Keeping it stress-free and goregous!
First, remember that I am here for you. Feel free to contact me with concerns or ideas or even pictures of what you are considering for wardrobe and I will happily give you my honest feedback so that you can build your wardrobe with photographic confidence and style! christianleighphotog@gmail.com , text: 214-392-1215
Tip Number One:
Do NOT procrastinate on figuring out what everyone will wear! That is the easiest way to stress yourself out right before the session. Also have everyone try on what they plan to wear days ahead of time in case anything needs to be swapped due to something not fitting right anymore. And always have a warm layer you can add incase we have a cold or windy forecast (yes even in summer). Plan ahead and surprises won't be stressful. Be mindful of your clothing, and remember it sets the vibe of your photos and is a great way to show off your personalities and who you are!
Layers Rock
Layers add dimension and interest. This can mean a maxi dress with a belt and a necklace or hat when it’s hot, for the rest of the year layer with button up shirts, cardigans, sweaters with textures, jean or canvas jackets, long coats, puffer vest, scarfs/ wraps, belts, blazers, and hats ect. Stylish hats are also great props to play with!
Be Timeless
If you are too trendy it will really show years down the line in the photos - think how bellbottoms scream the 70’s.. Keep it classic. Keep wording off the clothes (unless it is a focal point for the session). Brand names like “Old Navy” “Eddie Bauer” ect. that are in huge lettering across a shirt are distracting and won’t give that timeless look.
Texture & Movement for the Win
This is where it can get fun! Lace, denim, knit sweaters, canvas jackets and pants, corduroy, linen, leather, ect. (Bonus points for layering with textures). Textures also bring in character and extra life to your style. Show us who you are! Fabrics that add movement (your skirts, tops, dresses ladies) really add another dimension too!
Patterns are great.. BUT
... use them sparingly, if everyone is in a different loud print or pattern it will become too busy. But putting mom in a modern mini floral pattern fitted maxi and the kiddo in a coordinating color gingham checked dress shirt.. Nailed it! Just make sure the colors pull from each other/ coordinate. (see photo above) and have an earthy/mountain vibe to go with the landscape. Plaid is great, but limit the number of people in plaid. - zebra effect!
Neutrals and Earthy Tones!
Color choices are the most important when putting something together! Dress for the location and match the vibe! Warm earthy neutrals (rusty colors, golds, dark khaki, tans, creams, warm browns,) go great with the Colorado scenery year round. I highly recommend earthy toned colors/neutrals with our landscape! You can use all neutrals or mix in some earth tones of colors. Try hue variations of colors such as -maroon, deep red, rust, mustard yellow, sage green, dark rusty orange, dusty blues and pinks- are IDEAL. Some great variations of red to use would be: dusty rose, pale light pink, dark brick reds, maroon. Your earthy brick reds, rusts, maroons, dusty rose pinks are examples of those earthy tones that look amazing in just about any Colorado setting, especially if there are red rocks at our location. Some more examples of earthy colors in the blue family: navy, dusty blue, ice blue, dark blue/green; Green family; olive, sage, olive-brown.. you get the idea here. Think about the colors in your location as well. Is it warm earth tones, red rock formations; snow, pine trees and golden grass? Coordinating with the natural colors within the location is a great starting point as well and gives a really really nice cohesive, sophisticated look even if you are all in solid colors with no patterns in the clothing. Just remember texture of fabrics and items that have movement (skirts/dresses) brings a lot of style into solid colors. There are great inspo examples on Pinterest if you just search "family/ couple/ etc photoshoot outfits if you are visual and need to see things to get an idea of what you can pull out of your closet. Another thing to think about if a goal for your session is a large print to hang somewhere in your home is, what is your home's color scheme? Try to coordinate with that as a starting point so that your tangibles look even more amazing in your home.
The Do NOT's
Do NOT Match
When everyone is wearing the exact same thing it makes it difficult to discern one person from another and completely removes the avenue of expressing personality of the individuals through the clothing. Coordinate instead and focus on coordinating the colors within patterned fabrics. Easiest way is to pick one persons outfit (if going with a print for someone start with them) and pull hopefully your earthy colors from there!
Foliage Green
Keep foliage green/kelly green to a minimum, and definitely not your main color if our session is planned for a summer green space (we want you to pop from the background not blend in). Light sage green, seafoam green, olive green, hunter green, dark blue/green are great (hues!) - kelly green/primary green is one you want to stay clear of especially in the summer time. Just be mindful.
Solid Bright White/ Solid Black
Stay away from true white. If you must, use it with a texture such as lace or a thick knit. Cream is lovely, I am talking stark white to be careful with. It reflects a LOT of light and can loose its detail in photos, black is the same except in absorbing light. Note: black and white are wonderful accents to any wardrobe, just not as solids or as your main scheme in most cases. In a pattern or in under-layers they are absolutely wonderful.
Neons/ Fluorescent Colors
Neons/fluorescents/super bright colors- no-no. They are so bright they cast the color onto your face and hair and are too harsh to photograph well. And are very difficult to adjust for in post-processing. Please please avoid these.
SHOES!
