How to Prepare for a Senior Portrait Session: What to Do, What to Bring, and What to Expect
NOTE: This is the 3rd post in our senior portrait series:
1st: High School Senior Portrait Guide: Rochester MN Class of 2026 (How to Choose a Senior Photographer)
2nd: Senior Portrait Locations and Clothing: How Olive Juice Studios Makes Every Session Uniquely Yours
3rd: How to Prepare for a Senior Portrait Session: What to do, What to Bring, and What to Expect
You’ve done the hard work. A photographer is chosen. The photo shoot is scheduled. Locations are scouted. Outfits are chosen. Now comes the part most families underestimate: getting ready for the day itself.
A senior portrait session at Olive Juice Studios runs two to three hours, takes place outdoors in Minnesota summer weather, involves multiple outfit changes, and produces the best results when everyone shows up prepared, fed, and unhurried. This post tells you exactly how to make that happen and what to expect when we are behind the camera.
PART ONE: BEFORE THE SESSION
Should My Senior Get Professional Hair and Makeup Done?
The goal is a polished version of your teen, not someone else. Whether they do their own hair and makeup, hire a professional, or wear minimal product, the standard is the same: camera-ready, which means a step above a typical school day but nothing that feels foreign or uncomfortable.
1-2 weeks before portrait session:
Get a fresh haircut and color (if applicable). This allows time for the change to settle in and look natural.
Remove or replace nail polish.
Decide to wear hair up, down, or both. If both, discuss it with Scott right away. This will affect his timing for outfits and locations (we start with hair down, end with hair up).
Day of portrait session:
Style hair the same way you would for a genuinely important day — not experimental, not brand new.
Shave and pluck unwanted hairs on face, nose, and neck.
What Skin and Beauty Treatments Should My Senior Avoid?
Don’t worry about acne. It’s the least of our worries (that’s what Photoshop was made for). These are the skin and beauty treatments that make photos harder to edit, and we beg you to avoid:
Cosmetic treatments that cause skin to peel, swell, stiffen, or look red/inflamed. Fillers like Botox make it difficult for your face to form natural expressions. You think you’re smiling, but you’re not.
Sunburns and overly tanned skin. Natural tans that are too dark make your skin look bruised. Fake tans that are sprayed or applied with hands make your skin look orange and streaky.
How Should We Prep Outfits?
Outfits that look great on a hanger can look sloppy on camera if they’re wrinkled, linty, or have loose threads catching the light. Do this to everything (new and used) 1-2 days before your senior’s portrait session:
Wash and dry
Steam or iron
Lint roller
Cut tags and stray threads
Hang on hangers
What Else Should We Pack and Bring to the Senior Portrait Session?
You will be outside for two to three hours, moving between locations, changing outfits, and sweating. Preparation is the difference between a great experience and a miserable one. Gather these items the night before:
The Laundry Basket
Shoes for each outfit
Accessories: jewelry, hats, scarves, hair ties, neck or bow ties, headbands, socks, belts
Props: sports equipment, collections, instruments, anything that tells their story
Makeup bag, hair products, and a hand mirror for touch-ups between outfit changes
Incidentals: bug spray, hand wipes, dry towel, etc.
The Cooler
Pack a cooler for yourself and your senior. A small snack and a cold drink between outfit changes and locations make a real difference in how everyone looks and feels. Be sure to avoid anything that stains mouths or outfits (ex: red or purple sports drinks, orange cheese dust). Good options include:
Grapes or apple slices — hydrating and easy to eat quickly
Granola bars or pretzels — something with substance
Cold water
What Should My Senior Do the Morning of Their Portrait Session?
Do not schedule any work for the day of your senior’s photo shoot. The best photos almost always happen toward the end of a photo session, once the subject has fully relaxed, stopped thinking about the camera, and started genuinely having fun. A senior or parent who has to work in a few hours will spend the last hour of the session watching the clock instead of laughing at Kelly’s jokes. The morning of the session, relax:
Sleep in.
Eat a full breakfast, lunch, and/or dinner to avoid getting “Hangry” later.
Pack the car with outfits, laundry basket(s) and cooler.
Do hair and makeup.
Put on the outfit for the first location.
Who Should Come to the Senior Portrait Session?
Olive Juice Studios encourages parents to participate in the photo shoot with their senior. Dress in something nice and do your hair/makeup because we will look for natural moments to photograph you with your senior. You should also be prepared to help with outfit changes, hold sun shades or props, keep the energy up, and enjoy the moment. Leave small children, boyfriends, and girlfriends at home.
What About Pets?
