WHAT TO WEAR TO YOUR PHOTO SESSION

INFO

FIRST THINGS FIRST

01. SHOWCASE YOUR PERSONALITY

You should always wear something which you can feel comfortable in and that matches your personality. There is no reason to dress up in a glamorous way if you aren't used to it and you won't feel like yourself wearing that type of clothes.

Use clothes that you already own and that you love how they make you look and feel - even if it's a pair of jeans with a simple shirt! You have creative freedom so feel free to showcase your personality. The more you feel like yourself, the more comfortable you will be during the photo session and that's going to make a huge difference in the photos you will be taking.

If you don’t have to worry about heels, short skirts or tight blouses or pants, you will be more present in the moment and you will have more fun during this experience.

02. BRING OPTIONS

Bring several clothing options with you instead of just one outfit so I can help you choose the ones that will work well with the environment we are shooting in. In that way I will make sure the focus remains on you and not on any distractions which could sometimes be the case with certain clothes. Don't bring your entire wardrobe, though! 2-3 pairs of trousers, 5 tops, 1-2 dresses and a couple of jackets should be more than enough.

If we are going to shoot in multiple locations, this means you will probably get to wear more than one outfit, but please keep in mind that you will have to get dressed in the back of the car or in a public toilet if we are shooting in the city. If you are not comfortable with that idea, bring only one outfit with you, but make sure you send me photos of your options beforehand so we can choose the best outfit together!

When choosing your outfit(s) make sure you take into consideration the weather conditions and the types of locations we are going to shoot in. For example, if we are going to be climbing hills up and down, bring appropriate shoes. If we are having a beach session, bring some sandals or no shoes at all. In general, I'd advise against wearing heels, unless you also bring a backup pair just in case. As for the weather, if it's cold or rainy, bring lots of layers to keep you warm, but if it's hot outside, make sure you dress in light and flowy clothes so you won't appear too sweaty in the photos.

04. CREATE MOVEMENT

Try to use flowy, moving materials that can get influenced by the wind for adding more energy and a more natural feel to the photos. You don't want to use anything too tight that would impede your movements and make you feel less comfortable. Clothes that wrinkle easily should also be avoided.

05. GO FOR NEUTRAL, EARTHY COLOURS

You cannot go wrong with neutrals and earthy tones, but that doesn’t mean you should be limited to using just grays and browns. Or beige all around! I would suggest staying away from very bright solid colours and instead opt for more subtle, “autumn-like” alternatives.

For example, instead of:

red – go with burgundy or red wine colour

yellow – go with a mustard or ochre

blue – go with navy or Prussian blue

green – go with olive or army green

Try choosing only one big piece of clothing that brings in the colour, while the rest of the items you wear will let it breathe and compliment it. Bright or fluorescent colours would only draw attention to themselves and remove the focus from the emotion portrayed in the photo, so I would advise against using those colours.

One trick you could use for making sure that your clothes work well with the location is to match the tones and colours of your outfits with the elements in the environment. The goal is for the entire image to present a feeling of togetherness without having any distracting elements, but be careful not to completely disappear into the background by using only matching colours - gor for complementary ones instead.

Also, never use the exact same outfit and colours as your partner!

If the location of the photo session is busy with lots of textures and shapes, I recommend choosing a simple outfit to stand out and vice versa. The most suitable patterns are the ones made out of small, subtle drawings that are not too distracting. Don't forget about the trick of using colours from the environment to make sure the patterns don't compete too much with each other.

Also, stay away from using shirts with big logos and prints as those can really be distracting and take away from the emotion captured in the photo.

In this image you can see an example of how to successfully make an otherwise busy and difficult pattern work by using similar colours to the environment.

07. BRING ACCESSORIES

Hats, sunglasses, scarves and jewelry can certainly add more interest to the photos, so definitely consider bringing some!

I would recommend you to stay away from wearing watches though, as often times hands are used for expressing a lot of the emotion and feeling in the image, and any big element there would simply be distracting.

If you would like to incorporate any other items, make sure the objects speak about your personality or your relationship: a bike, car, motorcycle, flowers, picnic stuff etc. Even your pets!

Anything else that is not connected to you in some way it is better to leave it aside.

08. HAIR + MAKEUP

Whether or not you should have your hair and makeup done by a professional ahead of the photo session is entirely up to you! Just make sure you keep it natural and don't overdo it because the most important thing is to look and feel like yourself. If you generally don't use a lot of makeup, then I would suggest not to do it.

If you do decide to have your hair and makeup done, make sure to schedule it with at least an hour in advance to the moment you would have to leave for the shoot so you don't risk being late.

THAT WAS IT!

If you have anymore questions, just let me know! Don't forget to send me photos of your outfits so we can narrow down your options. We can even create a Pinterest board together! When in doubt, just remember to wear something you are comfortable and feel happy in. Be yourself, express your personality and your photos will turn out great.