It is that time of year, the time for family portraits. Fall is a beautiful season to capture your family memories but once you decide this is the year for portraits, your next thought might be, “What are we going to wear???”. Dramatic, maybe, but picking clothes for portraits can be overwhelming when you are dealing with several personalities and personal tastes in clothing. I am happy to work with my clients to coordinate outfits for a custom portrait session but here are a few steps to help you get started because great clothes make amazing portraits.
1 – Select Coordinating Outfits but not Matching Outfits. To start this process I recommended selecting one piece of clothing that is your main color and then choosing other complimentary colors to coordinate in different ways to the main color. Mix stripes, plaids and other textures as long as they are within the same color palette. Try to keep balance with the family – you do not want one family member having a darker, brighter or lighter outfit because the eye will naturally go to what is different. When in you do not know where to start, go with mom’s outfit and build the rest of the outfits from that point.
2 – Simplicity. I recommend staying away from trends, logos, characters, or other selections that could date your portraits. Many families do not get custom family portraits yearly, so timeless clothing selections will age better on your wall. Add textures and layers for interest. However, stay away from outfits where everyone matches for example, white shirts with jeans.
3 – Details. Pay attention to the little details. Socks, clean shoes, ironed clothes, neutral nail polish. If your selected color palette is darker colors you would not want white sneakers or socks because they will stand out in a portrait. Look at every outfit from head to toe to ensure that is matches your selected color palette. The details count, do not forget to iron all outfits. Check finger nails, you do not want chipped dark nail polish because it can be seen. You are investing time and money into a custom portrait session, take the time to ensure everything has been reviewed. Professional hair and makeup is a splurge but it is decision you will never regret. Click HERE for a blog post on professional hair and makeup.
4 – Accessories. Adding layers to outfits adds interests and pleases the eye when looking at a portrait. Accessories can be added with scarfs, jewelry, hats, jackets, fun boots like cowboy or rain boots, hats, suspenders or ties/bowties for little boys, hair bows or floral wreaths for little girls. If you have a great old quilt from grandma – bring it!
5 – Comfort. Many family sessions include small children. Select comfortable clothes and shoes. When I shoot a session, we move around a lot because it keeps children entertained and happy. Select shoes that are easy to walk in and clothing that moves and do not itch.
6 – Fun. Remember to have fun! Wanting the perfect family portrait can be stressful after all you have spent time, thought and money into just making it to the appointment. Take a deep breath and let me do my job! As a professional photographer it is my job to get the shot. I work with all family members to help them relax and capture both the staged and natural moments.
