The Best Season to Take Senior Portraits in Washington State.

When is the best time to take your senior portraits in Washington State? Well it all depends on what you want out of your photos! When beginning the process for booking your senior portraits, you have a lot of things to consider: which photographer should I hire, where do I want my session, when do I want my session, what outfits do I want, and more. Well if you live in Washington State, I am here to help answer at least one of those for you! My name is Sonia, I am a traveling Senior Portrait Photographer based out of Kitsap County, and I can’t wait to help you plan your perfect session!

The best time of year to take your senior portraits, like I said, truly depends on what you want out of your photos. Take a moment to visualize what you hope your senior session looks like. Is it a sunny day or overcast? Are the trees green, orange, or brown? Are there flowers in bloom? Are you bundled up or wearing a sundress? All of these come into play for the season you take your photos and should be considered greatly.

We are pretty lucky in Washington State and get to experience all four seasons. I will be splitting up the times of year to take your photos by season and will include some general information about each season to help you make an educated choice when booking your senior session. Some photographers, like myself, offer bundled pricing when book two or more sessions if you find yourself torn between seasons!

Winter.

December - March

Winter tends to be the least popular season choice for booking senior sessions, and for good reason. It is usually cold, rainy or snowy, and dull due to the deciduous trees and plants not having any leaves. Some schools also have their senior portrait submission deadline in December, so winter can be too late for submissions. That being said, there are also some perks to having your session in the winter!

Winter is a great time of year for a forest senior session. With deciduous trees being bare, more light is let into the forest so you can have nice, glowy lighting still. There is new growth on the evergreen trees and moss that add beautiful greens to the forest as well.

Sunrises and sunsets tend to be colorful in the winter, as well! Beach sessions in the winter may not be your first thought, but imagine a cute sweater and jeans with a gorgeous sky and water behind you! The sun rises much later in the morning in the winter, making it the perfect time of year for sunrise sessions because meeting at 7am for your session is definitely more ideal than meeting at 5am!

Winter is also the time for beautiful snowy sessions. Washington State has some gorgeous spots for snowy photos and if you can brave the cold, they are so worth it! That being said, make sure to prepare that depending on storms and other weather conditions, your session may have to be rescheduled a few times.

Due to the cold weather winter provides, if you choose to book a winter session, consider booking either a smaller, bonus session or splitting a larger session into two smaller sessions so that you are not outside in the cold for an extended period of time!

Spring.

April - Mid June

Spring is a popular choice for cap and gown sessions, but did you know you can actually take your senior portraits in the spring of your junior year? If you are someone who wants the fresh, pastel color scheme that spring offers in the background of their yearbook photo, consider taking your senior portraits early! This is a great option for seniors who book a package with multiple sessions, as you can take your spring yearbook photo junior year, and book your other session during another season in your senior year, so you can still capture what you looked like as an actual senior. Some seniors choose to book both their senior sessions in the spring — one spring session junior year for their yearbook photo and one spring session senior year for their cap and gown photo. This is such a fun option because then you can see how much you have grown and changed over your senior year!

When booking a spring session, you get to look forward to lush greenery and blooms. The trees and tall grasses are all a vibrant green and floral blooms accent the scenery. You also get to look forward to potentially being rained out and having to reschedule your session a few times as Washington loves to surprise us with rain in the spring! Usually we see a good mixture of rainy and sunny days, and the temperatures become more pleasant towards the middle and end of spring.

If you are hoping for a specific type of plant or bush to be in bloom, research yourself or ask your photographer when that time typically is as some bloom earlier or later than others. Here in Kitsap County, we see cherry blossoms blooming around late March to mid April, give or take depending on the year, and wildflowers and other plants starting to bloom early to mid May.

If you are planning to book a spring cap & gown session and want to use the photos from the session for your grad card, make sure to let your photographer know so they can adequately prepare. You will need to factor in the time it takes your photographer to edit your session and deliver your gallery, the time it takes you to select the perfect photo(s) for your card and create and order the cards, the time it takes to have the cards mailed out, and potential reschedules from weather.

Summer.

Mid June - September

Summer is one of the easiest and prettiest seasons to take your senior portraits in. We have a majority of beautiful days and warm weather so being outside for your session is enjoyable. The trees and plants are green and compliment the tan tall grass. Wildflowers in fields usually hang around until mid August or so and some plants have their blooms in September.

Mountain locations in Washington warm up and are gorgeous mid to late summer. There are some locations in the mountains that are only accessible in the late summer because they get snowed in otherwise, so take advantage of your access to them in the summer!

Summer sessions tend to be a fan favorite because you are overall happier and more carefree in the summers. You’re out of school, hanging out with friends, no longer vitamin D deficient, and usually a bit sun-kissed. Life is good and your relaxed, happy vibe reflects in your photos. The weather is overall nicer, so the chances of having to reschedule are slim and also easier to navigate as you are not fighting your school and extra-curricular activities. You also have a plentiful amount of time to peruse your gallery and select the perfect yearbook photo.

Fall.

Mid September - November

Fall is a classic time of year for senior portraits because of the beautiful foliage we get here in Washington. Everyone loves a senior photo with gorgeous reds, oranges, and yellows in the background. Some trees turn as early as the end of September and last until the end of October, while others have a prime between mid October and mid November. Check with your photographer about the best places in your area for fall colors and what time of year those trees typically turn.

The weather in the fall is not typically as rainy as the spring, but as we get closer to the end of fall, the cold and rainy days become more frequent. Plan way ahead for potential rescheduling of your session because your senior year will be in full swing and you will be busier than you think with college applications, sports events, homecoming, etc. Let your photographer know when your yearbook submission deadline is so you can work together to ensure even with potential reschedules, you will not miss your deadline.

Aside from the fall foliage, fall sessions are a great choice because many summer locations are still beautiful that time of year. Tall grassy fields still have the nice tan grass and the trees surrounding are either green or starting to turn. Beach locations are just as beautiful. There are even some flower fields that have their prime bloom season in the fall! The weather usually isn’t too unbearably cold yet, so the locations you may have worn a sundress at in the summer are just fine with a sweater and jeans.

———————

I hope this information has been helpful! I am more than happy to chat more with you if you would like to discuss what season would be best for your senior session. Remember that there is no wrong choice — this guide is just here to provide insight on the pros and cons of each season we have here in Washington.

Click here for information on what your senior experience with me looks like!

Click here to chat about booking your session!

Sonia Rose Photography