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san clemente • cajulie irene
Photography

high school seniors · San Clemente & orange county

Senior Portraits

They spent eighteen years becoming exactly who they are. These portraits are the proof of it — before the chapter closes and the next one begins.

● Inquire for more info ●
high school senior girl on cliff in san clemente

for the woman who blinked and there baby is graduating

You've been watching your kid become someone remarkable.

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Senior portraits are not for the yearbook. They are for you — the parent who has been there for every version of who they have become. The portraits that go on the shelf, make it into the graduation speech, and end up framed in a house of their own someday.

 

A senior session at Julie Irene Photography is a real experience. A consultation to plan everything in advance. A full session on the day, directed from start to finish. Images that look like your kid at their actual best — not a costume version of them.

 

Boys and girls both. Studio and on location anywhere in Orange County. Hair and makeup available as an add-on. Twenty years of knowing how to get a genuine, confident portrait out of a teenager.

the session options

A session built around your senior — from the first call to the portrait on the wall.
01
The consultation

Before anything is booked, we connect to plan session style, location, wardrobe, and what you want to walk away with. Pricing is covered here. By the time session comes around you and your senior will be fully prepared.

02
Hair & Makeup

Available as an add-on for senior girls. Happens the day of the session at your home or in-studio with a professional artist. That two hours changes how your senior walks into the session — and it shows in every frame.

03
Session Day

One to two hours, directed from start to finish. Studio, on location, or both. Families are encouraged at the end for a separate set of portraits together. No wasted time, no uncertain moments.

04
Session Day

A private ordering appointment one to two weeks after the session to see the images and choose wall art, albums, and prints. Digital files within two to three weeks. Lab prints within three to five weeks of approval.

who this is for

A mom who is booking this for herself. She just doesn't say that out loud.

She has been the one behind the camera for most of their life. The phone photos at every game, every recital, every first day of school. None of those are on her wall. None of them look the way she remembers it feeling.

 

Senior portraits are the one session where she gets to see her kid the way she has always seen them — at their best, on purpose, captured by someone who knows how to make that happen. Not for the yearbook. For her.

 

The portrait that goes on her desk when they leave. The one she looks at when the house gets quiet. The one that is completely, unmistakably them.

 

Twenty years of doing this means knowing how to get that image out of a kid who walked in skeptical. Getting teenagers to relax, engage, and look genuinely like themselves — that is the whole job, and it works every time.

Session details

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BEST TIMING - Junior year or summer before senior year. Before applications and activities fill the calendar. Book early for fall availability.

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LENGTH - One to two hours. Add 1.5 hours if hair and makeup are included. Family add-on is approximately 30 minutes at the end.

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LOCATION - Studio in San Clemente, on location anywhere in Orange County, or a combination of both in a single session.

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HAIR & MAKEUP - Available as an add-on for senior girls. Done at your home or the studio the day of the session with a professional artist.

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FAMILY ADD-ON - Family portraits added immediately after the senior portion. About 30 minutes. Mention it at the consultation so time is built in.

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INVESTMENT - Session fee from $395. Image collections from $1,590. Most senior clients invest between $1,590 and $6,000. All pricing discussed at the consultation

WHILE YOU HAVE EVERYONE TOGETHER

Add family portraits to the senior session.

After the senior portion wraps, we bring the family in for a set of portraits together. It takes about thirty minutes. The images last a lot longer than that.

 

For a lot of families in Orange County, this is the last time everyone will be in the same place before their senior leaves for college, moves out, and starts building a life of their own. The family that exists right now is worth documenting before it changes.

 

It doesn't have to be a production. It is thirty minutes at the end of an existing session. The kind of thing you look back on in ten years and are glad you did.

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the investment

No surprises. Talked through before the session, never after.

Session fees cover the full experience — consultation, session day, and private design and ordering appointment. Images are selected at the ordering appointment, where wall art, albums, and print collections are available. Most senior clients invest between $1,590 and $6,000.

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$395 | Weekday Session Fee

Full senior session — consultation, session day, and ordering appointment. Images purchased separately at the ordering appointment.

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$495 | Weekend Session Fee

Same full experience. Weekend availability is limited — book early.

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$1,590 | Image Collections · From

Portrait Collections starts at $1,590 and includes eight matted prints with matching fully edited digital files.

Senior portrait photographer serving Orange County

SAN CLEMENTE | DANA POINT | LAGUNA NIGUEL | LAGUNA BEACH | SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO | IRVINE |
NEWPORT BEACH | MISSION VIEJO | ALISO VIEJO | COTO DE CAZA | LADERA RANCH | ALISO VIEJO

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★ ★ ★ ★ ★

"He came in with his arms crossed. He left asking if we could see the images right then. That is not something I expected from my seventeen-year-old. "

Nicole • IRVINE, CA

Questions about Senior Portrait Sessions

Everything parents ask before book — from timing to hair and makeup to senior boys to the family add-on. If something isn't answered here, call the studio at (949) 887-5928.

