Ah, the dreaded family photo. Remember how awful they were when we were kids? It was pretty common for mom to order everyone to wear their red sweater and march outside to stand awkwardly by a nice autumn tree (two standing, two crouching) just so you could get a shot of how you’ve grown this year to stuff inside the Christmas letter printed on Christmas stationary. Just me? Oh.
Perhaps your mom was a stickler for matching outfits. Like, say, one of you decided running shorts and a white polo was a good idea, so you all had to follow suit…
Family photos are still a huge trend for our generation, but now that we are the moms calling the shots, they are way cooler – am I right, ladies?
A lot has changed with the times, including the choice to use professional photographers to grab some gorgeous shots of your family. It’s nice to know we are immortalized looking our best instead of crouching down next to a tree in running shorts.
I recently had a photographer friend of ours snap some photos of us, and I spent an awful lot of time trying to figure out what we would wear. The idea to be matchy-matchy is out, but a common color palette is still a good idea. If you think patterns are a no-no, think again. The rules have changed!
Here’s how I chose our family photo outfits and some tips on what might help you pick out your own family’s wardrobe before you snap this year’s Christmas card photos.
Tips for picking a winning wardrobe for family photos
1. Start with yourself and let your outfit set the tone.
Let’s face it, if you don’t look good in the picture, you won’t be showing it around. Mom is always the most picky and the one who cares the most. So start by making sure you feel good and then pick the rest of the family’s outfits centered around your choice. Accentuate the things you love about yourself and camouflage the rest (i.e. if you hate your arms, wear sleeves).
2. Don’t be afraid of patterns.
For the longest time, I remember hearing that solid colors were best. But I must disagree (and I think this rule is now officially a thing of the past). For our recent photos, I chose a printed dress and I think it adds so much visual interest to the shots.
Patterns are definitely not a “don’t'”, but I would limit them to one or two people in the shot and make sure they are complementary; you don’t want it to look too busy. Try and create a color palette around the one or two prints you choose for the rest of the family. Which leads me to…
3. Pick a common color theme.
I don’t mean have everyone wear red; instead, have elements of the same colors throughout and pick a palette with two or three complementary colors and some neutrals like white and black/brown. Since we were shooting in a redwood forest, I wanted something kind of casual and country. I chose denim, red and gray, with touches of white and brown. The colors were pulled from the print on my dress, which was actually a great color palette. We all wore different colors for the most part, but we each had a pop of red (save for myself who was in all red).
4. Don’t forget to accessorize.
Accessories and texture can add so much to a photo! I made sure to put a floral headband on my daughter (her only pop of color since she was in all neutrals) and a bow-tie and suspenders on my son. My husband had a layered look (red pop of color under the denim shirt) and I wore earrings on myself. All of this created a photo that wasn’t flat, but created some visual interest and texture instead.
5. Lay it out beforehand.
While trying to figure out your wardrobe, be sure and lay things out side-by-side so you can see what it will look like all together. This will help you notice if any patterns or colors clash or if anything looks like it just doesn’t belong.
Any tips you have for creating a winning family photo?
All family photos taken by the fabulous Will Parris of Parris Studios
I’m linking up with The Pleated Poppy & Dear Abby Leigh
