Congratulations!
You’ve scheduled a photo session. I’m excited and hope you are, too! There’s some prep work we need to talk about. My family has already scheduled a full session in October this year with an awesome photographer, so I’m going to walk you through how I’m getting ready (and thus how you can, too).
Assuming it is 1-2 months until your shoot, you need to:
- Start thinking about clothing. (More on that below)
- Schedule a blow out or styling appointment with your hair stylist on the day of your shoot. Trust me, it’s worth it. And note: I did NOT say get a haircut the day of the shoot. Never.
- I had a blow out last spring when my family had our last family portrait session, and I have to say it was so relaxing to be pampered (read: put me in a good mood!), and it made me confident knowing that my hair was going to look amazing in the images that we would be hanging on our wall. Your family will be looking back at these photos for years, so it makes sense to put a little extra effort into them.
- Think about whether or not you want to have your make-up done. This doesn’t have to be scheduled now. Might sound like a splurge, but it doesn’t have to be. More on that in Part 2 of the series.
Something I want to start doing even more of is educating my clients about the importance of wardrobe selection. I want to start the conversation NOW so that you’re thinking about what you might wear. Clothes should not be picked out the day of the session. Trust me, it happens. It shouldn’t, though.
There are two ways I recommend picking out clothing:
- Start with one piece of clothing that you know someone in the family is going to wear.
- This piece will be the jumping off point for everyone else. For my family this year, this shirt is our starting point. I was putting away some clothes in my 5 year old’s closet that I had just bought at a local upscale consignment sale a couple weekss ago when this shirt caught my attention. It’s from Gymboree, and I bought it several months ago. Our session is in October, so the colors will be seasonally-appropriate AND it gives me a great place to start planning the rest of our wardrobe. Part 2 of this blog series will dive more into good options to coordinate but not match. I already have three potential sweaters for my 2 year old to wear that could work, so I’ll give you a chance to vote on which one you think is best! I’ll also be walking you through my process as I shop for pieces (both in our closets and at stores) for the rest of us.
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- This piece will be the jumping off point for everyone else. For my family this year, this shirt is our starting point. I was putting away some clothes in my 5 year old’s closet that I had just bought at a local upscale consignment sale a couple weekss ago when this shirt caught my attention. It’s from Gymboree, and I bought it several months ago. Our session is in October, so the colors will be seasonally-appropriate AND it gives me a great place to start planning the rest of our wardrobe. Part 2 of this blog series will dive more into good options to coordinate but not match. I already have three potential sweaters for my 2 year old to wear that could work, so I’ll give you a chance to vote on which one you think is best! I’ll also be walking you through my process as I shop for pieces (both in our closets and at stores) for the rest of us.
- Pick a color scheme.
- Last year, I chose the colors navy and gray for my family. I knew that I wanted timeless colors that I could put in any room of my house. Taking cues from your home decor is definitely an option, too. If you know that you’re going to hang a portrait in the living room above the piano, look at the colors used in the fabrics in the room (rug, curtains, sofa, chairs, pillows) and see if pulling one or two of those might work.
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- Last year, I chose the colors navy and gray for my family. I knew that I wanted timeless colors that I could put in any room of my house. Taking cues from your home decor is definitely an option, too. If you know that you’re going to hang a portrait in the living room above the piano, look at the colors used in the fabrics in the room (rug, curtains, sofa, chairs, pillows) and see if pulling one or two of those might work.
Photo by Angela Crutcher Photography
Sarah-Beth Photography has amazing tips for selecting clothing for your session that get even more in-depth than my suggestions above, so I highly recommend you read through her post about what to wear. Her stylist friend also jumped in with her own tips.
I’ll be back with more prep tips and where I am in the process in Part 2 of this blog series.
