The post 12 Tips for Amazing & Unique Senior Pictures appeared first on Tyson Zahner Photography.

Look below for just a small sampling of a few of our past seniors. To see even more of our work, click here.
[See image gallery at www.tysonzahnerphotography.com]

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Yesterday, I discussed the best time of year for family pictures.  If you missed that, you can revisit it by clicking here.

Another frequent question I get is is “What should we wear”.

So today I want to discuss clothing tips.

Choosing your clothes for your family portraits is a major decision that should be thought over carefully.  The key word in choosing clothes for your family pictures is “coordinate“.  You don’t necessarily have to be “matchy, matchy”, but the colors and style should go well together.  In the same way that you pick a “color palette”  when you paint your walls or redecorate your home, you should select a color palette for your clothing and make sure that not only do the clothes go well together, but that they also go well with the colors of your desired location.

Here are a few guidelines to follow (certainly not hard and fast rules)

• Long pants and long sleeves will usually draw more attention to your faces.  The more skin we see on your body, the more distracted we are from your faces.
• Jeans are timeless.  They can be dressed up or dressed down.  Just try to get the shade of the jeans to match.  You don’t want some members of your group wearing light jeans and others wearing dark jeans.
• Darker colors tend to photograph better and will be more slimming.
• It’s usually a good idea to avoid clothing with large distracting patterns.  Solid colors tend to photograph better.
• Accessories like jackets, scarves, hats, hair bows, etc. can add interest and provide accent colors in the same way that an accent pillow on your sofa would.
• Wear clothes that are flattering on you.  Photoshop can do certain things, but it’s not magic!
• Glasses can cause problems unless you have non-reflective lenses.  Make sure that if you do need to wear glasses they do not tint and shade your eyes when you go outside, and that the light does not create a glare in the glass
• Hair and make-up is also important for the ladies.  We often suggest having your hair and make-up professionally an hour or so before your session.

Having said all of that, the bottom line is that the clothing should reflect the personality of your family.  If you’re a very casual bunch, don’t feel like you need to dress in suits and ties.  Be yourself and come ready to have a great time.

Here are some examples of some families that did a great job coordinating their clothing.  Browse through the images below and also check out our family gallery on our website (click here) for even more examples and ideas.

The post What Should we Wear for our Family Pictures? appeared first on Tyson Zahner Photography.

I get this question all the time.  So I thought I’d help to bring some clarity to the issue today.

Family photographs are the best memoirs for a lifetime!  If there’s anything that’s valued by time besides wine — it’s a family photograph.  A family photograph freezes the most precious moments of our lives and gives us a chance to rediscover them at a later point.

It’s for the same reason we should take utmost care when snapping and persevering the very precious moments in our lives.  Choosing the right time of year, the right location and what clothes to wear can all make a significant impact on how much you cherish your portraits as you fill your walls and albums with these memories over the years.

So to answer your questions … I’ll lay out a few thoughts for your below, and I’ll attach some images so you can look through varies sessions at different times of the year and make a final decision for yourself what you like best.  And then tomorrow I’ll discuss the other popular question . . . “What clothes should we wear?”

But for today, let’s deal with this question …

“When is the best time of year for family pictures?”

Well, I don’t know if it’s necessarily “the best” but the fall is definitely the most popular.  The colors are beautiful, and as the weather starts to cool off, it makes for a much more comfortable session with less heat and humidity.

Spring is probably the next most popular time of year.  It’s also a great time because the flowers are starting to bloom and it’s also not particularly warm.

With that being said, we shoot a lot of family portraits in the summer … mostly due to the convenience of the fact that the kids are out of school and it’s easier to coordinate schedules.  With small children, we recommend either doing a fall or spring session or if you need to do a summer session, do it late in the evening when the sun is starting to go down and it’s not quite as hot and uncomfortable so they don’t get zapped and worn out too quickly.

“What about winter?” you ask.  I would love to do some family portraits in the snow, but it’s hard to coordinate this kind of timing with unpredictable Missouri weather.  If we ever get a big snowfall, and you want to schedule a quick session, feel free to give us a call and see if we’re available.

The post When is the best time of year for family pictures appeared first on Tyson Zahner Photography.

On Dec. 10, we’re providing free portraits to families and individuals in need. Visit Help-Portrait’s website for more information – http://help-portrait.com/

This year people in Cape Girardeau are giving families who have faced tragedy or misfortune something they otherwise might not have — a beautiful professional portrait of their family. We need only $2000 to serve hundreds of children and families 1 day, December 10th.  Please consider a donation of $10, $25, or $50 to CAPE GIRARDEAU’S Help Portrait this year.

You can make a donation directly at  this link – https://help-portrait.donortools.com/my/funds/43926-Help-Portrait-Cape-Girardeau-Missouri

Contact me if you have any questions.

If you can’t see the embedded video above, click on this link – Help-Portrait Video

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I love it when couples think about their scheduling ahead of time and leave us plenty of time on their wedding day to really be creative and set up cool shots, etc.  Kyla and Kent were exactly one of those couples.  They scheduled 90 minutes at sunset away from their guests (while most of their guests left the reception for evening mass) for a really awesome photo shoot.

So no, I wasn’t disgusted with them at all . . . . However, I do think the bride’s son might have been a bit disgusted with them.

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I have a feeling you’ll be seeing Maggie’s name a whole lot more in the coming years.

Maggie, thanks for choosing Zahner Photography for your senior pictures.  It was our honor to shoot them!

The post A Rising Star! appeared first on Tyson Zahner Photography.

School’s back in session, but it’s not too late to get your senior pictures done.  In fact, fall is our busiest time of year.  The heat is subsiding, the days are getting shorter and the light is getting sweeter.

So we’re offering a 35% off Back to School special for any senior that gets their pictures made during the month of September.  That’s right!  Any session shot during the month of September will save 35% off of the session fee.

AND . . . if you call before next Friday, Sept. 2nd, we’ll give you an additional 15% off for a grand total of 50% off your sitting fee.

So don’t WAIT!   Give us a call today and get your senior session on the books for the month of September and save BIG.

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Even through the heat, she was toughing it out, and we had a great session with some really unique images.

Here are a few favorites from Taylor’s session.

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Anyway, we had a great session with Courtney today.  Here are a few favorites from her session.

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