Feb 1, 20214 min read

What to Wear to Your Family Portrait Session

Updated: Feb 10, 2021

Do Clothes Really Make The Portrait?

More than any other question, clients ask what they should wear to their family session. Coordinating your outfits can be a daunting task, but it doesn’t have to be! While clothes aren’t the most important factor in portraiture, you should be aware that they are just as important lighting, location and posing. Even if everything else is chosen perfectly, poorly selected clothing can take away from an otherwise amazing portrait. The selection of appropriate clothing for your family portrait is a critical aspect. If the clothing you choose is noticeable or loud, it could easily become a distraction. Clothing that does not attract attention to itself is the ultimate goal, it could be the difference between a very successful portrait and just another picture. All attention should be on the family members themselves.

How to choose your color scheme?

Keep your family’s clothing simple and coordinating. As a rule of thumb, you should choose 1 to 3 colors for your group portrait, ones with similar tones that go nicely together. Then you should have everyone in the group pick the clothes within the chosen color palette. (The family I featured in this post started with the youngest daughters clothing and pulled their pops of navy and plum from her top. They were able to incorporate plum into the mothers shirt and both dad and brother's button down shirts. The navy plays off the demin and the navy sweater for the son. The small gray stripes even pulled in the older daughter and Dad's sweaters). Want a fail-proof formula? Put most of the family in different neutral shades (i.e. ivory, gray or beige) and then add a few pops of coordinating color. If your photographer is taking a group shot and you’re all wearing the same color, it’ll look a bit staged – a mix of coordinating colors can look more natural. Solid colors are generally best: small patterns in clothing (even a small herring-bone or checkered pattern) can cause terrible distortions to appear in the portrait that were not originally there. Think textures instead of patterns. Lighter shirts on top give the pictures a more casual and bright look, pastels are also usually appealing because they enhance natural skin tones, while black or other dark shirts on top give the portraits a more serious and thoughtful feel (not to mention that black is slimming). White shirts and/or blouses under a dark jacket are perfect. Keeping a group dressed in similar colors focuses the attention to the faces and individuals that make up the portrait.

Where do you even start?

When planning a wardrobe for a family session I always suggest that you start with the moms outfit. The first and most important decision is to make sure that you feel beautiful and comfortable in your outfit. Whatever makes you feel good is the easy answer! Be honest, if you don’t like the way that you look, will anyone ever see these photos you’re working so hard to put together? Above all, if you feel good, you will look good! Choose clothing that gives you freedom of movement, keeps you warm/cool, and won’t require a lot of maintenance throughout your session. I suggest avoiding sleeveless tops (especially if you have a baby and might throw them up in the air), and tops that will expose your bra straps. It’s way easier to visualize the whole puzzle once you know what one piece looks like! Always good ideas to choose from: maxi & midi dresses, fitted tops tucked into long skirts, A-line, dresses/coats, tunic-length shirts, either fitted or flowy, cardigan/blazer over fitted shirt and scarves.

Need ideas for the kids?

For the children, choose outfits that fit well without a lot of “growing room”. Avoid text or graphics on your clothes. Words will draw attention away from your faces. The kids’ clothes should work well in motion so that we can play during your session (think flying, tickling, and hanging upside down). Easy choices for daughters are everything listed for mom, plus these optional accessories: headbands, hats, bows and tights. Easy choices for sons are everything listed for dad, plus these optional accessories: suspenders, bowtie, caps and high-top sneakers/Vans. If your daughter hates wearing dresses, don’t force her to wear one for picture day. If your son thinks that bowtie is uncomfortable, ditch it. Happy kids make for happy photos! Teens have their OWN sense of style – I love to let them express it however they wish. Especially if teens think that having family photos done is not cool letting them express themselves through their clothing will let them feel like they had control over something.

And, last, but not least?

Dads can be the anchor in a family wardrobe by simply matching a plain cotton button-down or polo shirt to a color you have already used in someone else’s outfit and pairing it with jeans or casual trousers. Try to stick to shirts designed to be worn untucked (it’s really hard to keep shirts tucked in when you’re playing with your kids). Button-downs with sleeves rolled up to elbows still look nice, but give a more casual look. In cooler weather sweaters layered over collared shirts, especially if they’re textured (think chunky knits) are a nice touch. If he’s conscious of carrying a little extra weight, avoid tops that are too fitted. Lightweight cotton T-shirts don’t photograph well and shorts are also best avoided unless it’s a scorching day, as they can be quite distracting in photographs and affect where a photograph can be cropped.

Lay out all the clothing onto a bed. Tops, pants, socks, stockings – everything should be included…shoes, too! Then, take a careful look at the collection. If your eye goes to any one item in particular, you can be certain that the same thing will happen in a photograph. That item should be changed. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to ask me before your portrait session. See you at your session!