What to wear to look and feel great at your session
With the advanced development of mobile phone cameras, everyone is a photographer nowadays. From the first day of school to prom photos to family pictures and engagements, more and more people are opting to go the selfie way. One of the reasons to work with a professional photographer instead is they have a greater ability to capture their clients' personalities, starting with pre-session consultations and clothing recommendations. It's no secret that what we wear and how we feel in those clothes represent who we are. Your photo session is no exception.
Consult with your photographer
Every photography session is different, from the location to the weather to the occasion to the mood we are in at that moment. When you schedule your session with your photographer, discuss the location and any relevant details. You may be signing up for a shoot in a pre-determined location or you may be choosing your own location. The photographer should tell you the location and any special notes you need to know about to plan for your session, such as the environment (inside, outside, on a farm or in a cityscape) and may even provide specific recommendations. If the session is an indoor shoot, the photographer should provide you with the color scheme of the set if it is fixed. If you are not comfortable with that location or don't own clothes that match the environment and feel of the location of the shoot, talk to your photographer about alternatives.
Wear something that makes you feel great
Yes, there are times when the occasion calls for us to don a fancy outfit or professional attire that is not part of our regular wardrobe. Even in these moments, wear something that makes you feel wonderful and confident. If you are subconscious about what you are wearing, that will be captured in the images through tense expressions and body composition. If you have limited control over the outfit, add an accessory or undergarment that gives you that boost of confidence and raises your chin a bit.
Go shopping
As mentioned above, wear something that makes you feel great. This may mean a trip to the department store or outlet mall. Shopping for and buying that new outfit releases dopamine into our brains, giving us a euphoric high. When you wear that outfit that looks like it was made just for you, you'll experience that rush all over again.
Be practical
If you already have something that makes you feel great, it's not necessary to go buy a new outfit just for one photo shoot. On the other hand, if it's a family photo shoot and the kids have outgrown (again) their winter sweaters, a trip to the store is going to be more practical than trying to cram an already stressed child into an outfit that will not fit right and make them uncomfortable.
Unless you're making an artistic statement, wear clothes that are an appropriate for the environment. Wearing stilettos to a photo shoot on a pumpkin farm will likely result in sore feet and, potentially, a twisted ankle. Those are memories best not captured in your photographs.
Keep in mind any movement or interaction that may take place during your session, such as lifting and holding children, pushing them on a swing, or jumping into a piles of leaves. You'll want to be comfortable, have a good range of movement, and avoid creating unintended boudoir moments.
Coordinate, don't copy, your colors
Whether you are shopping the racks at the mall or your own closet, choose colors that coordinate with each other, but don't match. Your photographs should reflect who you, and your family members, are. If you don't wear matching clothes everyday, then you should not wear matching clothes to the session. Instead, select complimentary colors in the same color family, or go with neutral colors. Patterns are okay, too, as long as they don't clash with what everyone else is wearing. If you don't know what your location colors will be, donning neutral attire is a safe route to go. They work well in almost every situation.
Accessorize effectively
According to Michael Kors, accessories are the exclamation point of an outfit. The perfect earrings can make an outfit pop, or a well placed broach can draw the viewer's attention to the person's eyes. Blankets, teddy bears, hats, and scarves are all good items to bring to a session to create different moods. Any item can be an accessory. The most powerful one will be your confidence. Wear that like it is not going out of style. Because it isn't.
