senior portraits, quickie in newsweek magazine

Andy · September 20, 2005

here's the linky

we've gone from this

to this...

image courtesy of jim fuglestad gallery

and it seems that there are some seniors, and parents, that are willing to go to great lengths for that senior shot...

is this a good thing? as photographers, yeah sure - the take on a senior portrait session has gone from so-so to some-serious-money... but...

:ear discuss.

dragon300zx · September 20, 2005

andy wrote:

yeah - the take on a senior portrait session has gone from so-so to some-serious-money

Your only a senior once right

. Some people do go over board. But as a not so long ago senior (only a few years in the way back machine), I am glad I didn't get a mug shot. Besides do we want to go back to the days when senior portraits were even more boring for us than they are today?

luke_church · September 20, 2005

Please educate me in your culture...
What is a 'senior', I presume it has something to do with education? Round here it would be used to refer to a more elderly person...

Sorry for the discussion distraction,

Cheers,

Luke

Andy · September 20, 2005

luke_church wrote:

What is a 'senior', I presume it has something to do with education? Round here it would be used to refer to a more elderly person...

here in the u.s., luke, it's grade 12 - the last year of "high school" and right before entering university or college...

luke_church · September 20, 2005

andy wrote:

here in the u.s., luke, it's grade 12 - the last year of "high school" and right before entering university or college...

Cool. Thanks.

DavidTO · September 20, 2005

That first guy looks mighty familiar...

Mike Lane · September 20, 2005

The question on everyone's mind:

Is this you Andy? And can I use this on the customize.smugmug.com site?

colourbox · September 20, 2005

andy wrote:

we've gone from this...to this...

I am embarrassed to say I caught myself misinterpreting the comparison of the two pictures. For a moment there, I let myself think the before/after photos were of the same person, as if they showed the before/after of a particularly impressive sex change operation.

(Also, her black tank top disappears into the black background, which I found to be odd.)

erich6 · September 20, 2005

I have to say that there's something about having a classic photograph as a "senior" picture. You just don't get the same feeling when you look back at someone's photograph and it is a candid as opposed to a classic portrait. There is a timelessness to those classic shots.

I'm not saying that creative portraits shouldn't be in the mix. On the contrary, I'd say the more pictures the better! But, I think there's a place for a classic portrait and it should be in the official class yearbook.

Erich

dragon300zx · September 20, 2005

P.S. Andy dont you think you coulda removed the dust before or even after you scanned that image of yourself? Man that old photograph paper sure did yellow over the long (:): ) years.

Andy · September 20, 2005

dragon300zx wrote:

P.S. Andy dont you think you coulda removed the dust before or even after you scanned that image of yourself? Man that old photograph paper sure did yellow over the long (:): ) years.

yeah i'll get right on that

GREAPER · September 20, 2005

I think the change is great.

I think the classic portrait for the school yearbook is fine. It's even impportant for the year book as a compilation to have a "standard" sameness to the pictures.

Beyond that, I think the young people and their families deserve what the senior portraits can be.

If done well they can catch that moment in a persons life where they make the transition from child to adult. This time in a young persons life is so important. The portraits should try to catch who they are at this time. Their personality should come through in the photos.

When I see the standard yearbook picture, I always think "thats not who this kid is". It doesn't show who they have been, or who they are becomming.

JimFuglestad · September 20, 2005

Hey Andy, this is GOOD! For me, anyway. :-) Actually, I don't shoot seniors very often because I won't shoot them in the wool jacket and turtleneck.

But in all seriousness, this is market driven. Seniors no longer want these boring pictures we had when we were kids. And that's good. They want to remember their age and years fondly not with some geeky picture.

Regarding the cost... well, it's more expensive. Many want on location, several changes... how can you do that for a $25 settings and 8x10? It just can't be done. Truly, it's hard enough to make a living as a photographer the way it is.

My nephew actually drove down to Minneapolis from Fargo on Sunday because he wanted me to take his sr. pics and do something different than everyone else up there... here are a couple from that shoot, and the whole thing here...
www.fuglestadphotography.com/portfolio/ty

And my personal favorite of the night....

And my all-time favorite sr. photo... oh, and she's wearing a woolly sweater!

JimFuglestad · September 20, 2005

Oh, and dude.... had they *heard* of color correction in 1944???

Mike Lane · September 20, 2005

colourbox wrote:

I am embarrassed to say I caught myself misinterpreting the comparison of the two pictures. For a moment there, I let myself think the before/after photos were of the same person, as if they showed the before/after of a particularly impressive sex change operation.

