23 Amazing Prom Photography Tips

Prom pictures are some of my favorites to photograph!  Everyone looks their best and is ready to have some fun!  Here are some tips to help you with the basics of prom photography. 

These tips are for taking pictures on the actual day of prom.  My personal preference is to have girls bring their prom dresses to their senior session and those always turn out to be some of the favorites from the high school senior session.

Prom Photography

Where to Take Prom Pictures?

Most of the time for prom, you as the photographer, don’t have much of a say in where the pictures are actually taken.  A beautiful park with pretty light is always a good choice, but some of my favorite places to take prom pictures are unexpected.

A gorgeous prom dress can dramatically change the look of any image.  So here are some ideas of where to take prom pictures:

1- A pretty building

2- A flight of stairs

3- An urban location

4- Park Bench

These are always fun places to take prom pictures. 

5- One thing to keep in mind for prom photography– on the day of prom, it usually means taking the pictures in the middle of the afternoon, before they go eat and to the actual prom. 

6- If possible, scout the location beforehand and find some good shade if you want to avoid the harsh sunlight.

If you can’t avoid harsh sunlight here are 5 Tips for Shooting in Direct Sunlight  that might help you along the way. 

If you can’t seem to find a good location for direct sunlight with good shade – you could always opt for a great Indoor prom pictures.  Location ideas for Indoor pictures would be:

7- Inside a pretty building

8- Inside a fancy hotel 

9- Inside a downtown office building

10- Inside a pretty home

Prom Photography Poses

How do I pose teens for their prom pictures?

11- Make sure and take lots of candids in between posed shots to really capture their personalities and the emotions of the evening. You can prompt some candids by asking them to have a group hug or asking them to fake laugh which will turn into real smiles and laughter.

12- Prom photos should be full of fun and laughter!  Go into it just going with the flow and encourage the seniors to enjoy the experience!

Single Prom Poses

13- To pose girls in images by themselves is not near as hard as most think!  With a single prom pose I like to start with the full length shot first with the hands around their hips.

14- As I work in for closer shots I will have them move their hands closer to their face.

15- Then I end with them either touching their face or laying over their head.

16- Always be aware of how a dress is laying and make sure it isn’t too revealing the way you have them posed.

More HERE –> The Ultimate Girls Senior Photography Posing Guide

Cool Photo Poses for Guys:

17- With guys, they usually want to look tough and cool. So arms crossed standing in a straight line or V-shape is always an easy shot. 

HERE are more poses and ideas to expand your prom photography  –> Senior Guys Posing Guide and Tips 

Group Prom Picture Ideas

18- Prom groups are always so much fun!  A lot of times the girls will have group prom picture ideas that they want and that is great!  Go with the flow and allow them to have some fun! 

19- For prom groups of all girls, I like to think of it as best friend prom picture ideas!   You can always have them in close together holding hands, locking arms, or anything to show the connection between the friends

20- When you have coed groups, a good idea is to have them at different levels, maybe on some stairs or use a park bench. 

21- It also helps to have some of the teens sitting and some of them standing.

22- Couples: High school couples can be a little tricky sometimes. You want to make sure they don’t look like engagement pictures. You can keep them simple and natural. You can add variety by having them sit in a couple images and then stand in a couple. You can have them hold hands or put their hands around each others waists.

Prom Picture Ideas

Why should I offer prom pictures?

23- Prom is just as important to most teens as graduation and it symbolizes the end of their high school journey. They are excited and happy as it is so important to document this for them to remember their high school friends and memories!