your portrait session

Photography by Brenda Colwell www.brendacolwellphoto.com


Portrait Tips

Photography by Brenda Colwell

[email protected] 313 Adams Ranch Road, Telluride, CO 81435

www.brendacolwellphoto.com 970-729-1026 or 970-728-9266

Fax: 970-728-9259

Beautiful Portraits start with You.

Thank you for booking a photography session with Photography by Brenda Colwell. It is my job to take the most

flattering photo I can take of you and your family, but I still need a little help from you

and the way you dress for your photo session makes a big difference

This is your photo shoot, let's make you

beautiful!


Pick a Style and See it Through Dressy or Casual? Whichever you choose, get the whole look together down to your shoes and accessories. Bring one of each outfit, if you think want to change clothes during your shoot. Be sure to check with me about clothing changes, especially if we are outdoors


Planning Ahead Arrange to have your hair done with a professional stylist. And treat yourself to a manicure or pedicure. If you need a stylist in Telluride, let me know, I can help you with that. Being outdoors in Telluride means planning for uneven terrain, dirt and sitting on rocks and trees (think about your shoes). Telluride weather can be unpredictable, so bring a flattering jacket or sweater that you can easily remove or add to your outfit. Bring one for each family member.

Try your outfit on in its entirety so you know what accessories you will need to complete the look you want. Be sure there are no loose buttons, torn hemlines, seams, stains or holes on your clothing.

A beautiful hat, scarf, or umbrella are all fun accessories to add to a photo shoot, especially in a bright color! Start shopping in advance for ideas.

Night Before Get a good night’s sleep and drink lots of water. Both will reduce puffy eyes, and at our altitude the more water, the better. Practice posing in the mirror and “see” what good pose

“feels” like. Think about your shoulders, tummy, chin and leg positions. The Impact Altitude The lowest point in Telluride is 8750 feet, everything else is higher than that. Altitude sickness can happen to anyone, especially if you live at a lower altitude. So be sure to drink plenty of water in the week before you arrive. Limit your alcohol intake, and if you have any health concerns, consult your doctor.


Day of Photo Session Eat something before your photo session and drink plenty of water. Pack up your “necessities” if you need to touch up your hair or make up during the shoot. Go to the bathroom before your session. Children and Babies Make sure they are fed and rested. But, hold off putting on their photo session clothing until you arrive (unless we are shooting outdoors, or you can cover their clothes with a jacket). Bring changes of clothes, food, tissue, diapers, baby wipes, bottles. Bring dry food to avoid soiling clothing. Bring favorite toys or comfort items.


Sometimes the best photos are caught when small children are unaware they are being photographed so bringing a “photo quality” toy creates great additional photo opportunities. Kid umbrellas, kites, hats, fun hair accessories are always fun, if you got em, bring em. Even if you think they are too much or too big, they are probably great for photos. If you have more than one child, be sure to bring each a toy to avoid sibling rivalry . Prepare your young child in advance for the photo shoot. If your child is a newborn, book a newborn shoot instead where the focus is on the baby. I will photograph newborns outdoors when it is warm, but that takes a little extra time.


Wardrobe Tips As a background, the outdoors is very busy. Keep your colors mostly solid and complimentary. Blues are excellent all year, white, ivory, khaki and salmon, hot pink and black are great against lush green foliage. Burgundy, brown, tan and gray are nice late in the season. Avoid all greens, as they get lost in Mother Nature. Almost any color looks good in the snow, even white. The simplicity of two colors helps separate you from the scenery. Busy backgrounds and busy clothes result in hard to find faces

(no stripes, plaid or graphics unless for accent). Jeans and sweaters always look good outdoors. Throw in a brightly colored scarf or a hat and you add a little punch. Check online for the latest colors and fashion.

Choose a color theme that simplifies the look of your portrait. Too many competing busy patterns and colors are especially distracting. Coordinate the clothing for your family in a group portrait so that one person will not dominate the scene. Dark clothing minimizes body size, and light tones emphasize body size. Most people look best in darker and solid colors or a combination of dark pants and light colored tops.

Shoes and socks are often overlooked as a significant aspect of portrait clothing. They should compliment, not contrast. Boots are great looking in the mountains all year, and so do heels with the right outfits, but don't forget to bring shoes that can handle nature's obstacles.


Larger Groups For a group, large or small, follow the Basic Tips noted above but coordinate everyone’s wardrobe (including a jacket or sweater just in case it is cool) to create a greater sense of togetherness, but avoid being over-matchy. Try find colors that look good together, but are not all the same. For really really large groups, don't worry about it, you will give yourself a headache trying to coordinate that. Just let them know: dressy or casual. A make-up artist can do wonderful things for you to become for photo ready especially for a head shot by helping with hair and makeup. I can arrange a hair, makeup or wardrobe artist to be available for your shoot. Quick Tip List:

Hair and make-up ready when you arrive / Keep make-up light, natural & fresh.

