I love to come up with ideas for shoots that tell a story.  And concept, themed or styled shoots do just that.  Usually they have a central theme and allow the photographer to play out that theme through the location, props, models and most definitely the photos.  I think these type of photo shoots are the perfect way to practice new lighting, new poses or new equipment.  It allows you to explore your art without the pressure of a paying client!

So how can you plan your own themed, styled or concept shoot?  Well below I share how I planned and executed one of the concepts for The Seniorologie Summer Concept Series!  I hope that you will be inspired to go out and shoot and definitely share your photos with us!!  There is nothing more helpful in building your photography business than practice!!  And the more you shoot, the more you will grow!

Planning a Concept Shoot

I usually start this process with a notebook, pen and a brain full of ideas.  I think of movies or magazines.  I look at pinterest.  I use my imagination.  And I write, brainstorm, explore my imagination until I come up with a theme or concept.

Things like Summer inspire me right now.  I love the idea of sunshine and a beach.  Pops of color or popsicles.  A convertible and a road trip.  These are all great ideas for a shoot.  And that is when the actual theme is born.

The theme I am exploring for this post is Summer Road Trip.  Nothing says summer more to me than driving to a new location.  Exploring a new world and having fun all along the way.  Think of the hilarious National Lampoon’s Vacation or car rides to the beach as a kid.  There are so many things you can do with this!

And to relate this to high school seniors, think about their Senior Trip!  When I was a senior, we went on a cruise.  But the drive from South Carolina to Florida provided as much fun as the cruise itself.  All the fun stops along the way, made the trip unforgettable.

Illustrating the Theme

After a theme is decided, I need a visual.  After all, I am a photographer and I think and dream in pictures!  So, thanks to the wonderful world of Pinterest, I am able to illustrate my concept.

I explore fashion magazines online, music videos, movies, other blogs to find just the right photos to help illustrate my concept.

This Pinterest board is used to show the models what I am going for.  It is a great educational tool to help them understand the story behind the shoot.  On my shoot last night, I kept hearing over and over from the girls that having a story behind the photos really helped them get into the shoot.  It helped them understand the poses, the location and the props.  They were then able to come up with cool shots that they suggested to me and we all worked together!  It was awesome!

Finding the Models

After I have my theme in mind and inspiration board on pinterest, I start thinking of seniors to use as models.  This is a good time to reward one of your reps for being the top referrer by giving them another fun photo session!  For this shoot, I used one of my former reps.  It just so happened that as I was planning this shoot, I got an email from her expressing her interest in modeling for me for any upcoming shoots!  What perfect timing!  I then asked her to suggest a friend that she would like to go on this “road trip” with and the models were set!

For a themed or styled shoot, you don’t have to use a senior.  You can use a junior or a sophomore or even a college freshman.  They all are in the right age range to model for a “senior” shoot.  I did a fun New Year’s Eve After Party themed shoot and the models were all sophomores.  They all had such a fun time and I know that when they get to be seniors, I will have great applicants for senior spokes models!

Location Scouting

After you have the models and the theme, it is now time to really get to planning.  Location scouting is one of the major things that will be essential in pulling off your theme or concept.  For this road trip shoot, I waited until the day before to figure out a location!  Yikes!  That was cutting it close and I definitely don’t suggest that!

I knew in my head that I wanted something out in the middle of nowhere.  I wanted a road that didn’t have a lot of traffic and some fun places that the girls could stop at for photos along the way.  So I set out to find that spot.

I first ventured in and around my normal spots, near my home and place that I knew.  None of these places really gave me the look I was going for.  Too many houses or traffic or buildings were around and it really needed to be in the middle of nowhere.

So I drove in a different direction.  Further down a certain highway than I had ever been.  I ended up going pretty far, toward a lake that I had never visited.  And while the drive was long, it ended up being perfect.  I came across a park/campground at Lake Keowee.  It was about an hour from my house.  But sometimes you have to do a little driving for the perfect location! 🙂

The park had a long, winding road that lead down to a gravel parking lot right beside the lake.  And to my surprise, there was also a beach!  How perfect!  I took a few photos of the location, checked the direction of the sun and decided it was IT!!  I explored the location by walking around, visualizing where and what shots I could do.  I made sure to type in the location to my notes on my iphone, as to not forget where I was!

