| What to wear GENERALLY When deciding what to wear for your portrait session, the number one thing to consider is comfort! Make sure that your clothing feels good and makes YOU feel good wearing it. That confidence will come across in your photos. If you’d prefer more traditional portraits, there are some “traditional” clothing guidelines to follow: Simple garments tend to photograph best, so try to avoid bold stripes, patterns, plaids, loud prints, logos, and other designs. Favor solid colors in medium to dark tones — which are the most flattering and slimming — such as black, brown, burgundy, rust, green or blue. These traditional guidelines are all well and good, but I’ve always been of the opinion that rules are made to be broken — at least in photography! So below you’ll find what I think are some good clothing ideas and bad clothing ideas for all kinds of portrait sessions . . . NEWBORNS and BABIES Newborns and babies are easy: they photograph best in their birthday suits! I’ll take mostly naked shots, but if a diaper is eventually necessary, you might consider substituting a cloth one for plastic one, or have a frilly diaper cover. Another good idea: a simple white onesie, or any other cute little onesie you’ve been dying to get his or her photo in. And hats make great accessories for babies. Cute props that have sentimental meaning to your family are great too. If your family loves football, bring a football, if your grandmother knitted a hat or blanket for the baby, BRING IT!!! TODDLERS and KIDS Good ideas: • Bright, bold colors • Big patterns — bright stripes, large polka dots, or whimsical prints • Jeans • Layers, such as skirts with fun tights, or shirts with cute jackets • Pretty dresses for girls, especially white cotton or eyelet dresses • Sweaters with hoods, for both boys and girls • No shirt at all, for boys • Jammies • Hats — stocking hats, tasseled hats, straw hats, cowboy/girl hats, etc. • Tiaras, tutus, butterfly wings • Superhero capes • Ribbons and bows in the hair • Funky rain boots, or bright-colored cowboy/girl boots • Winter coats with fur on the hood • Bring along a teddy bear, favorite cute toy or blankie, etc. • Striped socks • Bare feet Not-so-good ideas: • Shirts with big logos or characters • Tops with words on them • Very small patterns, like skinny stripes or tiny polka-dots FAMILIES These are tips for moms and dads who want to be in photographs with their kids. Good ideas: • Go casual! Dressing everyone in their “play clothes” will allow everyone to feel like themselves and have fun. • Everyone wearing similar, coordinated tones, like light and dark blue with some pink and white mixed in — but NOT everyone in the same color! • Everyone in jeans Not-so-good ideas: • Everyone in the exact same color (matching colors should be different tones) • Matching outfits COUPLES For an engagement shoot, I recommend that both of you bring at least two outfits — one dressier, one more casual. Just make sure your styles match! Good ideas: • Solid colors or patterns that are easy on the eyes • Fitted clothes — that aren’t too baggy or too tight • Jeans! • Ladies: pair your jeans with a dressy top. Men: pair them with a button-down. Or both of you put on your favorite worn-in T-shirts! • Layers — vests, blazers, jackets, etc. • Ladies: your little black dress • Dresses in bright colors or with large patterns look great on women • Big chunky necklaces for ladies • Women: Bright-colored pumps that contrast with your outfit • Hats, scarves, or sunglasses • Aim for hip, trendy, high-fashion in urban, modern, or grungy locations • Aim for sweet and romantic in nature-y, outdoorsy locations • Women: A manicure, because your hands will be in a lot of photos Not-so-good ideas: • Clothing with very small patterns, like skinny stripes or tiny polka-dots • Solids in super-bright colors, like bright orange or lime green • Horizontal stripes • Clothes that are too baggy or too tight • Super-low cut tops or short skirts • Tops with words on them • Watches and rings — other than your engagement ring • One of you dressy, one of you casual Weddings Obviously you will be wearing your wedding attire, but make sure that someone in the wedding party is in charge of your jewelery, hair, make-up, bouquet, and corsages. This person can follow us around while taking pictures and make sure everything is in place and can touch up your hair and make-up when necessary. This is a BIG day and there are a lot of things to remember. Delegate, delegate, delegate. MATERNITY Good ideas: • Your pre-maternity jeans–unbuttoned, of course! • Black or white solid-colored tops • Yoga pants • Pretty skirts with belly bands you can push below your belly • Button-down shirts left unbuttoned over your belly • A form-fitting black dress • A long, chunky sweater jacket that you can leave open to expose your belly • Sun-dresses • A manicure, because your hands will be in a lot of photos Not-so-good ideas: • Clothing that is too baggy — you gotta show off that bump! FINAL TIPS FOR EVERYONE Your session fee includes unlimited clothing changes, so please feel free to bring more than one outfit along! We can experiment to see what works. Finally, I recommend that everyone bring chapstick so that your lips don’t look dry! |