When should we schedule high school senior portraits in Orange County?

Junior year or early summer before senior year is the ideal window. Senior year fills up fast — college applications, sports, activities — and the best session dates book early. Summer before senior year is the most popular time. If you are already in senior year, reach out today. Waiting for things to slow down is not a strategy that works with senior year.

Do you photograph senior portraits for boys?

Yes — and senior boys are a particular specialty at this studio. The portfolio has more senior boy images than any other senior type, because real work has gone into figuring out exactly how to get a genuine, confident portrait out of a seventeen-year-old who arrived skeptical. The session is fast and directed. By the end, most boys are asking when they can see the images. Their moms are usually surprised.

What should my senior wear for their portrait session?

Wardrobe is covered in detail at the consultation before the session. Most seniors bring two to four outfits — something casual that feels like them, something that reflects their personality or interests, and something more polished. The goal is portraits that look like them at their actual best, not a formal version of themselves. Avoid large logos or anything that will date quickly. For senior girls, hair and makeup is available as an add-on and is done at the studio the morning of the session.

Do you offer hair and makeup for senior portrait sessions?

Hair and makeup is available as an add-on for senior girls. It happens at the studio in San Clemente the morning of the session, with a professional artist on hand from start to finish. It is not just about how the portraits look — it changes how your senior feels walking into the session. That confidence is visible in every frame.

How long does a high school senior portrait session take?

Most senior sessions run one to two hours. If hair and makeup are included, plan for an additional hour to an hour and a half at the studio or at your home before the session begins. If a family add-on is planned, account for approximately thirty minutes at the end. The session itself moves efficiently — which works in everyone's favor when you are photographing a teenager.

What does a senior portrait session cost in San Clemente or Orange County?

Session fees start at $395 for weekday sessions and $495 for weekend sessions. Image collections start at $1,590 — the 8 Portrait Collection includes eight matted prints with matching fully edited digital files. Most senior clients invest between $1,590 and $6,000 once wall art, albums, and digital files are selected. All pricing is discussed at the consultation before the session, so there are no surprises at the ordering appointment.

Can we add family portraits to a senior portrait session?

Yes, and many families do. After the senior portion wraps, the family comes in together for portraits — typically about thirty minutes. For a lot of families in Orange County, this is the last time everyone will be in the same place before their senior leaves for college. It takes almost no time relative to what you get. Mention it at the consultation and it will be built into the plan.

How do I book a senior portrait session at Julie Irene Photography in San Clemente?

Call the studio at (949) 887-5928 or reach out through the contact page. A consultation — by phone or in person at the studio — covers everything: session style, location, wardrobe, timing, pricing. One conversation is usually all it takes to have the whole thing handled, before anything is booked or paid for.

You might also be thing about

Book a separate family session before the next chapter of your family begins.

If grandparents and multiple generations are together for the graduation, this is the session for that moment.

See the full range of Growing Families portrait sessions available at the studio

before senior year becomes a memory.

Let's make sure you have portraits worthy of this chapter.

Book a consultation and we'll talk through everything — the style, the timing, what you want to walk away with. Twenty years of experience. A private studio in San Clemente. A small number of seniors on the calendar each season.

WS

Julie Irene Photography, a luxury portrait studio in San Clemente, California. Newborn, family, maternity, headshots and personal branding for Orange County

san clemente, ca

Follow @JULIEIRENE

Summer is almost upon us.  This is the time of year the whole family may actually be in the same place. 

Cousins running around and having fun.  The grandparents getting all their hugs and snuggles in with the grandkids. Someone is grilling and there is always that one complaining about the sand or heat.  And sadly, nobody has thought about portraits — because why would they? The moment feels infinite.

It isn't.

I've been photographing families for almost 20 years, and the sessions I think about most are the extended family ones.  Not because they are the most complicated to coordinate (they are), but because I feel they are the most important.  From personal experience I had these done before my father passed and those photos I treasure the most.

If your family is together this summer, it's worth a conversation with everyone to make it happen.

My studio is in San Clemente. Sessions booked by retainer, and summer fills faster than people expect.  If you've been thinking about reaching out, the sooner the better.
This studio session brought four generations into one room. The daughter who organized it got everyone together before her niece flew back to Idaho with a baby due in June. Sessions like this don't happen on accident. Studio or beach, the harder part is getting everyone in the same place. If yours is going to be in one place this year, this is the kind of session it makes.

#sanclementephotographer #orangecountyfamilyphotographer #extendedfamilyphotos #fourgenerations #studioportraits

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