FAQs

The summer after your junior year is when senior picture season officially starts, and my schedule is open for booking now! Contrary to what your parents think, senior portraits are generally NOT taken in your senior year; Because the deadline for submitting the yearbook portraits is in the fall, most seniors are photographed in the summer before they begin their senior year.

June and July are some of the best months for senior portraits for several reasons:

• Greater availability for appointments since the you’re out of school for the summer.
• Gorgeous weather…most of our rain has ended by this point, but the heat of late summer hasn’t yet arrived.
• Outdoor locations are beautiful with lots of green grass, blossoming flowers and trees full of leaves.
• You beat the rush and don’t need to stress about finding a last-minute appointment or doing your session when school is in session.

August and September are probably the most popular months for getting photos done.

• That warm, golden glow of late summer evenings simply can’t be beat.
• Outdoor locations still look beautiful. Many wildflowers are gone by now, but there are definitely still options for blooms. If you’re wanting a rustic, golden field this is the time to do it.
• It can be quite warm, so be prepared if you’re sensitive to heat.
• Be aware, during these months appointment spaces fill very quickly, especially for weekends. It is not unusual for my August and September calendar to be fully booked by late May, so if you’re wanting a session during this time BOOK EARLY.

October and beyond can still work for senior pictures, but keep in mind some important things:

• Be sure you know your yearbook deadline. From planning to final viewing/purchasing typically takes 4-5 weeks, so you’ll want to schedule your shoot at least a month before your school’s cutoff for submitting images. To view yearbook submission information for many area schools, visit our handy list here.
• Due to less daylight hours we are forced to schedule all outside appointments earlier than in the summer.
• Fall colors can be gorgeous, and there are many wonderful spots around the area I love to use during this time.
• Along with cooler weather this time of year, rain is often increasing as well. We will always reserve a backup date for sessions scheduled in October, simply because there is a good chance of getting rained out.

No matter when you decide to schedule your senior pictures, it’s important to get on the calendar as soon as you’re able. Because I am a boutique studio, I’m not able to accept a high volume of seniors each fall and still deliver the service I’m known for. So contact me to get dibs on your date now!

The session retainer/fee is paid at the time you book your session, and is non-refundable. This fee covers the pre-session consultation, the planning and preparation for the session, the time and talent of the photographer during the session, the hair and makeup artists if applicable, the image preparation and the sales appointment where you view and select your images and products. It also covers your yearbook photo submission directly to your school.

The session fee does not include any digital images, prints or products, and is a non-refundable fee that is required in order to secure your consultation, session date and sales appointment on my calendar.

The consultation / planning session is a key part of your custom experience at Marie Pham Photography, and I highly recommend it. This is where we will get to know each other and begin to plan out every detail of your experience. The consultation is informal, and typically lasts less than an hour. I require both the senior and at least one parent at the in person consultation at the studio.

If you are unable to do a studio consultation, we can plan your session via phone-call and/or online questionnaire.

I understand that sometimes unexpected emergencies arise that will prevent you from keeping your original scheduled appointment (such as illness, travel issues, or other emergency situations). If this happens, I ask that you email the studio a minimum of 24 hours prior to the scheduled date in order to reschedule.

I am able to provide a one-time reschedule if you notify me a minimum of 24 hours prior to your appointment. Additional reschedules will require a fee of $150 per occurrence, and are subject to schedule availability.

Your session fee is non-refundable, however you may apply it towards your rescheduled date if completed within 6 months of the original date.

I will watch the weather closely as your session approaches.  If it looks like rain, we’ll reschedule to a day/time as soon as possible. For sessions booked in October or after, the chance of bad weather is increased, so we will schedule a back-up rain date when you book your session. If we’re getting really close and you need photos right away, we can always do a quick shoot in the studio to get your yearbook pic, then do your full session on a dry day.

Of course!  I encourage you to bring someone that will help you relax and have fun, and to help with your things.  I’m even happy to include a friend or parent in a couple of images at the end of your session if you’d like, so tell them to come camera-ready! 

Absolutely!  Pets are like family and can be a huge part of your life, I am happy to include them in some of your portraits. Past clients have brought dogs, cats, birds…even a pet snake! I just ask that you have someone that will be responsible for the pet when we are not working with it.

Definitely! I love to see what my clients have in mind!  You can bring inspiration photos that you love to your planning session, and we can talk about how to include similar things in your shoot. However I will not copy an exact shot from another local photographer.  And keep in mind that different lighting conditions, location and clothing can affect how closely I can replicate something you’ve seen online. I’ll do my absolute best to make sure your photos reflect the style you love while still being unique to YOU!

If we’re in the city, I’ll typically have you duck into a Starbucks..we can grab a drink and you can use their bathroom to change and touchup your hair and makeup. If we’re someplace where there isn’t a coffeeshop on every corner, I’ll have my large pop-up changing tent. It’s about the size of a phone booth, and we can set it up virtually anywhere. 

My contract states that there are to be no other photos taken of poses during your session besides my own. However I do allow behind-the-scenes cell phone shots for Instagram, Snapchat, etc. Please be sure to tag @mariephamphotography!

Let me know any worries or insecurities at your planning session…many times something you see as a flaw are not obvious to everyone else but I definitely want to understand your concerns. I want you to love your photos and have a variety of posing and retouching options that will address almost every issue and be super flattering.

