Look Like You
There are plenty of clothing rules for photography, but senior pictures shouldn’t become a checklist of rules.
Your clothing is only one part of the photograph. Expression, lighting, posing, background, location and personality all contribute to the finished image.
Choose clothing that fits well, bring several different options, include something connected to your interests if you’d like, and don’t be afraid to bring something simply because it’s your favorite.
Years from now, the goal isn’t to look at your senior pictures and remember what photography trends were popular.
The goal is to recognize yourself.
Senior Photography in Clio and Mid-Michigan
Michael Photography is a professional photography studio located in Clio, Michigan, providing senior photography for families throughout Genesee County and surrounding Mid-Michigan communities.
We offer traditional indoor senior portraits, contemporary indoor photography, outdoor sessions, location sessions, and opportunities to incorporate sports, hobbies, vehicles and other personal interests.
If you’re not sure what clothing to bring, that’s something we can discuss before your session. Bring choices, bring your ideas, and we’ll work together to create a variety of senior photographs that represent you.
Call Michael Photography at 810-686-4719 for more information or to schedule your senior photography consultation.