What to wear: Senior Guys

So... what should your son wear to his senior session? If you are asking me, I'd say let him wear what he likes! We are going to take much better pictures if he likes the clothes he is wearing. I know you might be tempted to make him "dress up" or wear that suit you bought for the prom but if that's not his style - I'd let it go. Besides you are going to want to look back at his photos and remember who he was at that point in his life. So, let him where the hoodie - or better yet, offer to buy him one you both love!

I love a pop of color, especially for summer photos!

If your son is involved in sports, incorporate their letterman's jacket, jersey and equipment. 

It may be warm but go ahead and add some layered looks for variety, plus their my favorite!

Jeans and some bright white sneakers are always a PLUS!

You certainly can't go wrong with a nice button-down or a Henley!

Of course, if it suits your guy and you pick the right location a suit can be nice...

Whatever you decide, just make sure it's clean, pressed and fits well!

www.3wishesphotography.com

High School Senior Photographer in Castle Rock, CO

Senior photography was my first love. I started tinkering with photography when my nieces and nephews with babies, but it wasn't until they graduated that I really fun my happy place. The shoot I did with my niece will always be one of my very favorites. There's just something really fun about working with one person, who is usually really excited to be there and who is willing to do just about anything! Twenty years later, seniors are still my very favorite! This shoot with Lauren was amazing! From the tall grasses to the beautiful colors in the sky and perfect wardrobe choices!

To book your own shoot visit the website www.3wishesphotography.com or email me at cija@3wishesphotography.com

The Exposure Triangle for Beginners - Shooting in Manual Mode

Most DSL cameras come standard with 4 shooting modes: Auto or Program, Aperture Priority, Shutter Priority or Manual Mode. The hard truth is that only in manual mode are you, as the photographer, making all the decisions when it comes to the exposure. 

Auto/Program: In this setting your camera is taking in information provided by its sensors and meter and making decisions on what "exposure triangle" makes the most sense given the limited information it has. Program mode allows the photographer to pop on the flash for some fill flash if desired.

Aperture Priority: Allows the photographer to choose their desired aperture (how much depth of field they need), then the camera takes it from there and determines the other two settings that make up the camera's sensors and meter thinks the correct exposure should be. 

Shutter Priority: Allows the photographer to choose their desired shutter speed, and lets the camera figure out what the aperture and ISO settings should be for the best exposure. 

Manual Mode: In this mode, the photographer chooses the aperture, shutter speed and ISO for each exposure. 

UNDERSTANDING THE EXPOSURE TRIANGLE

So what is Aperture or f stops?

• The aperture or f stop is the measurement of how wide your lens opens when it take a photo. 
• This opening is the hole through which the light passes into your camera.
• A wide hole lets lots of chaotic light in, resulting in a shallow depth of field or bokeh (f1.4). 
• A narrow hole lets less orderly light in, resulting in a wide depth of field (f22).

So what is shutter speed?

• Shutter speed is the measurement of how long the aperture stays open. 
• Fast shutter speeds freeze motion  (1/500 and higher)
• Slow shutter speeds show motion and allows the light to flow into the camera for longer periods of time. (1/60 and lower)

So what is ISO? International Organization Standard (now wasn't that helpful?!?)

• Think of ISO in terms of how sensitive the "film" is to capturing and the light/photo that is coming in through the lens.
• Small ISO number require more time to absorb the light/photo but are nice and tidy (low noise/grain). Meaning they work well when there is a good light source.
• Higher ISO numbers require less time to absorb the light but are a bit messy (more noise/grain). Meaning they are good when you are in a low light situation.

So what should you do first? Stop and ask yourself a couple of questions. 

• What is the main think I am trying to capture?
• Is my subject moving? Do I want to freeze or capture that motion? If the answer is yes, choose your shutter speed, then your aperture, take a meter reading and then use your ISO settings to complete the exposure your meter is showing you. Take the shot, if it's not right adjust your ISO for more or less light (higher number if you need more light, lower number if you need less light).
• Do I have multiple lines of people I am trying to get in focus, do I want to wide or narrow depth of field to show off the subject? If yes, then start by choosing your aperture, then your shutter speed and finish off with your ISO. 
  
  If you live and Colorado and would like to learn more in a one-on-one class, email me at cija@3wishesphotography.com

High School Senior Photographer in Castle Rock, CO

Yesterday I met up with Charlotte to take her senior pictures. She chose Festival Park and downtown Castle Rock for a more urban look. While many of the trees have not yet bloomed, we did stumble upon a handful of cherry blossoms! Charlotte is a 2024 senior and graduates next month. She excited to move from host to server at one of our downtown restaurants over the summer and plans to attend cosmetology classes soon.  Congratulations, Charlotte!! Wish you all the best in your future endeavors!

www.3wishesphotography.com

cija@3wishesphotography.com

Tips for Maximizing your Senior Poses

One of the tricky things about a senior session can be all the outfits. Some girls will bring 5-6 outfits, which can leave you feeling like,  "How in the world am I going think of enough different poses or find enough different spots to take photos in six different outfits?"

Here's some tips that have helped me. 

#1 Find out how many outfits you are dealing with before the shoot starts. 

#2 Then take the number of images you want in your finished gallery and divide that by the number of outfits. Some of you are like wait, what are you taking about? When I started out in this industry I took hundreds of images at each session (and if you haven't nailed focus and exposure it's not a bad idea to continue doing that until your on-shoot skills have improved), but now I take only what I need to offer finished galleries of 40-45 images. 

For example: If I have a client that has 5 outfits, 40 divided by 5 is 8. That means I need to do 8 poses in each of the 5 outfits. 

Now here's what I actually take. For a 40 image finished gallery,  I want to take around 160 images.  Here's how I do the math: I take 1 smiling and 1 serious  look of each pose. That is a total of 80 images. 40 smiling 40 serious. But then I take 1 extra of each just to make sure the image is sharp and their eyes are open and their smile is perfect. That make 160 images total.  When I cull the images, I choose 20 of the best smiles and 20 of the best serious and wallah!

#3 Maximize your locations and your poses by making simple changes. 

- I maximized this spot/pose by simply having her change the position of her legs and move one arm forward. Switching from 85mm to 50mm gave the same location a completely different look. 

- In these two images I stuck with the 85mm and just changed my proximity to the client, while having her change her arm position. 

- Same thing here, I moved and asked her to slip her hand under her chin. 

- In these four images I used both the 50mm and 85mm, while simply directing him to move his golf club. 

- Again, one image was shot with an 85mm lens the other with a 50mm lens, while having the client shift from side facing to front facing. 

- I used the same lens for all 5 of these images, while having her make small changes in her orientation to the lens and well as the placement of her feet and hands. 

- Maximize locations by having the client sit, stand and kneel.

- Or just move closer or further away!

Happy Shooting!

www.3wishesphotography.com

Castle Rock, Colorado