How to dress your family for your Autumn Family Session
/You’re all booked for a family session! If you’re anything like me, you’re looking forward to having photos of your crazy, unique family but you’re a little bit nervous about actually getting them taken. I get it.
I can promise you that once you’re there, I have you covered, but there are a few things you can do to reduce the stress and anxiety before the day. The first one on the list is outfit choices.
It may be a surprise to you that the outfits you choose to wear have a huge impact on the look of your final photos, but they really do! Everything from the style to the colours and the textures subtly change the feel of your images. If trying to come up with outfits leaves you in a panic then you’re in the right place, here are my top tips.
1.Start with Mum
I’m making a big assumption here, so ignore this if it doesn’t apply for you and your family, but usually the hardest person to dress is mum. We are the ones who are often feeling the most self conscious as well as the hardest to find the perfect clothing for. Once You have the perfect outfit for mum, you can build everyone else’s outfits from there. Loose dresses, nice tops and jeans, jumpsuits… whatever suits your style. Pair them with chunky knit cardis for a cosy autumn feel.
2. Complement but don’t match
An entire family wearing matching white t shirts makes a statement, but not necessarily the one you’re going for! Matching outfits will quickly look dated and distract from the goal - Capturing your beautiful families personalities and connection. Choosing outfits that look good together is the goal. Look for an outfit collection that have a variety of colours and textures with maybe one or two items that are patterned at the most.
3. Neutrals, neons and everything in between.
Okay, this is a big one and does involve some ‘dos’ and ‘don’ts’.
DO - Mix a variety of neutral shades (ivory, beige, brown, grey, camel) with carefully selected colours.
DO - Choose colours which complement your skin and are picked out well by the camera. Muted and jewel colours are usually good options.
DON’T - Wear any bright or neon colours, even if you usually love them! I love colour but it has the unfortunate effect of causing ‘colour casts’ on yours and your families skin as well as being distracting. Cameras also struggle to keep these very bright colours true whilst also being kind to people.
DON’T - Choose clothing with Logos, text and bold patterns. Much like with neons, these are distracting and take away from the real purpose of the photos. No body can help reading what’s written on your shirt! Gentle patterns (when paired with block colours and neutrals) can be absolutely beautiful, but very bold patterns fall back into the distracting box.
4. Textures and materials
Without bright colours and bold patterns, textures are great for injecting some more interest back into your ensemble. Waffle jumpers, chunky knit cardigans, corded trousers (particularly on kids), silky tops and denims all add interest without overwhelming the image. Again, variety is the key here. The choices you make will determine the overall feel. For example, chunky cardigans will make the image feel cosy whereas linen dresses will give more of a summery vibe. As a bonus, Textures look great in black and white!
5. Layers and accessories!
Cosy cardigans, loose scarves, wool coats, leather boots, carefully chosen hats, open shirts… All of these add interest with the added benefit of giving variety if you take them on and off throughout the session. On top of that, Autumn temperatures can vary wildly so this gives you lots of options for adjusting for our British weather!
One big DON’T for accessories - No hairbands or apple watches on wrists, no phones in pockets and no tinted glasses. Trust me!
5. Practicalities
This isn’t quite so fun, but you’ll thank me for thinking about it for you, I promise! Throughout our session you’ll be standing, walking and sitting as well as lifting your children and moving around. Avoid short dresses, very tight trousers or things you can’t sit or move in. Make sure nothing you’re wearing is see-through, creating bulk or awkward shapes under your cardigan or risks dropping lower on you than you like. Check clothes for unintended holes and sticky out tags. Boring, but oh so necessary! For kids with sensory or other additional needs that might be distracted or irritated by certain clothing, their comfort is the priority. Throw out the ‘rulebook’ if it means they’re happy!
6. Think about the purpose of the photos
Here’s your one exception for avoiding matching! These photos are for you, not for me. YOU have to like the photos and they have to be the right images for your purposes.
If you’re hoping to get a cute photo for your Christmas card with the whole family in matching Christmas jumpers or all in red then this is the right outfit for you, despite everything I’ve said above!
If you want photos to fill the walls of your living room then take a look at the colours and tones of that room as the photos have to look right in that space.
If you’ve booked to get a photo to announce a pregnancy, house move or other life change then you might choose to wear tops with text on them to make your point (do let me know if this is your plan so I can be ready, though!)
If you’re using these sessions as a mini maternity session then you’ll want to choose an outfit that looks good on your bump! If this is the case, let me know and I’ll direct you to more specific guidelines.
7. Lay it out
Once you have outfit ideas, lay them out on a bed all together and see how they look. This is the stage where you build a variety of outfits that look good together, not just individually. Are there too many different patterns? Generally, just one person in patterns is best. Do the colours look good together? Have you got a variety of textures? Maybe adding a cardigan, scarf or changing the shoes would complete the look. If you’re really unsure, take a photo and pop it over to me!
8. Finally - be you!
There are tips and tricks to getting the most from your photos here, but they do not override your own personality and taste! As I’ve said before, these photos are for YOU so you have to be comfortable and love them. They’re going to be on your walls so if you’re going to cringe at yourself in a dress every time you walk past, don’t wear one!
