7 Useful Tips For Your First Photoshoot

I have stood on both sides of a first photoshoot, and I know exactly how intimidating that first session can feel. These are my tips for your first photoshoot — the preparation that actually matters, from someone who has guided hundreds of people through it. Consider this your pre-session ritual.

Choose your photographer the way you would choose a portrait of yourself

Before anything else: work with someone whose images you can see yourself in. If you are torn between photographers, study their galleries and ask whether their light, their editing and their way of seeing people feels like the way you want to be seen. I have written a full guide on how to choose a photographer worth reading first.

Prepare your body — gently, and in advance

• Hair colour: book it at least a week before the session, so the colour settles into something natural.
• Tanning: the same rule, but longer — one to two weeks, so it softens before it is photographed.
• Skip anything drastic the week of the shoot. A first photoshoot is not the moment to experiment with your face or hair. You want to look like yourself on a very good day.

Prepare your wardrobe the night before

Iron everything. Hang everything. Clean your shoes. The night-before ritual is what lets the morning feel calm instead of chaotic — and calm photographs beautifully.

Underwear deserves real thought: black shirts want black bras, white or sheer pieces want nude, backless pieces want stick-ons, and trousers should be checked for visible lines before the day. It is the least glamorous part of preparation and the one people most often regret skipping.

Makeup and hair

Going to a makeup artist? Arrive with a completely clean face, moisturiser and your own foundation in hand. Doing your own? You can go slightly stronger than usual — especially the eyes — but resist heavy foundation. A photographer can retouch a blemish; a caked base is much harder to rescue, and you will not need it. Skin is meant to look like skin.

For hair, ask your stylist whether to arrive washed or if they prefer to do it themselves. Styling it yourself? Clean, dry and natural photographs best — this is not the day to fight your hair into being something it is not.

Practise presence, not poses

I send my clients a simple posing guide before solo sessions — not to memorise, but to make friends with the mirror. Learn which side you prefer, which angles feel like you, where you might feel self-conscious. Then let it go. On the day, your photographer directs; your only job is to be present.

Bring your soundtrack

I play music through every session and always ask for requests — it is the quickest way to turn a set into a room you can relax in. I keep a few playlists ready, like this one.

Final tips for your first photoshoot

The real secret behind all these tips for your first photoshoot is simple: prepare well, then trust the process and exhale. If you are ready to put this preparation to use, browse my portrait portfolio to see what a guided session looks like, or start the conversation on my booking page.

Until next time,
Siobhan