Now that I’ve booked my session, what should I wear?

I think this by far is one of the most frequently asked question I get just after a client books a session. “What do we wear”? More often than not, when people don’t ask, most people tend to rush to the nearest mall to pick out an outfit they can wear to one of my sessions. What most don’t realize is that there’s really no need to buy new outfits.

1. Infants and babies are the easiest ones to dress. They don’t need fancy frills, laces, or designs on their clothes. Usually, I always recommend something simple. Keep it simple. Don’t worry about the fact that your baby isn’t wearing a great outfit. They got enough smiles and teeth (or gums) to show that easily compensates for the simplicity in their clothing. I tend to ask the moms if there is a special piece of clothing that they want their kids to wear. Maybe a special hat knitted by grandma or a scarf from Auntie Annie.
2. Solid patterns are always great. Children can always pull off bright vivid colors. When children wear bright vivid colors, the portraits usually comes out bright and bold which are always great for little kids.
3. Bring props and accessories that will accentuate the outfits that you wear for the session.
4. Coordinate the outfits. I always recommend that dress the group around one person. Try to compliment the colors and build on the first person’s outfit. While it doesn’t necessarily have to match, the clothes need to coordinate with each other. This is specially true when group shots of 3 or more people are involved.
5. Try to be in the same style. Why wear a suit when everyone else are in flip-flops and beachwear?
6. Avoid loud patterns and incredibly huge logos on your shirts. Once again, I’m deferring to simplicity in choice of wear. Loud patterns tend to take away the attention from the subject.
7. Think about shades. Why? Most often times, most clients would like to see black and white versions of their photos. If your colors don’t compliment well in black and white, it’ll take longer to post process than usual.
8. While not really considered an item of clothing, I always remind clients that I like to focus on details like the hands and feet of their kids so it’s always important to prepare for such shots. If you are to have a haircut, I would recommend having one at least a week before the session. This way, your hair can grow out and not have your portraits look like you just got out of the salon or the barber shop.
9. Simple jewelry is good. Use the same concept as with clothing. Don’t over do it. Choose your accessories wisely.
10. If you must wear make-up, keep it simple as well. Women, avoid high gloss lipstick. And for the men, bring lip gloss. There’s nothing worse than dry, chapped lips.