Your family portrait is something you’ll look back on for years - so the goal is to choose outfits that feel timeless, cohesive, and true to your family’s personality.
Unsure what to wear? Fear not, I've put together a useful guide to help you plan for your session below:
1. Coordinate, don’t match
Gone are the days when you all need to wear matching outfits (unless you really want to). Instead, choose a colour palette and let each person wear something different within it. This adds depth to your photos while still keeping everything harmonious.
Great palettes for a white backdrop:
- Neutrals: beige, cream, soft grey, caramel, brown
- Soft pastels: muted pink, sage green, baby blue, lavender
- Earthy tones: olive, rust, mustard, terracotta
- Classic colours: navy, charcoal, burgundy
2. Avoid bright neon & bold logos
Super bright colours can reflect onto the white backdrop and skin tones, and large logos can distract from the emotion in the image - we want to see you, not your clothing.
3. Add texture & layers
Plain studio backgrounds love a bit of texture. Knitwear, denim, cord, linen, soft cottons, light layering (like jackets, cardigans, dungarees, waistcoats, scarves) all photograph beautifully and add interest without overpowering the shot.
4. Choose tones that compliment the backdrop
On white: mid and darker tones stand out really well (camel, brown, navy, denim, charcoal, muted pastels, earthy shades)
If we use grey: lighter neutrals and soft colours pop beautifully (cream, white, pale grey, blush, soft blues)
Grey backdrops are super adaptable with lighting, but white will give you that clean, timeless, classic portrait look.
5. Keep comfort in mind
If the kids are comfy, the photos will feel natural. If you're comfy, you’ll feel confident - and that always shows.
Need more help?
You can email or text me if you have any questions about your outfit choices! I’m happy to talk things over or add suggestions!