Please be mindful of your footwear, usually we are in more rugged outdoor settings, close toed shoes are recommended for most shoots! Wear shoes that compliment your wardrobe and guys don’t forget to clean up those kicks and to bring the dress socks! Keep in mind if you have your child in an awesome outfit and then have them in their favorite but brightly colored cartoon shoes then you will loose the whole cohesive look you worked hard to put together. The brightness of the shoes will draw a lot of attention in the images and make them hard to ignore. Stay away from your character shoes, crocs and grubby flip flops. Boots of any kind, leather men's dress shoes, converse top siders, are all great options. Also, I love barefoot in photos, so if we are at a location that is appropriate, consider loosing the kicks to give a great casual, earthy vibe for some of our photos! Just please make sure shoes are appropriate for our location - i.e. you can walk around without breaking an ankle!
Other important things to be mindful of:
- Wear clothes that FIT! If clothing is too fitted, or too baggy you are not going to like the way you look. When things fit just right it makes all the difference, this includes kiddos too! (I've even had parents that pinned the back of kids shirts if they are too baggy in the middle, doesn't show!)
- Lady's Shoes: Consider a wedge, strappy sandals, fashion boots, or flats. But keep our location in mind.. Will we be in a meadow?, maybe a fashion boot would be best to keep any pokey stickers off of you, Colorado loves its pokey plants! If you plan on rocking heels, please bring a pair of flats to walk from A to B to prevent a very painful session. Keep in mind the “sink” factor if we will be on grass or dirt. Heels are best for urban locations, but can be pulled off in the right natural environment, just be mindful!
- Make up- keep it natural and don’t over apply base or cover up. Do bring your lip color for reapplication.
- Ladies - Dress for your body type in what you know looks good. Need some ideas? Maxi dresses, long skirts, high-low skirts etc look great on all body types, you can dress them up or dress them down with accessory such as jewelry, belts, jackets and cardigans - plus flowy skirts add in a great element of movement and can be used as a prop to play around with during your session. Thus bringing in an extra layer of femininity. Skinny jeans, pixie pants, also are very flattering on most women. Again, don't wait till the night before to think about what to wear. I hope you are reading this shortly after booking with me!
- Flaunt your best assets and consider covering what makes you feel self-conscious. This will help you to feel great about how you look and to exude confidence the day of our session - which will shine in the photos (trust me, confidence and personality are what make photos amazing). So for example - If you don’t enjoy your wider hips and upper arms but I LOVE your legs. I would go with a flattering A-shaped, shorter dress to show off the legs and then have a cardigan over it - and probably a hat, let's be honest, I love hats, also great props to interact with during the session.. Cowboy hats included if that's ya'll. ;)
- Feel your best to help boost the confidence even more! Don’t eat high fat or high salt foods for at least 3-4 days before your session to avoid bloating. Drink lots of water and get good rest as well to help your skin look radiant.
- Dropped necklines make you look pounds lighter - V- necks, sweetheart ect. (just make sure the ladies are secured and tasteful).
- Hair cuts – Schedule your hair appointments about two weeks before your session just in case something goes wrong – you just never know. For men, a fresh cut a couple of days before the shoot is fine.
- Nails – A fresh coat of nail polish will make a world of difference. Pick a neutral color that won’t distract in your shoot or clash with your outfits to be safe, or be bold by pulling one of your main colors for your nails. Men - clean them up!
- Moisturizer - Be sure to use moisturizer leading up to your session on any skin that will be exposed to the camera. Especially face, legs, and hands— this really goes for the dudes as well! We live in a dry climate, so I am sure you all know this already! Drink your water!
- Facial hair – Gentlemen, use a new razor and bring out all the stops with the shaving creams and lotions after to avoid redness if your a smooth mugged man. Be sure to clean up beards, nose hairs and any straggle hairs. And everyone needs to give their eye brows a once over to make sure they are tidy.
- Red eyes- eye drops are great, also abstaining from late and crazy nights before your session is also important, trust me it will show. So again, get your beauty sleep!
- Hair accessories –Come prepared - be ready to put your hair up and make it look cute in case of a windy day (again it's Colorado). Bring bobby pins, hair clips, headbands or any other favorite accessories, it is always better to be prepared than not!
Don't have anything in your closet?
This is soooo me.... when I just recently had my own family's photos done (YAY I got to be in some ;) I rediscovered a super budget friendly clothing site/app called Shein - now if you are all about local and USA made stuff this isn't the site for you.. BUT it is SUPER affordable, pretty good and decent quality so you can definitely rewear items after the shoot, and some very cute, earthy, stylish things that really check all the boxes listed above. Their site does a good job of showing you "similar items" that match the style/vibe you are looking for. They have a lot of variety in vibe so find something similar to what you are looking for and then scroll down for more "like that". I'd recommend this definitely for the ladies and little girls, the dude stuff - well it just has to be your style, it's a bit more limited. But can't beat a $15 dress! Keep in mind shipping can be expedited, but usually its about 1.5 weeks for delivery. Other options are Amazon! Yes, amazon has some decent stuff too that can get here quick, great for a chunky last minute cardi and your basics. And then of course if you love to shop, pull up some inspo pictures on Pinterest to get an idea of what you want to go for and color scheme and then hit the pavement to shop shop shop!
From our recent family sesh: My dress (mom) and my daughters dress were both from Shein for a grand total of $27 for both! photo cred: Liesl Baart