The pre-Mitzvah portrait session has quietly become one of our favourite shoots. There’s no schedule, no hundred guests, no clergy — just an hour or two to make portraits that actually look like your kid at thirteen. Here are ideas that work.
Start with what they actually love
The best sessions are built around a real interest, not a generic backdrop. If she plays travel soccer, we shoot at the field at golden hour with the ball and the cleats. If he produces music in his bedroom, we shoot with the headphones and the keyboard. The prop is a way in — it gives a nervous kid something to do, and it dates the photos in the best way.
- Sports — the field, court, rink or pool; uniform and street clothes
- Music — instrument, headphones, a stage or a practice space
- Gaming / tech / coding — the setup, the glow of the screens, a controller
- Dance — a studio, movement frames, pointe shoes
- Art — paint-covered hands, a sketchbook, the mess
- Skate / bike / outdoors — a skatepark, a trail, motion
- Animals — bring the dog
Location ideas around Long Island and NYC
City rooftops and subway platforms for an older, cooler look; the beach and the boardwalk for summer sessions; downtown main streets for a warm, walkable feel; the woods and the water for the outdoorsy kids. If the family is up for it, a short train ride into the city changes the whole energy of the session.
Styling notes
- Bring two or three outfits — one they’d actually wear, one a step dressier.
- Skip brand-new clothes with fold lines and stiff fabric.
- Solid colours and texture photograph better than logos and loud patterns.
- Let them have a say. A kid who chose the outfit stands differently.
How the images get used
Pre-Mitzvah portraits become the sign-in board, the invitation and save-the-date, images woven into the montage video, framed prints for the party and the house, and thank-you cards afterward. Booking the session two to three months before the date leaves time to design all of it without a rush. It pairs naturally with event-day photography from the same team.
Richard Black Studio covers weddings, Bar & Bat Mitzvahs, Sweet 15 & 16 celebrations and special events across Long Island and New York — photography, films and professional live streaming from one team. Tell us what you’re planning and we’ll send availability and a quote.