DONT’S

• Matchy matchy – The all white t-shirts and blue jeans is so cliche and so 90s!  You wouldn’t dress like that normally, so why would you want to dress like that for your family portrait – something that is supposed to capture your family at that point in time?
• Patterns – They tend to detract from your beautiful faces – they are eye catching and distracting.  And if each person is wearing a different pattern, they clash, only making matters even worse! If you must have some sort of pattern, make sure it is subtle, and make sure that it doesn’t clash with another family member’s clothing. For example, don’t have more than one person in plaid (or better yet, avoid plaid all together).  This is not to say that you can never use patterns, but please use them sparingly! Stick to solids if you can!
• Tacky shoes – Shoes really can make or break the look of your portraits. I would rather my clients be barefoot, but if you must wear shoes, please make sure they match the outfit (i.e., no white shoes with dark colored clothing) in style, color, etc.  Also make sure they are clean and the laces aren’t hanging out all over the place. Like patterns, shoes can be really eye-catching and distracting if you’re not careful.

DO’S

• Color Coordinate – No, I do not mean everyone should wear the same color, but I do mean that everyone should be wearing colors that compliment each other. Check out a color swatch website (such as http://www.colorcombos.com/) to see what kinds of colors go well together.
• Timeless Clothing – If you want that timeless look in your photos, you need to wear timeless clothing, and not necessarily the latest fashion trend.  Just keep it simple!
• Layer and accessorize – Add some dimension and interest to your photos by layering your clothing, and adding simple (not eye catching) accessories to your outfits.

That’s it for this time, but tune in next Wednesday for more helpful tips and even some photos of a family wardrobe for your next family session.