St. Charles

If you’re looking for a city vibe, without having to go to downtown St. Louis, then St. Charles is the perfect location for you. With brick streets and sidewalks, historic buildings, a cabin, inoperable train tracks, and multiple little parks, this town can easily accommodate a two-hour shoot.

Check out my list of the top senior picture locations in St. Louis, MO to get inspired by more locations to have your senior pictures taken.

The Best Part About St. Charles

As you walk down the streets of St. Charles, you’ll find numerous locations to stop and pose at. With a variety of storefronts and decorations, you’re bound to take unique senior portraits that nobody else has, even if they also went to St. Charles. You can even stop at some of the stores to grab an ice cream or coffee to use as a prop in your portraits.

Along the sidewalks of St. Charles, you’ll find fences, outdoor seating, light posts, flowers, decorative barrels, and many more decorations to pose with. The small parks even offer beautiful trees to lean on, flowers for gorgeous backgrounds, and grass to sit on. Fences are great for leaning on and sitting next to, while light posts are perfect for leaning against and taking a lovely portrait of you with all the buildings behind you. Windowsills sit low enough on some buildings that you can even lean on them. There’s also plenty of steps around the area to sit on as well.

Not to far down the street sits a cabin right on the opposite side of Main St. This is great incase you want mainly a city look, but a few country rustic portraits as well. There’s a fence around the cabin that’s great for leaning or putting your hand on. There’s also a big tree nearby that makes it easy for you to lean against and get the cabin in your background.

If you’re looking for some railroad portraits, St. Charles offers a safe, non-operable train track that’s right on the opposite side of Main St. It’s located in Frontier Park. This makes taking railroad portraits safe, easy, and you won’t have to rush.

What to Expect Each Season

Spring

Some of the local shops have flowers planted outside of their businesses, trees are blossoming, and flowers grow in the small parks. If you’re looking for both an urban look with a touch of flowers, you’ll be sure to find some around the area.

Summer

Summer is the perfect time to grab an ice cream from the local ice cream shops, or to just take a stroll down the streets of St. Charles. The warmer days do bring more people out to visit the town, especially on weekends. Nevertheless, you will be able to find plenty of beautiful spots to take senior pictures where there aren’t a lot of people.

Fall

During fall, some of the local shops like to decorate with pumpkins and gourds. There are also lots of trees around the area, so you’ll be able to incorporate plenty of fall colors into your portraits.

Winter

With all the buildings in St. Charles, it’s easy to take great portraits without many trees or grass in your pictures. This makes St. Charles a perfect location for winter portraits, since you won’t have to worry about everything looking dead.

Pricing and Accommodations

St. Charles is free to park, and you can walk the streets 24/7. The only things that cost and will close are the local shops. There are restrooms located under the gazebo in Kister Park.

Address

The best place to park is by Kister Park at 408 S Main St, St Charles, MO 63301. You can either park on S. Main St. in front of the park or behind the park in the parking lot off S. Riverside Dr.

Senior Pictures in St. Charles

Riley
St. Charles
When I heard Riley wanted her senior pictures taken in St. Charles, I got so excited! Her mom even wanted to make sure we had some flowers in the pictures, and we found plenty…
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Athletic Field

If you’re in a sport that you absolutely love, then having senior pictures taken on your field, court, rink, or wherever you play is the perfect way to incorporate one of the things you love to do most. Your field is great for short sessions or for part of your session.

Check out my list of the top senior picture locations in St. Louis, MO to get inspired by more locations to have your senior pictures taken.

The Best Part About Your Athletic Field

Your sport is part of your personality. It’s what makes you unique. You can make your sport portraits look as serious or as fun as you want, from standing stiff with your arms crossed, to running up the hill with your golf bag.

No matter what sport you play or what your field, court, or rink is like, there are a variety of spots for numerous poses. It’s even better when you wear your uniform and bring along things like soccer balls, golf clubs, hockey sticks, footballs, and anything else that pertains to your sport.