Another great thing I did while on this drive, was stop and take photos along the way.  These photos can be used to remind me of future locations but also as detail shots to include in this photo shoot.  I took photos of road signs, trees, the road itself…all to make sure I had shots of details to tell the story of the road trip.  By doing it the day I was location scouting, I could save time and not have to make the models wait on me to get these on the day of the actual shoot.  And trust me, in this heat, I needed to get the models in and out of this shoot! 🙂

Finding the Right Props

This is always fun for me because it means I can go shopping! 🙂  In my brainstorming on the theme or concept, I wrote down things that would help visualize the story.  Things like a map, hat, sunglasses, old convertible car, luggage, etc.  The hardest of these to find was the car.

There is a house in my neighborhood that I pass by daily, that always has a red convertible mustang parked in the driveway.  I started asking other people in the neighborhood if they knew the people that owned that mustang.  No one did.  So I stopped by the house but could never catch them home.  I tried calling them, no answer.  I felt a little like a stalker.  The shoot was coming up and I was running out of time.  I needed the CAR!!

So I went to Google and starting searching vintage car rentals.  The first one that came up was a guy that had the perfect, super cute, VW Bug Convertible!  I called him and asked if he would let me use the car in a photo shoot and he said Yes!!  Yay!  Car found!

The rest of the props were easy.  I have a friend that has a lot of vintage luggage that I borrowed and she even let me borrow a hat.  The map I bought, the sunglasses I asked the models to bring, and I bought bottled coke to have in the shoot as well.

When finding props, be sure to ask around first.  This will always save you money!  You never know what your friends have and usually they are more than happy to let you borrow it for a photo shoot.  If they don’t have what you are looking for, put a call out on Facebook.  And when all else fails, shop! 🙂  Antique stores, discount stores, flea markets, etc will all be great places to find the perfect props.

Wardrobe

I have done lots of different things for different shoots when it comes to wardrobe.  Again, this can sometimes be a chance for me to shop and I love that!  I have personally shopped and styled shoots.  I look for clothes at places like Urban Outfitters, Forever 21, Mod Cloth, Shop Ruche, Anthropologie and many more.  It really depends on the shoot and what I am looking for.  I have also shopped in my own closet before, pulling things that will work for a specific look I am going for.  Another option is to hire a stylist.  Let them know the look you are going for, the sizes of clothes and shoes you need and they pull the outfits for you.  This can sometimes be pricey but if you find someone that is rather new, you could trade photos for the job and it works out for both of you.

In this Road Trip Shoot, I actually used the models real clothes.  I went back to my Pinterest Inspiration board and sent the girls that along with an inspiration board I created in Polyvore of clothes.  I knew I wanted it to be casual and fun and so I suggested jean shorts or a casual dress.  The girls then brought a bunch of options to the makeup studio, where I went through them to decide what would look best.  Typically, I pick two or three outfits.  But for this shoot, we stuck with one because of the heat!  Again, I did not want to keep the girls out there too long and changing clothes would have just taken that much longer.

Don’t forget the accessories when planning the wardrobe.  Having a bag full of things to take on every shoot is a great idea.  I have scarves, hats and jewelry specifically for senior photo shoots.  These things allow me to change a look in the middle of the photo shoot without ever having the models change clothes.  Adding a scarf or a hat give the model a different look and creates a prop that she can pose with to give totally different photos.

Shot List

This is something I do for every shoot!  I am such a list maker and this helps me tremendously.  It helps me shoot with purpose and not shoot to be shooting.  I know if I get through the shots on my list then I have the photos I knew I wanted.  Then I can totally play with other things that come to me during the shoot or even things that the models suggest or want to try.  Sometimes just writing down the list will help me remember in my mind what I want to get and I don’t actually ever refer to the list during the shoot, but I know its there and I check it before I wrap the shoot!

The Photo Shoot

Now that everything has been planned, models found, props borrowed, wardrobe decided, I am ready to have fun!  To create the images in my mind with my camera!  This is the time where I try new poses and tried and true poses.  I get the girls to laugh and walk and show movement.  I like to get a variety of things…some posed and some action type shots.  I feel this is the best way to tell the story.

For the Road Trip Shoot, we took photos with the car, in the car, getting out of the car and much more.  We took photos on the road, in the gravel parking lot and on the beach!  I kept telling the girls to imagine they were really on a road trip, two besties having a blast!  And it worked great!  They really had a blast!  They splashed in the water, sat on the beach and laughed at inside jokes!  And in the end they both said, “It really feels like we have been on a fun road trip!”  And that is the best thing I could have heard!

I hope this inspires you to go out and shoot for you!  Shoot a dream, an idea, a story!  Whatever you imagine, you can shoot!!