Deciding what to wear on your family photo session can be just as challenging as finding the most perfect and popular portrait photographer. After all, these are the photos that are going to be featured on the photo wall of your house and cherish for many years to come. It may seem overwhelming to choose the perfect outfit that could make or break your family frame.
Whether you are looking for fun beach picnic outfits or fall family photo outfits, use these tips to help you select the perfect looking outfit for you and your family.
Coordinating colours not matching
Long gone are the days when everyone used to match a white shirt. You don’t have to get every member of the family to buy a white shirt and jeans to nail your family portraits. Allow different personalities to shine with different colors and patterns. Pick a colour scheme and let everyone wear clothes of their choice – following that colour scheme.
Accessories
Accessories not only add a pop to your outfit, but they can also act as props in photos. Have the man wear a tie and allow the lady to hold it; sunglasses for the boys; necklaces for the girls to play with or big hats to hide behind.
Remember, the idea is not to capture still and perfect moments. Family photos are all about the fun and candid side of a family.
Limited patterns
Personally, I like having such an outfit in the frame, which has all the colors in it. However, not everyone in the photo should go with patterns as it may look distracting.
Consider picking one outfit at first that has a lot of fun patterns or colours now get all the people to work out their outfits accordingly. This gives you plenty of choices when picking your coordinating colors.
Say no to characters (unless it’s a theme)
Yes, your little one may be obsessed with their Toy Story shirt these days, but you may want to leave it at home for the family photo session – unless you are going to have a Toy Story themed shoot.
Just like patterns, characters on shirts are also pretty distracting as they can make your photo look too busy.
Befriend textures
I am the biggest fan of a cotton fitted t-shirt (who isn’t thou). However, in photos, I like to add textures like belts, scarves, or jackets to add a little more wow to the image. Don’t shy away from experimenting with different textures.
By adding more textures through accessories or the material of your outfits, you are adding depth, interest, and pop to your photos.