These props make for more unique poses vs. just standing on the field. You can take some action shots of you throwing, kicking, or hitting and even some of you running or skating if it pertains to your sport. Other poses you can do with your equipment would be to hold it out in front of you, sit next to it, or hold it in your lap.

You can even incorporate your goal or starting line in your portraits as well. Football players can lean against or sit up on top of their goalpost, while soccer players can pose behind the netting in their goal. Swimmers and track runners can pose at their starting line like they’re about to take off. Golfers can pose next to the hole like they’re about to hit the ball in or with the flag that shows you where the hole is.

Sitting or standing in the grandstands or leaning against a wall that has your teams name on it is a perfect way to represent your school and sport. Maybe you even have senior posters or signs at your field, or one you can bring with you. These make for great props to pose next to or with on your field as well.

What to Expect Each Season

Depending on the time of year your sport takes place may determine when you want to take your senior pictures there. If you play football in the fall, you may want more of a fall background to represent the time of year you usually play, or you may choose to have your portraits taken at any other time of year you feel would look or work best for you. If you play an indoor sport, the season may not matter as much to you since you won’t see what the outdoors look like.

Different seasons bring different sports. If you play soccer and it’s fall, you’ll need to work around football, and if you play football in the fall, you may need to work around soccer in the spring. If you play an indoor sport, like basketball, you may even need to work around other events going on inside the gym. The same would go for hockey, because the rink probably lets other teams play on it and may even have open skating. If you’re an outdoor swimmer, you’ll have to wait until the pools open back up for swimming portraits.

Pricing and Accommodations

You’ll need to talk to your coach about gaining access to your field to make the proper arrangements and see if there are any fees involved.

Address

Wherever your field is located.

Senior Pictures on their Athletic Field

Hannah
Athletic Field
Drumline means a lot to Hannah, and that’s exactly why she wanted to take some of her senior pictures on the football field at her high school. She spent a lot of time in marching…
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Joel
Athletic Field
Joel’s heart belongs on the football field, so we made sure to take some senior pictures of him with his jersey on, on the field and in the bleachers. His mom wanted…
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Charlie
Athletic Field
Despite the super windy day, we had such a fun time taking Charlie’s senior pictures. He was so easy going to work with and full of smiles. We spent half of our time on the…
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Tower Grove Park

Gazebo’s galore and beautiful stone arches next to a pond are the highlights of Tower Grove Park, along with a couple smaller ponds surrounded by beautiful plants and flowers. There’s even a beautiful brick building with a pathway down the side of it that make for perfect backgrounds for your portraits. This beautiful St. Louis park is perfect for a one-hour session.

Check out my list of the top senior picture locations in St. Louis, MO to get inspired by more locations to have your senior pictures taken.

The Best Part About Tower Grove Park

With the abundance of plants around Tower Grove Park, you’re sure to have beautiful backgrounds for your senior pictures. The ponds have all kinds of plants growing around them and make for perfect portraits sitting in either the grass or on the edge of the pond. There are also tall grasses nearby that are perfect for standing between or in front of.

The highlight of the ponds is the larger one with stone arches. These stone arches are perfect for leaning on, standing in front of, sitting on, or sitting in front of. There are even some stone steps to sit on. The arches have lots of bushes and flowers growing around them, so you’re sure to have either greenery or the pond in your background.

Another great feature at Tower Grove Park is the brick building that sits right across the pathway from the large pond. The brick walls make for perfect backdrops to either stand away from or lean up against. Right beside the building is a small path with a lamppost that’s great to hold on to and hang out from. The path is also a great spot to sit in the middle of. There are even a couple doorways on the side of the building that make for a lovely background as well.

Pathways around the park always make for fun walking towards or away from the photographer portraits. You’ll find some of the gazebos along the pathway where you can sit on the steps, lean on the railings, or dance around in the center for a more candid portrait. There’s even a beautiful sculpture that stands down one of the paths and is surrounded by tulips in the spring. This small sculpture is perfect for posing in front of, especially when the flowers are blooming.

