Style Guide - what to wear to your family photoshoot

Sometimes there is a moment of panic when you decide to book a family shoot there can be a moment of panic when you realise you will have to dress 2/3/4 + people for a photoshoot! Where do you even begin?

Well thankfully over the years I have learnt what does and doesn’t work and have prepared this easy guide for you.

  • You want you to stand out, not your clothes so stay away from neon colours, large labels, graphic tops and sports jerseys

  • If find it easiest to choose one colour and dress everyone in a similar or complimentary colour. But it is also just as nice to have a variety of colours but see if they can work with everyone else’s colours.

  • Think of the style of clothing. - if you have one person in a grandad collar shirt - try do this for everyone. The same goes for dresses - if there is one sleeveless can they all be sleeveless?

  • For beach shoots neutrals or pastel colours tend to allow you, and not the clothes, stand out more in the photos. Whereas in the woods or on a rainy day a pop of a bright kids jacket can work really well with the green surrounds. It is best to try avoid heavily patterned clothing in the woods as it limits the amount of images which would also work in black and white.

  • The most important element for everyone is that the clothes are comfortable - If you have bought beautiful new clothes make sure your kids have seen them and they are comfortable. I made the mistake of buying a wool mix Christmas jumper for a photo for my son and I didn’t realise it made him itch until the minute I put it on and tried taking his photo. It was a horrible experience for him and while that was manageable because we were at home I can imagine the stress that would have been involved if I had paid someone to take our photos on that day.

  • Teenagers will obviously bring their own style and may not want to fuss about clothes because they might not like the attention of the shoot in general. A gentle guidance away from a crumpled t-shirt or their favourite jersey towards a magically ironed top or a plainer sports top will help the whole photo.

  • If you have a toddler who could easily decide that they do not want to take part in any of the days events bring their favourite toy/teddy/soother to distract them - a lot of these little ones have spent most of their life in the pandemic, strangers can still be daunting, so give them something that feels familiar.