Welcome to the Melanie Foster Blog

celebrating OU seniors and Bartlesville and Tulsa families through photography.

Hey, y’all! 

I’m Melanie, the girl behind the lens at Melanie Foster Photography. Whether you’re getting ready for your upcoming OU senior or your Bartlesville or Tulsa family photography experience, I hope you’ll stay a while, pick up a few tips, and be inspired for your own MFP photo session! 

Colorful Graduation Photos | 2020 OU Senior | Meghan G.

Seniors

OU senior smiles for spring senior photos

I love these colorful spring graduation photos! And I LOVED my time with Meghan! She is soft spoken, easy to be around, and we bonded over one of our favorite things – shopping! After following Meghan on Instagram the last few months, I knew she was going to have the cutest outfits and they did NOT disappoint. This girl has the best style! We talked about how much fun the colors were in her outfit choices and I love that she personalized her shoot in this way!

Meghan started her OU career pursuing a degree in psychology, and just a few years later, she graduated with a Graphic Design degree! Talk about a 180! Meghan and I got to chat a lot about her bonus years and how they ended up being her favorite – she ended up randomly living with a big group of Thetas that I photographed last year. She loved getting out of her comfort zone and meeting a ton of new people throughout that year! I think Meghan is one of my most photogenic girls – it got me thinking that I should do a senior superlatives for each senior class of MFP girls haha.

On an unrelated note, I am really proud of my work this season. But I will say that even after shooting for the last 8-9 years and growing in my style and skillset each year, I recently felt like I was in a bit of a rut. I found myself being challenged by scenarios that I know how to shoot in – lighting scenarios that I know how to maximize but couldn’t quite get just right, getting stuck in posing, not composing as creatively as I know I am capable of. I invested in a Lighting and Locations course over Memorial Day weekend – one that covers a lot of simple and foundational things. Here’s why – it never hurts to dust things off and revisit the basics. There are core principles like backlighting, composition, wisely choosing locations, and seeing the image and layout before you start shooting it. I am also intentionally working to recognize my patterns – both good and bad. I know that when I start shooting a client, I should begin with the close ups, back up for the medium and wide shots, and then move back in again in a different posing and directing set to capture consistent variety. For some reason I’m not as cognizant of that pattern and I end up being a little more loose and maybe not quite as polished as what I expect of myself. Even after reviewing just the first half of the lighting and locations course, I already felt more confident, and noticed a major difference on the shoots that followed.

Why did I make this big investment? Because I always want to be growing. I have a heart for serving you well from your initial email to your final gallery delivery, and no matter what season we’re celebrating together. I always want to be building…relationally with my clients, improving the full MFP experience, and perfecting my craft. But as much as it is about beautiful images, it is also about so much more than that. God has given me this good gift of my talents, resources, and business, and I want to steward it well.

Thank you for investing in me & for trusting me to capture your precious memories. It is an honor.

View more OU senior photos!

colorful graduation photos at ou senior smiles for graduation photos at OU graduation regalia photo bright and springy graduation photos at the university of oklahoma colorful graduation photos for OU senior with confetti OU senior smiles for spring senior photos

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