What to Expect Each Season

Spring

Spring is the perfect time to have senior pictures taken at Tower Grove. Tulips grow in abundance here along with all the other budding flowers and trees. You’re sure to find plenty of floral backgrounds for your portraits.

Summer

By summertime, all the plants and trees will have regained their color, and there may even be a few summertime flowers blooming. Parts of Tower Grove Park are in the sun, while other parts are in the shade. The gazebo’s make for the perfect shady spot on a hot summer day.

Fall

With Tower Grove Park being surrounded by trees, you’re sure to find plenty of fall colors here. The pathways will also be scattered with leaves and will make for the ultimate fall portraits.

Winter

There are lots of trees and plants in Tower Grove Park, so there won’t be much color here in the winter. However, the stone arches make for the perfect winter wonderland background when it snows.

Pricing and Accommodations

Tower Grove Park is somewhat busy and absolutely free. It is open to the public 7 days a week. There may be the occasional wedding or event going on. Restrooms are located at the Roman Pavilion 4378 Northwest Dr, St. Louis, MO 63110.

Address

4271 Northeast Dr, St. Louis, MO 63110. This will take you to the Palm House, which is near the pond with stone arches.

Senior Pictures at Tower Grove Park

Emily
Tower Grove Park
It may have looked a little gloomy out, but that didn’t stop Emily from having fun during her senior prom pictures at Tower Grove Park. From silly pictures with her friends, to loving…
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Snow

Snow creates a beautiful winter wonderland as it blankets everything. It’s the perfect time to dress up in your fur coat or throw on a prom dress and become a snow princess. This is the best time to take super unique senior pictures as many people don’t take theirs in the snow. Due to the cold, snow sessions only last about 30 minutes to an hour.

Check out my list of the top senior picture locations in St. Louis, MO to get inspired by more locations to have your senior pictures taken.

The Best Part About Snow

You don’t have to go far from home to take snow portraits. You can step out into your backyard or take a short drive to your local park. Maybe you want more of a snowy town feel. You can just drive into town and take some senior pictures as you walk up and down Main St. If you know of a different location that’s unlike any of the locations your classmates usually travel too, then head out there.

Snow portraits are perfect for getting all bundled up in your warm, fuzzy hat, throwing on your favorite pair of gloves, pulling out the snow boots with your cute boot socks, wearing that favorite winter sweater you don’t get to wear often, wrapping a scarf around your neck, or even cozying up in a blanket. You’ll want to wear some layers underneath your cute outfit to help keep you warm, though.

Sleds make for such a fun prop in the snow because you can look like you’re sitting on it or sledding down a hill. Another idea is to stand the sled straight up and lean on it. You can also bring along your favorite mug and some hot chocolate and marshmallows. It makes for both a cute portrait and helps warm you up.

Some fun snow posing ideas are to stand in the snow with snowy trees in the background, stand under tall bushes or trees that are covered in snow, lean on or peek around trees, sit or lean on fences, make a snow angel, blow snow from your hands, throw snow up in the air, twirl around in a dress, lean against a building that’s covered in snow or with snow at your feet, sit in the snow, or even lay in the snow.

What to Expect Each Season

You can generally catch St. Louis snowfalls from December to March, with the occasional November or April snow. January and February are known for being the months where it snows the most. Sometimes the snow can accumulate so much during these months that it makes it difficult to get around, so travel with caution and don’t go out if the road conditions are poor. Remember that black ice can accumulate as well, so walk and drive with caution as it may not look slippery, but actually is.

Be sure to stay warm as the average temperature during the winter ranges from upper 40’s to lower 20’s and can even dip down into the teens and negatives. Be sure to dress properly under any outfit you choose to wear. Wear extra socks, shirts, under armor, pants, and even stick warm packets in your gloves and boots. If you need to warm up for a bit, jump in the car or step inside a building. Your health is important, and you should not risk your life for portraits. The snow will still be there.

Pricing and Accommodations

If you want to take snow portraits, you’re most likely just going to a local park so it’s probably free to park. Restroom accessibility may vary depending on where you go.

