What to wear to your portrait session
So, you’re going to have your photos taken.
Photos that are most likely going to be on your Grandmother's fridge, your Mum’s bedside table and your IG account.
It’s normal and easy therefore to stress beforehand about what you’ll wear and look like. What if a freak windstorm whips your hair into a frenzy? What if you look awkward, stiff, bloated, nervous and on and on the crazy train goes..
Let me be the first to reassure you: it’s all (truly) going to be okay. In fact, I’m going to do everything in my power to make sure that this experience is not only tolerable for you, but actually really, really fun.
Choosing your outfit(s) beforehand is an easy way to set your session up for success, and so here’s a quick guide on what to wear to your portrait session and what to stay away from.
Reality is, clothing that looks great in person can sometimes be distracting in your photos. You should be the focus of your session, and not your fanny pack or your fancy pants. Let’s leave those two at home.
THE BASICS
You want to go into your session with excitement and in a positive state of mind. One way to ensure that this happens is to pick your outfits ahead of time. This allows you to put some thought into it, and not be squabbling or freaking out the day-of or day-before.
Depending on your chosen package (and your photographer) there is usually an option to bring more than one outfit. So, as a first step it’s helpful to consider two styles that you’d love to have represented in your photos such as: casual/ everyday and cocktail/dressy. If allowed, bring a couple of options, for two (or more) very diverse looks.
GENERAL GUIDELINES
Wear clothes that make you feel like you. You want to look like yourselves, at your best. If you feel confident, you’ll look confident.
You want your outfits to compliment one another, but not match. No need to make the family denim-on-denim, or the matchy-match white-tee and khakis back into a thing. There is no need to wear the same colours, but compliment one another in both your colour palette (more on that below), and your style (one of you in jeans and a tee while the other is in cocktail attire doesn’t work super well).
Stay away from any busy patterns or outfits, including clothing with words or logos (they’re distracting). The same goes for neon colours and horizontal stripes.
You can’t go wrong by choosing neutral, solid colours. You always want the focus of the photograph to be you, and your faces, so shy away from any colour, print or outfit that will distract from that.
Do your best to choose outfits that are less trendy, and more timeless.
Flatter your body type. Think about (or research) what types of clothing your body type looks best in. You should always aim to wear clothes that properly fit (baggy clothes will make you look bigger than you are) and accentuate your best features.
Make use of the season. Bundle up in Autumn and Winter, wear breathable fabrics in Summer, etc. You want to be comfortable!
Make use of the environment. So, wear boots if you’ll be hiking or dress-up if you’re in the city. Use both your location and the season as your guide.
OTHER THINGS TO CONSIDER
It’s always a good idea to add an accessory to your outfit for movement, variety and visual interest. Consider a jacket, hat, chunky necklace or bracelet. Things that can easily be removed or put back on.
Think about your undies and your straps because nobody (including you when you get your photos back) wants to see either.
Empty those pockets and keep them empty. We don’t want to see gum, keys and phones within those skinny jeans.
I incorporate a lot of movement into my photo sessions, so before settling on an outfit, make sure that you can move in it. And by move I mean dance, run, walk, lift your arms up, etc. I recently wore one of those off-both-the-shoulder tops to a wedding and realized too late that I couldn’t lift my arms more than a few inches to dance with my husband. So, I awkwardly held his waist and it was the worst. Please learn from my mistakes and choose comfort over style.
Keep that hair loose: again, movement! Don’t go cray on the hairspray.
COLOUR PALETTES
Please don’t hesitate to contact me anytime if you’re unsure of what to wear, want to ask about an outfit, or need any more direction. Additionally, here are five colour palettes that I love and could be useful for you to work with too:
