getting dressed for a family photo shoot – 2022

It’s that time of year again when women around the country force their husbands and bribe their children in order to get that one decent family photo. Every year I leave the photo shoot thinking it was a disastrous hot mess in which my children just ran amok and ignored all sense of self control, yet our photographer Caitlyn always works her magic. And in the end, I am always grateful that we did the shoot and now have beautiful images that capture our family during this moment in time.

I have written a post like this before but every year I learn something new so I wanted to share some tips and tricks from myself and from Caitlyn to help get you ready for a family shoot.

Some tried and true tips for getting your family ready for the shoot:

Choose mom’s outfit first and coordinate around that. This might sound selfish but let’s be honest, the kids and dad usually don’t care and its easier to pick men’s slacks and sweaters to coordinate around your perfect dress than it is to do the opposite.
Think coordinating outfits not matching outfits. You do not have to match everyone’s outfits exactly! As much as your mother-in-law might be craving the white shirts and denim pants on the beach situation (you know the one!) you will all look back in a few years and laugh at your decision. Instead coordinate everyone’s colors but do not match everyone identically.
When choosing outfits, think about color “families” and keep everyone in either cool tones (blue, grey) OR warm tones (blush, cream).
Busy prints tend to take away from the focus of the image and can create color casts on your skin that are difficult for the photographer to remove. So stick with solids or smaller prints.
If you plan on printing and framing your photos, stick to neutrals as much as possible vs loud trendy colors and prints. Neutrals are great because when you print your images, it will look better on your walls in any room, any time of year!
Long flowy dresses or midi length dresses photograph very well but if you are not a dress person, than wear what makes you feel comfortable! Light wash jeans pair well with a cozy knit or a nice blouse.
Textures also photograph really well – think lace, linen, cable knits, and layers. I love doing henleys on the older boys for that added texture vs a plan long sleeve shirt.
Even if you are shooting for your holiday card, wear outfits that would makes sense any time of the year. That way you can use these photos as gifts to grandparents on their birthday, framed for mother’s day, etc.

These photos are all from 2019, 2020, and 2021 but I can’t wait to share this years photos.

This year I went with more darker shades and colors of gray and navy and cream versus the lighter whites from last year and can’t wait to see how the outfits all photographed.