Fer Real Friday: What should I wear for my pictures?!

‘Fer real…I get this question all the time.It’s practically inevitable; we talk about the location, the weather, and the details of the session and then I get an email a few days before my sessions with,

“do you have any suggestions about what to wear for our photos?!”

And I always respond by saying, wear what you like, and what is comfortable.  Wear something that reflects you and your style.

I believe in that.  I am not a fan of influencing people’s style choices or their vision for what they feel would look best in their photos–because truth be told, it is MY job to make you look good regardless of what you wear.  Part of what makes my job interesting and fun is that moment when my clients arrive and I have to decide what area of our location would compliment their outfits, eye color, hair color, and personality best.  To me, it’s exciting!

Most people already know what colors look best on themselves.  What compliments their hair color, or eyes.  What patterns make them look funny etc.  And if I don’t know you yet, it’s hard for me to help with that.  I will do my best, but ultimately you HAVE to wear something that YOU like.

If I were dressing for my family, the two things I would stay away from would be big bold patterns–like size big–and everyone wearing the same exact outfit.  For example, I don’t think it’s flattering on many people to wear big blocks of color on the same piece.  I recently saw an engagement session where the woman wore a cute dress, but the left and right were black and the middle was beige.  In every picture all I could focus on was the dress, it was very distracting.   Also, years ago it was common for everyone to wear a white shirt and jeans–to me, that type of coordination is now dated and it takes away a certain dynamic from photos.

{This is sort-of what the dress looked like….good enough to give you an idea.}

{This is the white shirt type of photo I was talking about.}

Let me just say, if these are the types of things you like, and they scream YOU then do it! By all means.  Your photos are YOURS, and you have to live with them, so do what you like (did I say that already?)

However, there are tons of helpful guides and images on the internet now to help you if you want to have a more modern, and dynamic look for your photos.  And it doesn’t have to be expensive! All I did was go on Pintrest and there is Pinspiration abound!  If you don’t have pintrest, good old google will do the trick too!  I just typed in, “what to wear for family photos.”  Here are some of my favorite finds….

This is a great inspiration board for both color and style!  I love the combination of dresses, shirts, button downs, polos, and accessories that tie different color pallets together.  It helps give photos dynamic and depth, and helps reflect everyones individual personality.  It’s all about picking a few colors that you like, and tying them all together.

Here are some great examples of family photos that used this same concept:

{disclaimer: none of these photos are mine, they were all found on pintrest}

With each of these photos, you can see how they chose three of four colors they liked and accessorized, and dressed each person with those colors in mind.

Another thing to keep in mind, is the season.  If you are taking pictures in the summer, bright airy colors are always a good choice.  Whereas if you are taking pictures in the fall, you may want more earthy tones.  Here are a few more inspiration boards along those lines:

{A great color scheme for summer photos!!  Super fun and vibrant. I love the use of small print patterns here!}

{A great color combo for either spring or summer! Very sophisticated and classy.}

{Beautiful fall earthy colors.  Picture leaves turning colors and browns starting to appear everywhere.  LOVE!}

{A more muted fall choice, but fun and vibrant at the same time!}

{A great winter color scheme.  I can picture this family walking through a snowy park together!}

Now, if you are a fan of the same color shirt photo, here is an idea. Instead of this: 

Try doing something like this:

Everyone is wearing blue, but they are not exactly the same.  There are a few different color blues and the style choice for each person shines through clearly.  This is fairly easy to accomplish especially for those big family photos.  All you have to do is tell everyone what color to wear and that’s it.  Don’t get specific with the type of outfit, just the color.  Typically everyone shows up in their own style but wearing the color of choice!!  This is another great option!!!

That’s my $.02 for today folks!!  In the end, however, its all about wearing what you like; ‘fer real!!