High School Senior Portraits

 

"The Yearbook is SO BORING, all the portraits look the same!"

It's almost spooky how often I have heard that sentence this year in my conversations with Seniors. This is the first I remember hearing anyone say this, and yet this year at least one of every three people I have talked to has said exactly that, or something very close to that without any prompting from me. It's amazing. I'm not sure why this is become such a theme this year. Maybe people are just really, really over the same old boring stuff. Or maybe because I have always really pushed the edge of creativity with my Senior portraits, the Seniors that I end up talking to are the ones that really, really want something new and exciting.

I turned away most of the Seniors that tried to book me last year, for this one reason:

Time! I really hated it, but I felt that I had to. I simply didn't have time to create their portraits the way I thought they should be created, and I refuse to cheat someone on the most important portrait session of their life because I was too busy to do it right. You may have seen our ads on TV for our Baby Plan, or our Enchanted Childhood sessions. Our studio has grown so fast because of those two session types, and as a result I was just too busy to do everything I wanted to do. Don't get me wrong, I love photographing babies and kids and wouldn't give that up for anything. But all the other stuff that comes along with running a rapidly growing business was eating up all the time I had left. This year we are even busier, but I started my studio seven years ago just so I could do what I love, and I love photographing Seniors. I love your energy, your attitudes (YES, honestly, I really do! Most of the Seniors I work with have an attitude that is fresh and a little rebellious and mostly about being unique and making your own rules and I love it!) So I changed my stategy. I hired more employees (including three high school students - see, I told you,) and am learning to delegate the stuff I don;'t want to do. I completely overhauled our workflow and I invested in exciting new state of the art equipment. We are completely remodeling the studio, not just ot make it nicer, but to make it more efficient. I'm busier than ever, but I'm making my own rules too and the number one rule is I'm going to do what I love or I'm going to quit this business and do something else. And that's just not going to happen, so I am MAKING TIME for a limited number of Senior sessions this year. Yes, I still have to limit how many I do so I don't burn out and get stale myself, but it will be more than last year, I promise!

If you agree that the typical Senior Portraits are getting a bit (or a lot) old and stale, read this:

You are a unique person. Out of over six billion people on this planet, nobody is just like you. If you ask nearly any Senior photographer, they will tell you that they capture that uniqueness in their portraits. If that's true then why are so many people finding the yearbook so boring? It's not a lack of talent, I have a huge respect for the wealth of professional photographic talent that we have in this community. It's simply a matter of taking enough time.

In order to use my photography skills to tell the story of the unique person that you are, I have to get to know you, at least as much as is possible in a short time. No photographer can get to know you in a few minutes on the phone or at the beginning of a session. That's why the first thing we do is schedule a time to sit down face to face and start to get to know each other. I need to know you so I can create something that truly fits who you are. You need to know me so you can decide if I am the right photographer for you. It's important that you can truly express yourself during the session and nobody "clicks" with everyone. If you don't feel that I really "get" who you are by the end of our first chat, if you don't have faith that I will create something you will always be proud of and excited to show off, then I want you to tell me that you don't feel that this is right for you. There will be no hard feelings I promise, in fact I will be grateful. I don't want to waste your time or mine if it's not right for both of us. I promise I will be honest with you as well, if I don't believe that you will be happy with what I can give you, I will tell you and suggest that you find someone better suited to you.

I will also spend as much time as you need helping you decide on clothing, hair and makeup. We will talk about different locations, styles. We will look at a variety of portraits that I have created. By this time you will trust me enough to be honest and tell me what you honestly like and dislike. You won't like everythingI have done, there's too much variety. Or you might like a pose but not a background, etc. I need to know these things so I can concentrate on the things you do like. We will brainstorm ideas, I always try to do at least one totally unique portrait in each session. Together we will create a PLAN for your senior portraits!

After you decide I am right for you, we will take as much time as needed to make our plan a reality. Sometimes that means more than one session, driving or hiking to a certain location, creating a unique background, even going out at 10:30 at night to get a certain special effect (we did just that earlier this year.)

Our commitment to you doesn't end with the session. We have more unique products than any other studio I know of and we will help you decide what is exactly right for you. We will spend what ever time is needed to make sure each portrait you choose is perfect and our Guarantee is unmatched in the area.

I'm not about doing creative, wild and unique portraits to just satisfy my own deep need to be creative, wild and unique. I'm about doing creative, wild and unique portraits that tell the unique story of who you are. Together we can make the next yearbook a lot less boring! 

Even if you are not yet sure what you want to do for your senior portraits, if you are even a little bit intrigued with the idea of what we can create for you, call us today to schedule your time to sit down and chat. There is absolutely no obligation, and no pressure. No matter what you decide, I promise you will leave with more ideas for your senior portraits and a better idea how to get something truly unique and special than you have now. Call us at 406-585-7338 or email me at rdh@wildblue.net right now before the sessions are all gone.

PS I have 10 special autograph books worth $30 each that I will give to the first ten people that come in a chat with me about their session. Each page has a place for one of your friends to put their wallet and write a special note to you, and it's yours to keep whether you choose me as your photographer or not! Remember there is absolutely no risk or obligation to come in a chat. Call us at 585-7338 to see if I have any autograph books left.