(Also, her black tank top disappears into the black background, which I found to be odd.)

In other words, Andy got HOT!!!

JimFuglestad · September 20, 2005

is this a good thing? as photographers, yeah sure - the take on a senior portrait session has gone from so-so to some-serious-money... but...

And to further comment... I suspect that this style of senior photography is not much more, if any, more profitable than the traditional style. The traditional style a photographer can have the seniors file in and take what? 40 of them in an hour??? Just have them sit and click. There was no time behind the computer, just drop off the film at the lab and all done.

Oh, and also, dealing with the parents of seniors is BY FAR my least desirable client "type". I would like it so much better if the parents would just let the kids deal with it themselves. Funny... these kids are about to go out on their own, but their mom's almost completely control the shoot. I hardly ever deal with the students, even after the shoot is done.

Jim

Mike Lane · September 20, 2005

JimFuglestad wrote:

And my personal favorite of the night....

I think this picture rules. It has a street photography look to it. Who says your senior picture has to look like your 5th grade picture (except with a mustache

)?

To me, this picture reflects the trends of the day. How many shows do you see on TV that have interesting tilty panning, camera on the shoulder kind of look to them? Why not embrace them as art? I think it'd be cool if my senior pics could have hung in an art gallery (they couldn't, but that's because I'm a geek ... seriously).

Then again, maybe what's old is new again:D

Ann McRae · September 21, 2005

The old standard year book photo is a part of culture, though. My yearbooks have gotten far, far more views by my children giggling at 'what nerds' we all were. There is something about them that is enduring. The beautiful portraits that I've seen displayed as senior portraits do not usually say anything about either high school or college, so to me they are beautiful portraits, but they do not display a message about time of life. And to the best of my knowledge, the 'senior portrait' market does not exist here yet.

I want to say, though, that I really miss seeing and being able to immerse myself in Jim's photography. It has always grabbed me and I wonder how I can influence you, Jim, to post here a little more often?!

ann

Andy · September 21, 2005

JimFuglestad wrote:

Oh, and dude.... had they *heard* of color correction in 1944???

1984

thanks for popping in, jim!

so i think it's a good thing - it shows where the culture is going - less "do it this way, cookie-cutter" and more "let me, be me..." i like the change, good for the kids and good for we photograpers, too

PeterGar · September 21, 2005

I would have loved to be able to grow a mustache like that when I was a senior!

Andy · September 21, 2005

PeterGar wrote:

I would have loved to be able to grow a mustache like that when I was a senior!

what can i say

JimFuglestad · September 21, 2005

andy wrote:

1984

Geez Andy... how many grades did you flunk anyway?

84 huh? College? Really, are you only two years old then me?

Andy · September 21, 2005

JimFuglestad wrote:

Geez Andy... how many grades did you flunk anyway?

84 huh? College? Really, are you only two years old then me?

oops 1980 senior in h.s.

i messed up!!!!!!!!!!!

dragon300zx · September 21, 2005

andy wrote:

oops 1980 senior in h.s.

i messed up!!!!!!!!!!!

Wow 1980. Thats the year I was born

.

Andy · September 21, 2005

dragon300zx wrote:

Wow 1980. Thats the year I was born .

i have shoes, and something in the freezer, i'm sure, older than you!

JimFuglestad · September 21, 2005

andy wrote:

oops 1980 senior in h.s.

i messed up!!!!!!!!!!!

Andy, that's called "senility".

JimFuglestad · September 21, 2005

Ann McRae wrote:

I want to say, though, that I really miss seeing and being able to immerse myself in Jim's photography. It has always grabbed me and I wonder how I can influence you, Jim, to post here a little more often?!

ann

Hi Ann - and thanks! Just eased back my forum time a little bit, and I've found another "home" that helps me out a bit more on the professional level. But then I miss just the sharing part of it... so I should around more often.

Thanks again, maybe I'll round up a few of my recent favorites and make a post. :-)

Hope all is well!

Jim

Andy · September 21, 2005

JimFuglestad wrote:

Andy, that's called "senility".

:yikes senior moments already? where's my ginkgo biloba? oh i forgot.....

wholenewlight · September 23, 2005

No glint of bling on the earlobe??

gus · September 23, 2005

andy wrote:

:yikes senior moments already? where's my ginkgo biloba? oh i forgot.....

Dont listen to 'em mate...at least you can hide your own easter eggs.

senior portraits, quickie in newsweek magazine

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