Question:  What happens if it's cloudy on my session day and the sun isn't out? Will my pictures turn out HORRIBLE?!?!?! 

Answer: NO!!!  I know it's awful to think about.  Rain on your portrait, or wedding day. You think your photos are going to be horrible. It's gloomy and cloudy and just down right nasty.  You will hate them all!

READERS REJOICE!!!

It does not have to be sunny to capture amazing photos for you or your family.  I know the heartbreak you feel when it rains the day of your photos, but if you are willing, you can get some wonderful portraits that you can't even tell were raining/wet. 

One of the benefits when choosing a professional photographer, and one that has been certified with Professional Photographers of America, is having reassurance that your photographer WILL get you great portraits.  

I live in Michigan, so lets be real...the weather here is not always stellar!  And really, when can you trust the meteorologist to be correct in their predictions?  Being able to produce consistent great portraiture is something I have worked very hard at, and still continue to do so for the best interest of my clients.  In school, I was taught how to bend light, use additive and subtractive lighting, and utilize my surroundings to create amazing portraits for my clients.  Becoming a certified professional photographer, it's not only a pretty certificate on my studio wall, it instills confidence in my clients that I will give them nothing but the best!

 Here are a just a couple of insights and tips to make you feel better if it happens to be gloomy on your portrait day!

1.) You won't have to squint!

-I rarely shoot in direct sunlight anyways because this type of lighting is just not flattering, and it's often WAY to bright.  Ever been on the beach with the sun blaring down and you have no sun glasses?  Yup! your eyes water, and you begin to squint, barely keeping them open.  Now imagine that in your portraits.

2.) No ruined locations + creating unique locations!!

-I always tell my clients that when I look at a location, I look for the best lighting.  You can take an AMAZING location, and put crappy lighting on it, and it will become a crappy location.  You find a crappy location that has beautiful lighting, and you will have a beautiful location!! I don't know how many times I have gone somewhere with a client to have the sun beating down on the spot they thought they wanted to shoot, making that location useless!  Let your photographer suggest a great place for you to photograph instead, and you will be amazed at what photos you get!  

3.) You get to use multiple outfits

-So there is some rain..why not get wet? If you have a few different outfit options, you can use them all now! Use one for dry portraits indoors somewhere, and then use some to get wet and play!  You will be amazed at how much fun you will have at your session!

4.) Embrace the rain..you will have more unique and amazing photos than everyone else!!

-I always have on hand some fun and colorful umbrellas and suggest bringing rain boots.  I am all for photographing in the rain, (or in Michigan..snow).  These will give you some amazingly creative photos that will make your portraits so much different than everyone else's!  So embrace the weather(clouds, rain or snow) and create some picture perfect art. 

Don't forget the amazing reflection photos you can get in the puddles too!!:)

So hopefully this post was inspiring to you for any rainy day sessions you may come across.  An important tip to take away is that professional photographers dedicate their careers and art to creating amazing images for you.  They know how to get the perfect shot in any situation. Before choosing one for your portraits or wedding, ask them to show you some difficult lighting situations or difficult circumstances that they have had to shoot in and how they handled it.  This way you won't have any surprises when you get your proofs back. You can have the utmost confidence your photographer will capture the perfect image for you no matter what!

Not sure how to find one? PPA has their own website, Find a Photographer, that will show you by area their members and will also show you which ones are Certified Professional Photographers.