This week is an exciting week in the senior portrait photography world.  There are a few new guides, products and classes coming out this week, and Seniorologie is sharing the scoop with you!

First up, a posing guide from the wonderfully talented Lexi Vornberg of Lexi Vornberg Photography.  Lexi has a beautiful, natural way to pose her seniors and she seems to always find amazing light!  She is introducing a new posing guide today, and in it, she shares all her ideas for naturally posing a senior and getting them to be comfortable in front of the camera!

I had the opportunity to ask Lexi a few questions regarding this guide and her answers are below!  To purchase this guide, visit her blog here.  She is offering an introductory price of $40 for the first week (January 16-23) and after that, the guide will be $50.  But there is a special code for all Seniorologie readers for an extra $5 off!!  Enter the code fiveoff for the discount!

 

Tell us a little about your senior photography business…I started my senior business almost 18 months ago with my goal being to offer unique natural light sessions that not only are styled around my seniors’ personality but that include everything to give them the best experience possible.  I have done a little commercial work on the side and have been lucky enough to shoot for two amazing designers.  Kiki, from The Measure, and Julie, from ZozoBug Baby, who are both awesome!!

What attracted you to the senior market?  Just like everyone else when I started out, I would accept any type of photography session.  I was booking newborns, maternity, family, etc…but was not enjoying them and it almost was painful to go to work.  It’s when I styled a senior session for a friend that I was reminded about my love for photography.  At that point, I knew that if I continued to offer everything, I would burn myself out and end up hating photography.  So I made the choice to only offer senior sessions and have never looked back or missed any other type of session.

What percentage of your business is seniors?  Seniors are 90% of my business.  I do work with local young female models and still do some commercial work, but I am very picky about only accepting models who fit in my criteria, which is girls between the ages of 16-22, and commercial work that I would enjoy shooting.

What is your best tip on how to get seniors to be comfortable in front of the camera?  The biggest thing that I have found that helps a senior be more comfortable with you photographing them is having a pre-session consultation and meeting/talking to them before their session day.  This way they get to know you and learn what to expect when their session comes.  When talking with seniors and helping them styling their session, we both get really excited and pumped up so that during their session they are more than excited to get started.  I still gradually introduce each senior to the camera even if they are naturally bubbly in front of it.

What is your favorite senior pose and why?  My all time favorite images are ones that capture in the moment laughing.  There is just something about the energy you can feel from an image like that, which make you smile as well.  And smiling is the best past time.  I always love capturing little storyboards where the senior sits in the same position each time but changes her face from laughing, to making funny faces to anything you can think of.  They always look awesome placed next to each other.

You have a wonderful posing guide that goes on sale today!  Congratulations!  What prompted you to create this guide?  I started offering mentoring at the end of last year and the number one question photographers were asking me is if I went over posing and how I conducted a session/interacted with my clients.  It came to my attention that this is an area that a lot of photographers are unsure about, especially senior photographers.  The guide goes into detail not only about naturally posing your senior, but how to get them used to being in front of the camera and relax, how to let them have fun, give them an experience that they will want to go back to school to talk about and how to be confident and in control as a photographer the whole time.

Who is this guide for?  This guide is for a senior or portrait photographer who needs guidance or reassurance on how to run their sessions, interact with their clients and give their senior an amazing experience as well as beautiful images.  This isn’t just a guide for learning how to pose your female seniors but for information on how to run your session and get your senior comfortable and confidant in front of the camera.  It also talks about how important a pre-session consultation and a senior questionnaire can be for getting to know your senior and creating a session that is all about her.

What can photographers expect to learn from this guide?  Photographers will learn how I run my sessions confidently and create an environment for my seniors to have fun, relax and shine in front of the lens so that they may take that and apply it to their own business.  It includes 20 natural poses that range from those stunning serious portraits to capturing those in the moments laughs, all with their own little article on the pose that includes tips and tricks.  It also includes articles on my pre-session consultation, senior questionnaire, my gear and what I look for in a location.

What do you think is the hardest thing for photographers in regards to posing seniors?  And how can they overcome that?  Getting a senior to relax and open up in front of the camera.  It’s a mistake photographers make all the time.  You have to remember most seniors have never had their pictures taken professionally before and have no idea what to do during a session, which will make them rely 100% on you.  As a photographer, you need to be confident and in control during your session if you want to capture what you are aiming for and give your senior an experience.  Not only will this lead to a better, more diverse gallery but also a bigger sale.  You also need to remember a pose is only as good as its facial expression and asking a senior to smile or give no facial expression just doesn’t work.

In addition to poses, what other information is included?  In addition to 20 natural poses with their own descriptions and tips, the guide goes into details about my pre-session consultations, senior questionnaires, what I look for in a location and my gear.  The tips and descriptions not only talk about the poses but they include tips on how to run your session, interact with your senior and give her the experience of a lifetime.  They also include why it is important to have a gallery that includes a wide variety of images and how that can lead to a bigger sale.  So many times I see blog posts of a senior session where the seniors’ expression is practically the same in every image as well as the pose.  If you give your senior a gallery filled with images that are practically the same, they will pick their favorite.  If you give your senior a gallery filled with images that are each unique, they won’t be able to choose and will want either all of them as digitals or as an album.

Where can photographers purchase this guide and how much is it?  The guide will be available for purchase on my blog today!  Click here.

What is your favorite thing about senior photography?  It’s getting to see that excitement and a seniors’ face after they see their images for the first time.  It’s moments like when I had a senior jump into my arms and cry as she told me that she felt so beautiful and when a mom teared up after she saw her daughter’s album and it’s because I make young women feel so special and unique.  It’s little things like that that fuel my love for this niche and remind me everyday that this is what I was meant to do.