“but, what do I wear!?” such a commonly asked question, so do not feel alone! as photographers, we are asked this quite often when our clients are preparing for their highly anticipated photo shoot. our response is mostly, whatever you put into your photos is really what you will get out of them. yeah, so kinda like pretty much anything else in life! insert a shoulder shrug!
we’ve compiled a list of our own ideas from experience and what we have learned along the way. we want our clients to look and feel their best, especially when an important time in your life is being photographed and captured forever.
photographers alike want you to absolutely LOVE your photos, but if you aren’t happy with what you look and feel like, let’s be honest, it’s next to near impossible to make a client love their pictures. We are team LOVE yo’ self! Look good, feel good. This is just the cold hard plain truth, y’all.
Here are 7 key points we have thought of to help you in your photo session preparations:
Key #1: think about the style of photographer you are choosing
Us gals over here at Southern Studios love light and bright! So colors matter! Neutrals matter! Say it with us!
We prefer to shoot light colors, as they photograph best with our style of photography. Not necessarily shying away from color, but doing so the right way. If you are booking a moody-edit style photographer, obviously dark colors photograph just fine, and really help create that aesthetic they are going for. If you are truly stuck, don’t hesitate to reach out and ask your photographer what they think is best for where you are shooting and what style you are going for.
Key #2: dress up!
It’s not every day you hire a professional photographer to capture a significant memory in your life. Why not use us as the excuse to buy a new outfit and dress up! Dresses and skirts always, always, always photograph better than pants or shorts. It’s something about how they flow in photographs and how they hit at the leg! Wear that pretty little dress with those high heels, girl! Own that pony tail, work that updo! You get the point.
For men, a dress shirt photographs better than a collared shirt and much better than a t-shirt! Need I say more? We are totally cool with a pair of nicer dressier jeans, but dress pants provide that GQ factor that we really are going for! Go all out! Wanting to wear a blazer or a jacket? Don’t hesitate! Even though, the jacket should probably wait for a session booked in our colder months here in Florida! ;) Here are some examples for men and women alike.
Key #3: Hire a Professional Hair & Makeup Artist:
This is huge and one last thing you should have to worry about when it comes to getting ready for a photo shoot. We have a great list of vendors that we can recommend to you! Professional hair and makeup is just another thing to help you feel and look your best. If you don’t normally wear a lot of makeup and want to remain as close to natural as possible, don’t shy away from discussing this with your makeup artist. They have mad skills to make you look incredible!
Key #4: Dress according to your theme
Sounds self explanatory but we want to give you some examples. This engagement session at the University of Florida is a great one! Imagine how differently their photos would look if they had been wearing red? Or any other color other than a neutral, or the good ole faithful orange and blue (Go Gators!) ;) The jeans and boots went perfectly with the theme of their session, as well. Hello football season in the south!
Key #5: Don’t be afraid to accessorize
We LOVE accessories and other items to make your outfit go from good to great! Even if you (Mom) want to remain neutral, throw a hat, bow, flower crown, head band, head wrap, scarf, vest, etc. on your little ones to dress up your family photos and take them to the next level. Here are some examples for you that we absolutely LOVE!
Key #6: Dress up the bump!
To expand on our 1st key point, we wanted to showcase some examples for maternity photos. It’s not every day you get to photograph this time in your life.
Key # 7: Coordinating vs. Matching
Remember the days when we all wore matching denim jeans and white shirts on the beach for family photos? Or even when we all wore the same color for our studio style portraits at Sears? LOL! Long gone are those days, PRAISE BE!
Say hello to coordination! Limited patterns and a pop of color. Here are some examples of what we love:
BUT, of course, every rule has an exception. Littles, sisters, brothers and even twins in matching outfits is just plain precious. By all means, please do that!
That’s all for now! We hope this helps alleviate some of the stress that comes when trying to plan for photos. We may add to this post in the future as we meet and photograph even more of you beautiful and amazing people! Please do not hesitate to reach out if you are stuck and need additional ideas or help. We just want you to love your photos as much as possible! As always, thank you for supporting SS! We love you guys!
XOXO,
B+W