Katie | Southern Belle

Katie’s mom wanted to take the time to really enjoy her daughter’s prom, so she had me take all her prom pictures while she got to enjoy every little moment, watching her daughter get dressed up and ready for a fun evening. We took some portraits at the prom venue and at Forest Park, down by the water basin. The girls had a fun time riding around in a limo, and even stopped to get a cupcake from Jilly’s Cupcake Bar. Scroll down to see how much fun Katie had before prom!

Forest Park

Forest Park has everything you can think of for senior pictures. With a stone structure, flowers galore, lake, a creek to walk around, historic buildings, open fields, and even a waterfall you’ll never run out of ideas. You can easily spend two-hours or more 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 Forest Park

There are probably some hidden gems around Forest Park that you’re not aware of, but there’s other’s you know well. Art Hill is a perfect example of one of the popular spots in Forest Park. It’s known for its lake basin at the bottom of the hill, and the Art Museum at the top. The lake basin has many beautiful locations for senior pictures with steps that lead down to the lake, shrubbery surrounding the lake, and beautiful bridges that cross over it.

The Jewel Box is another beautiful location known for all it’s beautiful flowers and small ponds. There’s even a stone structure that sits off in the distance from it. This is perfect for peeking around, leaning against, or even climbing up on. You can even stand in the open field and get the stone structure in your background.

The Muny is another popular and favorite location within Forest Park. The entrance makes for beautiful portraits. The covered walkway is the perfect location for senior pictures along with its ornate light fixture. Across from The Muny sits a beautiful lake with a gazebo in the center of it that also makes for a great background.

Another neat piece of architecture in Forest Park is the World’s Fair Pavilion. This is perfect for portraits inside the pavilion, leaning on the walls, standing out in the grass and getting it in the background, or even walking down to the water fountain. The water fountain is made up of water flowing over rocks into a small basin and is perfect for those toe dipping portraits or just standing on the rocks.

What you may not be as familiar with though is the waterfall that’s just down the hill from the Art Museum and along the golf course path. There’s even a section that’s beside the lake basin made up of pathways, flowers, trees, more bridges, and a creek that flows into the lake.

What to Expect Each Season

Spring

The Jewel Box is one of the best locations for spring portraits. You’ll find tulips galore blooming. You can even head down to the creek near the lake basin to find flowers blooming all around the area.

Summer

Everything is alive and green now, but since it’s summer that means it’s hotter out and certain parts of the Forest Park don’t have shade. Even though Forest Park is big, it is busier now.

Fall

Because there are trees and pathways all around Forest Park, you’ll be able to find plenty of fall colors and leaves on the ground. Certain areas are going to be better than others for fall foliage, like walking down the pathways through the thicker wooded areas.

Winter

Between the wide-open areas and lots of barren trees in others, Forest Park doesn’t have much to offer in the winter unless it snows. During a good snow you’ll be able to find plenty of beautiful locations within the park that will make you feel like you’re in a winter wonderland.

Pricing and Accommodations

Forest Park is free to park and open to the public 7 days a week. There may be occasional weddings or events that go on in various locations around the park. Restrooms can be found throughout the park, but some may be inside other buildings like the museums.

Address

35-43 Fine Arts Dr, St. Louis, MO 63110. This is the address for Art Hill. It will take you to the Art Museum which is above the lake basin.

Senior Pictures at Forest Park

Owen
Forest Park
For Owen’s session we went to Forest Park down by the lake basin on Art Hill. He wanted some nature senior pictures during the fall, and the fall colors did not disappoint. Owen also mentioned…
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Paige
Forest Park
Paige wanted a short session to capture some fall colors in her senior pictures. When she found photos of the beautiful Victorian Bridge at Forest Park, she knew…
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Andi
Forest Park
Forest Park was the perfect location for Andi’s senior pictures. It had everything she was looking for and more. She wanted tall grasses, wildflowers, and fall colors, plus there were even rocks…
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Your Hometown

If you’re looking for somewhere beautiful, but want a little bit of a urban feel to it then look no further than your very own hometown. You know all the highlight spots in your town, places that are important to you, and maybe parks or businesses you visit a lot. Your hometown is the perfect way to make your senior pictures unique to you. Depending on where you’re from, your hometown could cover a one hour or two-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 Your Hometown

Your hometown is where your roots are. You’ve grown up here, made lots of friends, hung out at your favorite coffee shop, and have many good memories. It’s also the perfect location if you’re not wanting to drive to far from home for senior pictures.

Every town has lots to offer. Most towns have some historic buildings in the area, which make for unique backgrounds. There’s always steps to sit on, tables and chairs outside of businesses to relax at, a local ice cream shop or coffee shop to purchase something to use in your senior pictures, and possibly a mural or two that would look neat in your background. Maybe your town even has a water fountain where you can sit on the ledge.

Towns are perfect for taking walking away or towards the photographer portraits, and if your town isn’t very busy at all you could even pose in the road. You most likely have some sort of interesting architecture or brick buildings around your town that are perfect for leaning against the wall portraits. Doorways are also perfect to pose in or in front of, especially if they have unique doors on them.

You can also get a mix of urban and nature if you take some down Main St. and then head over to your local park. Even if you feel like your park doesn’t have much to offer, there’s plenty of trees, benches, shrubbery, maybe a lake, and even some sort of building you can incorporate into your portraits.

What to Expect Each Season

Spring

Spring brings regrowth, which includes blooming flowers and greenery. Your town most likely has potted plants around businesses that would look beautiful in your portraits. This also means that any trees in the area will add a burst of color to your senior pictures as well.

Summer

Your town might get a little busy in the summer, so that may mean picnics and other events are taking place. This is a great time to utilize those events and take fun picnic, carnival, or festival portraits. If you’re just wanting to take some portraits now that it’s warmer out, this is the best time. You can even use overhangs on buildings for shade or even buy an ice cream for portraits and to keep you cooler.

Fall

With the leaves changing colors and fall arriving, it may also mean that your town is decorating with pumpkins and mums. These all make for beautiful backgrounds in your senior pictures. You may even have some fall festival’s that you want to incorporate into your session. Your local parks will be filled with amazing fall colors as well.

Winter

Your town may love to deck out for Christmas and have lots of Christmas lights around it that would look great in your senior pictures, or maybe you just want to wait for it to snow to take unique portraits in the town you love. Either way would give you a different senior session that would stand out amongst the rest of your class. You also can avoid the trees in the winter by taking portraits with mainly buildings as your background if you’re not necessarily looking for snow portraits, but still want a winter session.

Pricing and Accommodations

It’s most likely free to park in your hometown, and you can walk the streets 24/7. The only things that cost and will close are the local shops. Some towns have public restrooms, while others don’t. You may have to go into a business to use the restroom is necessary.

Address

Wherever your hometown is located.

Senior Pictures in their Hometown

Emily
Hometown
For Emily’s session, she wanted to bring along her VW Beetle, take some portraits in a wildflower field, snap some images with her kitty, and spend some time at Lafayette Park. We were able to accomplish just that by taking some of her portraits in…
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Katie
Hometown
For Katie’s senior pictures, we kept it so close to home that we were in her hometown. We also drove just a little bit further to stop at the Salem-Baum Church for a little more unique…
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Emmie
Hometown
Covid made porch portraits popular, so Emmie decided that there was no reason to leave her hometown, and decided to have a few 2020 graduation pictures taken right on her own…
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Kara | Musical Sports

Kara not only brought her flute to her session, but she also brought along her guitar and her bowling balls. Music is Kara’s first love, but she also was involved in bowling and wanted to show that off during her session. Since Kara’s session was in the spring, what better location than Bolm-Schuhkraft Park, as it’s filled with greenery. Scroll down to see her unique images!

Bolm-Schuhkraft Park

Bolm-Schuhkraft Park in Columbia, IL is perfect for a one-hour session. It offers a beautiful willow tree, open fields, a brick building, and plenty of woods for the background in your senior pictures.

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 Bolm-Schuhkraft Park

The open fields in Bolm-Schuhkraft Park are perfect for standing or sitting in the grass with trees behind you. This is the perfect place to bring along props to set out on the ground in front of you, act like you’re playing an instrument, spreading books out all around you, or even just sitting on a blanket.

There’s also a pine tree that’s perfect to lean against or sit under and surround yourself with pinecones and pine needles. You can even head to the back of the park to be fully engulfed in trees, feeling surrounded by nature. Or head over to the willow tree and stand inside all the branches for a lovely frame around you. One cedar tree on the premises even has a hole in it where you can climb underneath and sit under all the branches.

You can even sit on a picnic table under the pavilion or lay on a bench. If you are looking for some tennis player portraits, you can head over to the tennis courts. If you’re not a tennis player, you can still utilize the fence by standing behind it or leaning against it, and the net makes for great poses either sitting by or leaning on it. You can dip your toes in the sand over by the sand volleyball net. This is also perfect to utilize if you’re a volleyball player. Basketball players and rollerblade hockey players have courts as well that you can pose on, whether you play those sports or not.

There are even a couple brick buildings that you can lean or sit against to mix up the background a little bit. The buildings could even be in your background with you standing away from them and getting them as a blurred-out background. Bring some chalk along to write your graduating year on the brick. This is a great way to take some fun portraits where you’re point at your graduating year.

What to Expect Each Season

Spring

There aren’t very many flowers around this park, but the beautiful light greens and budding trees make Bolm-Schuhkraft Park great for spring portraits. With the open fields, you’ll even be able to get lovely puffy clouds in your backgrounds.

Summer

With all the trees around Bolm-Schuhkraft Park, that means there’s plenty of shade which is great to help beat the summer heat. There are a few places, like the open fields, that you can’t escape the sun, but there are plenty of spots where you can stay shady and get beautiful backgrounds as well.

Fall

Bolm-Schuhkraft Park is the perfect fall location since it’s surrounded by trees. This means there’s plenty of fall colors to go around. The highlight tree is a large oak that has a bunch of leaves on the ground all around it, making for the perfect location to sit in leaves or gather them up and toss them in the air.

Winter

With Bolm-Schuhkraft Park being surrounded by trees, there isn’t much to see in the winter. However, a good snow can turn this park into a winter wonderland and would be perfect for snow portraits. The trees would turn from leafless to snow covered, and the ground would be a blanket of white snow.

Pricing and Accommodations

Bolm-Schuhkraft is mostly quiet and absolutely free. It is open to the public 7 days a week. There are restrooms next to the tennis courts and near the pavilion that’s farthest back.

Address

1200 N Evergreen Ln, Columbia, IL 62236

Senior Pictures at Bolm-Schuhkraft Park

Brenna
Bolm-Schuhkraft Park
Brenna would make the perfect model someday between her fashion and personality. Her bubbly and easy-going personality made it so much fun to work with her. She made…
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Brittaney
Bolm-Schuhkraft Park
Talk about a musician, Brittaney played both upright bass and flute in high school, so she brought both of her instruments along to Bolm-Schuhkraft Park for the most unique…

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Kara
Bolm-Schuhkraft Park
Kara not only brought her flute to her session, but she also brought along her guitar and her bowling balls. Music is Kara’s first love, but she also was involved in…
Read More