Pets are welcome but only if they are being photographed, and only if that’s been discussed with us before the session day. We typically photograph pets at your home (very beginning or very end of the session). If a different location makes more sense, pets get photographed first so they can be handed off to a parent or sibling who drives them home. If your pet is joining us, be sure to pack a leash, cleanup bags, snacks, and water for them too.
PART TWO: AT THE SESSION
What Actually Happens During a Senior Portrait Session at Olive Juice Studios?
The Shoot
We meet you and your senior at the first location. Your senior arrives dressed and ready to go. Scott is behind the camera. He tells your senior what to do with his/her hands, feet, and body. Kelly is beside him, doing four things simultaneously: fixing hair and clothing, demonstrating poses, holding a shade, and talking. Incessantly. That last part is intentional. Her job is to keep your senior so occupied with responding that he/she stops thinking about the camera. Kelly asks questions, makes up stories, and tells your senior to do something completely ridiculous. Then, when your senior is done doing the ridiculous thing, laughs, and smiles, Scott takes the picture.
Managing Light
Scott is always reading the light. If sunlight is too harsh, he’ll ask you or Kelly to hold a shade to block/diffuse the light. If the sky is getting dark or your senior’s face isn’t illuminated enough, he’ll ask for the shade to be used as a reflector instead — bouncing light back into his/her face.
Managing the Background
We are always scanning the background for distractions — a piece of trash, a branch in the wrong spot, a parked car that shouldn’t be there. We eliminate what we can: pick up litter, pull weeds, reposition your senior, and adjust the frame. The rest we work around.
Breaks
Nobody powers through two hours of outdoor summer shooting without breaks. When your senior looks like they’re melting or just running out of steam, we call a break. This often means getting into the car — heated or air-conditioned, depending on the season — for refreshments and a few minutes of recovery. This is also when outfit changes happen. While your senior is changing in the back of your car, we are often laser-focused on preparing the next spot: metering lights, taking test shots, and cleaning up the background.
Will I Get to See Photos During the Session?
Sometimes. When we are extra excited about an image, we may show you the back of the camera. Most of the time, though, it’s a secret. We want you to see finished portraits — color-corrected, retouched, cropped exactly right — not raw previews that don’t represent the final product. The art presentation (order session) is more exciting when you are genuinely surprised to see the photos “unveiled” for the first time. Trust the process. If you love the work on our website, you are going to love your senior’s photos even more.
PART THREE: AFTER THE SESSION
How Long Does It Take to Get Senior Portrait Photos Back?
Here’s our process and timeline:
Step 1: Image Curation
Kelly looks at every image from the portrait session and selects the best ones. The magazine-worthy ones that capture confidence, humor, natural movement, a variety of expressions, strong framing, and color. The ones she would want to see if she were you.
Scott color-corrects and retouches Kelly’s chosen images. Tan lines disappear. Acne clears. Colors deepen. Kelly then uses the finished images to mock up ideas for wall art and albums.
Step 2: The Order Session — 2 to 3 Weeks After Your Shoot
The order session happens 2 to 3 weeks after the portrait session and takes about an hour. Kelly texts when everything is ready and schedules a time to meet at the studio, at your home, or via Zoom.
The objective of the order session is to accomplish 4 things: marvel at your senior’s beautiful images, pick a yearbook photo, select wall art, and choose gifts for important people in your life. During the order session, Kelly walks you through your senior’s portraits, pointing out differences, explaining options, and noting special requests. Then she shows you ideas for displaying and sharing your favorites. You watch as she moves images (virtually) on the actual walls of your home, sizing them up and down in real time. You make decisions based on your style and how you want to remember this moment.
Graduation cards come later. Kelly will send an email explaining the process for ordering graduation announcements and invitations a few months before graduation. That’s when you’ll need your mailing list and party information (if applicable) ready.
Step 3: Delivery — 4 to 6 Weeks After You Order
Product orders are typically ready 4 to 6 weeks after you approve and pay for your artwork. We carefully inspect and wrap every item before delivering it to your home or office. Gifts are packaged separately in black boxes with tissue paper, ribbons, and name tags trimmed in gold foil.
Step 4: Installation
Art installation is complimentary with all print and canvas orders. Scott comes to your home, measures, and hangs until your walls look exactly like the layouts you chose during the order session.
Who Should Be at the Order Session, and How Should We Prepare?
We do not post anything online after the order session. At a minimum, you and your senior must be at the order session. If there is someone else who wants to give input on what gets ordered (ex: another parent or grandparent), make sure he/she is at the order session too. Come prepared with a shopping list for yourself, grandparents, aunts and uncles, godparents, and close friends. Include names and desired print sizes (sometimes people have specific frames they want to use or specific photos they want to match).
Ready to Book?
The consultation is free, personal, and the right place to start. Call Scott to get on our calendar before summer fills up.