When planning for a family portrait session, the question I'm asked most often is, "What should we wear?" So I thought I'd offer a few recommendations to help ensure your next family portrait session is smooth sailing!
1. Do arrive early
Just bolstering what I'm betting is already a natural instinct - plan to arrive at your portrait location about 10 minutes before your appointment. You'll have built in wiggle room - just in case of any last-minute hiccups; or perhaps to provide an opportunity for little ones to run around, drain a little excess energy, and exercise their curiosity for a new place.
2. Do avoid high-contrast clothing
I strongly suggest avoiding the white shirt/black pants combination. Any combination of extreme light + dark is more challenging to photograph than clothing that is closer in brightness. The above photo is an awesome example of clients choosing clothing with just the right amount of contrast.
3. Do use a color palette
I love it when families wear clothing that goes, but doesn't match. I suggest choosing two or three colors to work from, selecting an outfit for each family member, then laying them all together to see how they blend. The families pictured above and below did an excellent job with clothing choices!
4. Do keep looking at the photographer
This one is especially for you, parents. As difficult as it is, I heartily suggest resisting the urge to glance at the kids; instead, just keep looking at your photographer. That way, when The Golden Moment arrives and all the little ones are looking at the camera at the same time, you are, too!
