Free template · 13 questions
Senior portrait questionnaire
Senior sessions are about a person on the edge of something new. The best questionnaires are filled in by the senior, not the parent, and ask about who the student is, not just what they'll wear.
When to send it
Two to three weeks before the session, so there's time to plan outfits and props.
Paste them into HoneyBook, Dubsado, Google Forms or an email.
Client questionnaire · Senior portraits
About you
- What are you into right now: a sport, music, art, a job, your friends?
- What are you doing after graduation?
- Three words your friends would use to describe you.
Your session
- Where would you love to shoot: somewhere that feels like you, or somewhere with a great look?
- Want to bring something that represents you: a jersey, an instrument, your car, your dog?
- How many outfits, and what's your style (classic, sporty, edgy, boho)?
- Are you getting your hair or makeup done?
- Do you need specific images, like a yearbook headshot or a graduation announcement?
On camera
- How do you feel about having your photo taken?
- Do you want me to tell you exactly how to pose, or keep it more relaxed?
- Is there anything you're self-conscious about?
For parents
- Parent or guardian name and contact details.
- Is there a must-have shot on your side?
How to use the answers
Talk to the senior, not the parent
Address the questionnaire and the session to the student. When the session feels like theirs, they show up as themselves.
Plan the yearbook shot early
Check the school's yearbook specs (crop, background, deadline) and get that frame in the first outfit, while energy is high.
Use the activity they love
A senior holding a guitar or a basketball forgets the camera in seconds. Put the prop set in the middle, once they've warmed up.
The question forms get wrong
Most clients don't know how they like to be directed.
So they write “we're awkward” and leave it there. Send the Good Side camera quiz with your questionnaire: two minutes on their phone, and you get their camera type and a session plan with prompts in order.