Prom. The dresses, the shoes, the hair, the jewelry. Everything has to be just perfect for your last hurrah of high school. You dance the night away in one last carefree night before graduation. Everyone will soon be off to bigger things, but for this night you are all together to celebrate the accomplishments of your years and years of schooling. You earned this night!
I love taking prom portraits, it's such a fun and exciting time that I'm happy to be a part of every year. The graffiti in downtown Denver is my go-to for prom portraits, I love the contrast between the fancy dresses and the grungy alleys. RiNo was packed full of people for these portraits, but we managed around them for some really fun shots.
I know most people don’t have a professional to take their prom pictures, so here are some tips for creating the best prom pictures:
Location, location, location! Even if you’re at a house, find the best background you have. Up against a brick wall, sitting on the porch railing, inside the window, in front of some tall or wide greenery are all good choices. Even better find a place like this with cool graffiti or find a place with some blossoming trees.
Multiple angles will tell the best story. Have the person with the camera try different angles. Get down low, or shoot from up high, both will create unique shots. Zooming in and out is also important. Take some far away pictures as well as some up close details.
Light is important! Unless you have the proper equipment, do not stand with your back to the sun in a “backlight”. Most automatic phones and cameras don’t know how to expose for this situation, so you’ll end up in shadows and your picture will be grainy. Not how you want to remember prom! Instead find some pretty window light, or open shade (where you see shade on the ground but when you look up you see the sky).
Have fun! Try multiple poses, be silly, get some of just you and your BFF, not just of you and your date. We brought some glitter to have some fun with, creating prom photos that are uniquely theirs.
Edit a little. Don’t use filters on Instagram, instead go into their settings and increase the contrast, highlights, warmth, and structure. Also play with the highlights and shadows sliders to get that perfect look.
Viola! Now go and enjoy your prom night knowing you have the best pictures around!