Make sure your clothes fit (not too big, not too small) Check little faces for food and little noses for debris Avoid Sunburn - a nice tan photographs well, sunburn

doesn’t Scoop necklines or v-necks flatter fuller faces and shorter

necks, Turtlenecks & higher necklines flatter slender faces and long necks

Good undergarments go unnoticed, bad ones don’t Long pants are always most flattering in a portrait. Guys make sure your collar is freshly pressed and wrinkle

free, Have a fresh shave & neatly trimmed facial hair and check your eyebrows

Avoid clothing prints or styles that are too obviously trendy or shoes that will date your photo

Teens and Kids - avoid t-shirts with big patterns or logos While cute, play clothes detract from your child's portrait.

Stick with the basic guidelines for adults.


SMILE! RELAX! HAVE FUN!

Be your beautiful self. And we will get some great shots!

Clothing Sources in Telluride:

Two Skirts 970-728-6828 The Toggery 970-728-3338

And on the web: Dimples and Dandelions www.dimplesandandelions.com Best Dressed Child www.bestdressedchild.com Dapper Lads www.dapperlads.com Izzy and Dash for Kids www.izzyanddash.com Haute Look for Men and Women www.hautelook.com White House / Black Market for Women www.whitehouseblackmarket.com Zappos for Everyone www.zappos.com Old Navy www.oldnavy.gap.om The Gap ww.gap.com


Refer a friend, and receive a free 8x10 from your session. To redeem the free print, your friend must indicate that they were referred by you at the time of booking the session.


Other Services Available:

ONLINE PRIVATE VIEIWING

Once your photo shoot is complete, your photos will be available online in a private viewing folder. Your photographer will notify you by email when the link is ready. You will be able to preview your photos based on your schedule, and they will be available for 14 days for purchase. You are welcome to share your photo folder with anyone you like simply by sharing your password and link. Privacy is set up to protect you.

PROFESSIONAL RETOUCH SERVICES.

Professional retouch services is available on any image including removal of small blemishes or imperfections, even some basic body reshaping and head swapping, We are happy to provide you with a scheduled of cost upon request.

PROFESSIONAL DESIGN CONSULTATION

When you are ready, our Professional Design Consultant will be available to walk you through the next step of choosing your images. Whether that is just to fulfill your basic package, or to set up framing, canvas prints, albums or other photo products. We can help you pick a design to go on any wall in your home or help you lay out an album of your photos.

ELECTRONIC DOWNLOADS

Electronic images are available for purchase either in basic unedited form or a fully retouched version.

CUSTOMER DISCOUNTS AND SPECIALS

We love photos and we want you to have as many as you like, so from time to time we offer specials and discounts to get great deals from time to time. We will keep you informed when those deals come up. As our customer, we always discount the next photo session.


Disclaimers and Notifications and Implied Contract ‐a.k.a. The small print Photography by Brenda Colwell owns the rights to all digital images taken during your photo session. Even though you may purchase an image as part of your package, they may only be used for personal use and may not be used for your advertising, stock photography sale, publication of any kind, or other uses without the express written permission of Brenda Colwell, Photography by Brenda Colwell or its affiliates. If you would like to use photographs for social media sites, that is okay as long as the photos are restricted to your personal images, and not used to endorse products or services or used for business purposes without the express written consent of Photography by Brenda Colwell. Photography by Brenda Colwell and its affiliates retain the right to use photos acquired during any photo session to promote Photography by Brenda Colwell in its advertising, promotion or for Photo Contests, but will not release your photos for other use without your express written consent. Photography by Brenda Colwell and its affiliates take great care to protect the moral virtue of any subject photographed and will make every effort to only use images that Photography by Brenda Colwell deems flattering and appealing and does not [ ];p'")Op{require the approval of any subject in any representations of any photograph. Once you have booked the time for your photo session, your photographer is yours and is turning away other work that may be completed in your time slot. And, while your photographer can sometimes be flexible to accommodate last minute changes to avoid additional fees, there are fees associated with cancellations and changes. Your photographer cannot be responsible for last minute cancellations that are not within control of the photographer such as, but not limited to, illness or weather, but will try work with you to reschedule to another date. Fees Cancellation Fee Schedule Change Greater than 14 days $25 No Charge Less than 14 days $175.00 $25.00 Less than 2 hours No refund No Refund Your photographer values safety and if at any point during the photo session your photographer feels that the situation has become unsafe or uncomfortable the photo session will be terminated without refund. If the session has commenced and is compromised due to an environmental danger (weather, lightning, etc) or other events out of control of the photographer, the photo shoot will be rescheduled but a refund will not be issued. If your photographer is unable to make the session for any reason and a replacement photographer cannot be provided to cover the shoot, your fee will be refunded. Or you can apply that fee to a future session and receive free 16x20 print of any image in your session. If your photographer fails to complete the photo session for reasons in control of your photographer (illness or equipment failure) and is therefore unable deliver photos, your session fee will be refunded in full. Refunds are be limited to the amount collected for the session and no additional fees will be paid. Photos acquired during your photo session will be archived and protected in two locations for a minimum 5 years, and the images will available for purchase for 6 months. There is a small fee to bring the images out of archive. While your photographer will make every effort to create best photo session possible, we cannot be responsible for uncooperative and unwilling subjects or if you don't like the way you looked. Your photography session is guaranteed only to the extent of the photographer's performance (light and focus).


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