scdc dancers

Welcome Package

Meet Your Photographer

Photo by D’Ann Boal

Hi, I'm Deanna.

I'm a Syracuse area photographer specializing in High School Senior Photography, Fine Art Dance Portraits, and Family Photography. I live locally with my husband and two children, where you can find me chasing after them with a camera in hand! Before pursuing photography, I was a 4th grade classroom teacher and dance instructor. I have had a deep rooted love for photography since childhood. In recent years, I have spent countless hours in numerous professional development courses, online workshops, and traveling to intensive photography retreats to hone my skills to capture the best moments of my clients’ lives. Taking pictures has been a passion of mine and I am thrilled to have the opportunity to document this important milestone for you!

What to expect

In this guide, we'll go over what you need to know to make the most out of your dance session, as well as provide information about the process. We want to make sure that the end result is a set of beautiful images that are an honest reflection of you! This guide will help you prepare for your upcoming session by providing details on choosing a location, styling tips, and what to expect during and after your session.

My goal for dance sessions is to take a fine art photography approach, which means I focus on capturing the true spirit and emotion of your dance. You can expect some lightly posed images, some candid shots and images that involve movements. Being a dancer myself, I am familiar with the terminology needed to make your session a success!

After your session, I will be working hard behind the scenes to cull the best photos. Your gallery is typically ready within two to four weeks of your session. 

Before Your Session

Please plan to arrive 15-20 minutes ahead of your scheduled start time. This will allow you time to get changed into your first costume and to do a warm-up. Plan to bring a black leotard and black bike shorts, along with any other items your choreographer/director have requested. It is helpful if you come prepared with three poses you’d like to shoot, it makes things flow quicker.

Please click Here to be directed to a link to complete a model release.

The Session Day

It's the day of your session! Please pack all your outfits, shoes, and accessories and meet at the designated meeting point. It’s very important that you try on all clothing, costumes, and shoes ahead of time - this includes making sure items are ironed and looking their best! Make sure to eat before the session (hungry subjects aren't happy subjects) and stay hydrated by drinking lots of water.

During the session, I will guide you through everything and show you poses and more. You don't have to be nervous! It's my job to make sure you have the best experience possible and capture you at your best. This is where we have fun, laugh, and get the best photos possible. While many of the photos will be static poses, we will also play some music you love so that we can capture the beautiful movement you create. You can choose to do improv or any choreography that is part of the show.

Important information from POSE Studio:

Hello,

We are so excited to welcome you to Pose Studio for your upcoming session! As you prepare for your rental, we wanted to send a few quick reminders about the key features of our studio. 

Your rental includes the use of our cyclorama wall. To keep our wall in pristine condition for all our clients, we kindly ask that you and your guests stay away from the curved section of the wall. Please do not stand, step, or lean on the curvature as it’s a delicate part of our set up. Any contact with the wall’s curvature will result in a charge per occurrence. We also request that the use of shoes on our cyc wall be limited. We ask that you utilize the provided disposable shoe covers if you prefer to keep your shoes on. We ask that you warn your guests about the nature of the cyc wall and for them to not wear outside shoes on the cyc wall. Clean, indoor footwear or socks is acceptable. You may move any of the chairs onto the cyc wall but do not drag them! 

Parking:

After Your Session

My typical digital gallery turnaround time is 3-4 weeks, and I will keep in touch to inform you of the progress of your gallery.

Products/Pricing

à la carte

Prints

  • 5x7 - $15

  • 8x10 - $25

  • 11x14 - $30

  • 16x24 - $50

  • Wallets (8) - $35

Albums

  • 10x10 signature book with 20 images - $400, $15 per additional image

  • 10x10 signature album with 20 images - $700, $15 per additional image

Digital files

  • 1-10: $50 each

  • 11-20: $40 each

  • 21 plus: $30 each

Canvas

  • 8x10 - $150

  • 11x14 - $175

  • 16x24 - $300

Acrylic Wall Art

  • 12x18 - $150

  • 16x24 - $300

    Metal Wall Art

  • 11x14 - $130

  • 16x20 - $200

Float Frame Canvas

  • 8x10 - $200

  • 11x14 - $225

  • 16x24 - $350

FAQs

What should I bring to my session?

This session is about you! My goal is to capture your personality and dance ability during our time together. You should bring costumes, dance clothes, tights, dance shoes and any make-up you might want for last minute touch ups. Please bring a parent/guardian/friend to the session with you to help with holding all of your outfits and accessories. We will have music playing while we take pictures and you can bring your favorite playlist to help you feel relaxed and comfortable. Here are a few links to some long skirts, tutus, etc. that photograph well - these are just suggestions - I’m always open to your ideas!

Should I get professional hair and makeup done?

I highly recommend it! It is not a must, by any means, but the impact that really well done hair and makeup has on your dance portraits is quite amazing! I have a few hair and makeup artists that I can recommend. One tip is to keep your makeup more of a matte finish for photos, shiny makeup catches the light.

How long does it take to get my photos?

You can expect your completed images to be ready for viewing within 2 to 4 weeks of your session date. We will meet via Google Meet to make selections on the products you would like, I’ll place the order through the professional lab that I use, and items should be to you within 4-6 weeks after we submit the order.

Can we incorporate our favorite movements into the session?

Photo sessions should be fun! I will do everything I can to make it an enjoyable experience from start to finish! You can assure your Dancer that I give them very specific directions for posing so they are never left wondering what to do. Their comfort and confidence is my top priority during the session. That being said, I love when dancers come to a session with their favorite movements in mind - collaborating our ideas together will lead to amazing images!

Thank you

get in touch

I hope this guide has helped to answer a few of the basic and most frequent questions you may have. I want to make your session experience something you will look back fondly on for years and years to come. At the end of the day, though, the location you choose and the outfits you select won’t matter nearly as much as the memories you make. Your future memories are the most important thing to me and I want your session to be a time for you to just be yourself and enjoy it! If you have any additional question, please feel free to contact me directly. I look forward to working with you!