Tips on Getting Ready for your Portraits

So you have booked or are thinking of booking a professional portrait session.

The most asked question from clients’ is what should I wear for my portrait session? I thought I’d share some of my top tips on helping you get ready. The key to a successful session is to plan early if you have the time (or as early as you can)! Sometimes, it just doesn’t happen like this Mother Daughter portrait session! We brainstormed somewhat last minute and I had mom send me her outfit ideas to provide feedback for their session. She had the cutest pink hair and we picked clothing that would compliment her hair.

So what should you wear?

A few tips on what to wear…

1. Be you! For the most part, you want you to wear what makes you, you! You don’t want to look back at your photos and not have regrets on your clothing choices. A few things to avoid are low necklines, tight or loose clothing, logos and busy prints, bras straps that show through, tan lines, etc.

2. Colors. Pick your colors based on the backdrop where you are getting photographed. Is it your home? Or outdoors? In general neutral colors work well in most settings but you might also want a pop of color to spice things up. Color always draws attention and there may be instances when you want it and other times you don’t. Of course, there are no hard and fast rules and sometimes rules have to be broken. For two people or a family, you want your colors to be coordinated but not matchy-matchy. Lay out your outfits together to see how the colors work.

3. Fit. I know this might seem like a no-brainer but at times when you clothes shop online, the fit may not be what you expected. You don’t want clothing that is too loose or too tight. Give yourself enough time to shop so you aren’t stuck with limited clothing options before your shoot. Trust your instincts as you know what looks flattering on you!

4. Make up. This depends on the type of your session. For most of the family shoots, my clients do their own make up and keep it fairly minimal. For my own family photos, I did go to my hair dresser the day before my session to have it styled as I am just not the greatest with blow-drying/straightening my hair. I knew I wouldn’t have time on the day of the session and it stayed pretty well behaved. Our session was at the beach and my somewhat wild hair fit right in. I could have probably gotten away without styling it too but I just knew it would take the pressure off me and make me feel confident. As far as make up, if you use it for a family session keep it natural.

5. Accessories and Shoes. These can often be overlooked for a session and it is important to have your footwear coordinate with your clothing. You don’t want to have really casual or bright shoes that would take over your otherwise put-together outfit. The other thing to keep in mind is the location. If you are out in wilderness, you might want to pack your portrait session shoes to swap out with your comfortable walking shoes once you arrive at the photo spot. Keep off big chunky jewelry that might draw too much attention. A pop of color with a scarf can be fun or fun socks if they work with your outfit.

Hope these tips can make your portrait session a breeze!

If you are looking for some more ideas, you can check out my Pinterest boards.

What to Wear – Style Guide

What to Wear – Lifestyle