In today’s digital age, when everyone has a camera on their phone, professional portraits can seem unnecessary. But senior portraits capture a huge milestone in the life of every teenager, and these sessions are often most people’s first professional photos. No matter how busy your soon-to-be-graduate is, scheduling a senior portrait session is a great way to capture their personality and who they are at this moment in time. Check out seven reasons why I think all teens need senior photos.

Mark a major milestone

A teen’s senior year of high school is often a year full of goodbyes. In many cases, it’s their last year living with their parents, their last year with friends they’ve grown up with, and their last year of childhood. As your teen steps into the world of adulthood, they deserve to celebrate how they’ve grown and all they’ve accomplished thus far. Senior portraits are more than just images to share with the grandparents. They’re an opportunity to commemorate this remarkable time in your teen’s life. (Check out a blog post where I discuss photographing an amazing group of graduating Black young men.)

Capture your teen’s personality

You’ve watched your child grow from a toddler to a senior in high school. Their personality has likely changed a lot throughout their years and will probably change even more as they leave home and start college or their career. Senior portraits are the perfect way to capture your teen as they are now, celebrating their accomplishments and highlighting what makes them so unique.

Create graduation announcements

Whether you go old school with mailed announcements or send a digital card, senior photos are the best way to announce your teen’s graduation to friends and family around the country and around the world. You can even take images specifically for announcement postcards by having your teen hold up a sign or leaving space in the image for text.

Reward your teen for their hard work

Senior portraits are tons of fun to take! They allow your teen to be goofy and show off their fun side, and it’s a great release after years of studying and school. Think of a senior portrait session as a reward for all the hours and effort they’ve put in throughout their high school career and a chance to remind them just how proud you are of all they’ve accomplished.

Freeze this moment in time

We never know how well we will remember a moment or period in our lives. That’s what makes photography so important. It allows us to capture and hold on to the moments that matter most to us. Before long, your teen will be leaving home, and you’ll cherish the photos you have of them, from their first baby photos to their senior portraits.

Go beyond the traditional senior portrait

While you definitely want a formal headshot for the yearbook, your teen deserves photos that fully capture their personality. What do they love? What dreams do they have for their future? Using props, outfits, and backgrounds, we can capture what makes your teen unique and show off what they value most. Check out my high school graduation Pinterest board (images pulled from throughout Pinterest).

Give your teen images to share with friends

Your teen likely spends a decent amount of time online, and their photos often reflect who they are and what they love. Senior portraits give your teen tons of high-quality images to share with friends and family—photos they can be proud of and enjoy posting. And you’ll likely want to share these images with your friends too!

So there you have it. Those are seven reasons why I think all teens need senior photos.