Every senior portrait is professionally retouched unless requested otherwise.  I keep retouching to a minimum because I want you to look like yourself, and not have photos with plastic-looking skin or glowing alien eyes. And if you have had professional hair and makeup done, you will be looking pretty flawless already!

Signature retouching is included with each image. This includes touching up blemishes, stray hairs, eyeglasses glare, etc., as well as overall color/density adjustments. Additional retouching is possible for an additional charge for significant alteration of the image (removing tan lines or bra straps, changing clothing color, braces removal, dramatic body shaping or facial thinning, etc), and we can discuss that at your reveal and ordering session.

Without getting too complicated, a copyright is the protection of “original works of authorship”.  Basically, it means that if you create it, it’s yours, and no one else has permission to use or reproduce it unless given permission.  All of my work is copyrighted.  Many clients have asked me what is “ok” to do with images or photos, so here are a couple examples of copyright infringement: copying a photo on a copier, screenshots of a photo for personal use  (framing for a wall, Facebook, etc.), scanning prints to create digital images, or editing a photo to remove the copyright symbol or add special effects.  If you’re not sure, just ask.

Social media is an awesome place to share photos!  Please feel free to use any photos I put on Facebook or Instagram (I’ll tag you) for your profile picture or wall. I just ask that you don’t crop out my watermark/copyright. If posting your purchased digital files to social media, you may not use filters of any kind and give us a shout out using the hashtag: #mariephamseniors. 

I know you’re super excited to get a preview before your ordering appointment, so a few days after our session, I will post a sneak peek of from our shoot on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter! 2-3 weeks later you’ll come into the studio for your reveal and ordering session. At this session, you will have time to look at all sorts of product samples, albums, canvases, and other goodies. You will be able to ask me questions, and we can plan custom announcements or albums together. I promise, this is not a high-pressure situation, it’s simply a way that I can give my clients the highest level of service possible. Read more about that process here.  Vancouver, WA senior pictures

Senior pictures are truly a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and the investment you make in them will last forever. For most people, this will be one of the only times they can work one-on-one with a professional photographer!

Many clients love their photos and will invest a lot in them. But it’s really up to you. You can purchase a la carte, or “Create Your Own Collection” which allows you to get the exact combination of digital images, prints and products that you want — without being restricted by pre-determined packages.  

A la carte prints/products start at $95, and packages with products and digital images start at $895. That being said, many of my senior portrait clients spend between $1500-$2000 on their portrait session and products. 

You don’t have to order physical artwork…but you’ll want to! It is my goal to provide you with a unique, fun, one-of-a-kind portrait experience and bring you tangible, heirloom-quality prints and products from the resulting images. However, I understand that may not be what some people prefer, so I do offer a la carte digital negatives for purchase. While I can’t personally guarantee the quality of images not printed through me and my partnering professional labs, if you choose to purchase just your digital negatives, you are welcome to print at the lab of your choice. 

One of the best values for those people who are interested specifically in digital files is The All-Inclusive Session. That option includes your session fee, hair/makeup, all of your high-resolution digital images with matching 5×7 printed proofs, a 10×10 custom collage/signing board, and a bonus Cap-and-Gown mini session. It’s a great savings over purchasing your session, digitals and proofs separately. You can see all the details about that option here.

If for some reason you cannot make your decisions within your scheduled reveal and ordering appointment, there is a $150 fee to schedule an additional ordering appointment, but I have found that this is rarely necessary. Thankfully there is a process that will really help you make your decisions easy. Before your reveal and ordering session I’ll send you a planning guide to help you think about exactly what you’d like to purchase.

Marie Pham Photography is a full service photography studio and all sessions include an in person viewing and ordering session where you will view your images for the first time, choose your desired products, and complete your order.  After you place and pay for your order at your viewing session, I am happy to put your images in an online gallery for one week. You can share that link on any social media website, or email it to friends and family.  In rare instances, due to distance or other factors, an online gallery can be provided for ordering with a pre-paid deposit. 

Non-ordered images are removed from the archives 30 days after your reveal and ordering appointment. I do not keep or archive any files that are not ordered at that time.  All ordered images are archived for a period of one (1) year from the date of the reveal/ordering appointment.

Marie Pham Photography accepts all major credit cards, Paypal, checks, or cash. 

Absolutely!  When you place your order, you have the option to set up payment terms, in up to three installments for orders over $500. I will secure your order by credit card, and you may pick up your order after the final payment has been received.

I firmly feel that custom portraiture is a luxury, but one that EVERYONE deserves at some point in their life. What better time than your senior year? It is up to you to decide if having beautiful images of this pivotal time in your life is worth saving and budgeting for.  I also offer an interest free payment plan (see above), and I am sometimes open to bartering for services & products and will swap dollar for dollar. I do not, however, negotiate or reduce pricing of products or services.

I do! It’s included in your session fee, and I know the technical specifications and deadlines for submitting yearbook pictures for all of the area high schools. You can check my list of local schools for your specific yearbook guidelines. Getting each and every student’s yearbook picture delivered on time and to the right person, is my primary concern. You will be provided with confirmation once your photo has been submitted.