Address

Wherever a good and safe snow location is.

Senior Pictures in Snow

Emily
Snow
While there was snow on the ground, and Emily was off of school, we decided to do an impromptu snow senior session. We headed over to Suson Park to take advantage…
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Emmie
Snow
School was canceled due to all the snow we accumulated, and Emmie thought it would be the perfect time to take some snowy senior portraits! I couldn’t agree more! We bundled…
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Konarcik Park

Konarcik Park is the best location for any time of year. With pine trees that keep their color in any season, a lake, a metal building, and a creek tucked back in the woods you’re sure to find the perfect background here no matter what the weather is like. Konarcik Park has so much to offer that you can spend two hours taking senior pictures here.

Check out my list of the top senior picture locations in St. Louis, MO to get inspired by more locations to have your senior pictures taken.

The Best Part About Konarcik Park

Pine trees cover the back half of Konarick Park, which are great for portraits with the lake and the pine trees behind you or make for the perfect forest to walk through. The sun even likes to peek through the pine trees in the evening, casting a beautiful, warm sun ray in your background.

The pine trees make for perfect sitting, standing, leaning on one of the trees, or even walking through the forest portraits. You can also bring a chair along and place it in the middle of all the trees to take portraits where you are surrounded by trees.

You can sit lakeside, or even lean up against the tree that grows on the edge of the lake. Maybe you like to fish and want to incorporate some fishing portraits into your senior pictures as well. The lake is in the center of the park, so you can easily move about and get it in the background of your portraits from a variety of angles.

Around the perimeter of the lake, you can find a blue tinted tin shed if you want to change up the scenery a little bit. This is perfect for leaning back against. There’s even a small set of stone steps next to one of the pavilions that are great for sitting on. At the front of the park is a wooden fence that you can stand on the opposite side of and place your hands or rest your elbows on it.

Pass through the pine trees and head down the path to find a small creek surrounded by large rocks, and a bridge to cross over the creek. The bridge is great for standing, sitting, or leaning on and gives you a forest background. Head down to the creek to dip your toes in the water or sit on some of the dry rocks.

What to Expect Each Season

Spring

Trees and grass are starting to turn green, and the occasional wildflower is starting to bloom near the creek. The surrounding premises around the pine trees also are beginning to regain their color. It can still be a bit cool out, so the creek may feel a bit cold if you stand in it barefoot.

Summer

The trees surrounding the creek have full color and you may spot a late blooming wildflower here or there once summer hits. This is also the perfect time to dip your toes in the creek as the water will feel cool on a hot summer day.

Fall

While the pine trees don’t change, the surrounding trees will be changing into beautiful fall colors. Down by the creek you’ll find leaves scattered across the path and lining the creek. The water may be getting a bit cold at this time of year, but you can still dip your toes in if you want to or you can just sit on the leaf covered rocks.

Winter

When all the surrounding parks don’t have any greenery anymore, Konarcik Park will be full of color in the pine trees. You won’t have to worry about dull and boring backgrounds. However, when it snows Konarcik Park turns into a winter wonderland and is perfect for snowy portraits.

Pricing and Accommodations

Konarcik Park is quiet and absolutely free. It is open to the public 7 days a week. There are restrooms located on the far side of the lake.

Address

5303 Konarcik Rd, Waterloo, IL 62298

Senior Pictures at Konarcik Park

Emily
Konarcik Park
Emily wanted some outdoor senior pictures, but she wasn’t sure where to take them. After learning where she was from, I suggested Konarcik Park since it was close to her. Talk about the…
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Henry
Konarcik Park
As a nature and animal lover, Henry wanted to take his senior pictures surrounded by nature and somewhere with a creek. Konarcik Park was the perfect mixture of nature, creek, and even a…
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Claire
Konarcik Park
For Claire’s session we decided to head out to Konarcik Park. It may have been a little overcast at times, but that didn’t stop us from capturing beautiful portraits. Claire has alopecia…
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