The Best Outfits for Your Fall Family Photoshoot

One of everyone’s fave season is comin’ up- the one with the most gorgeous colors, patterns, and textures we all love- yep, it’s  autumn! At this beautiful time of the year, many families will be doing photo shoots to take advantage of the beautiful foliage as a perfect natural backdrop.

      One question photographers get all the time is, “What should we wear?” Families may be confused as to what each person should wear, and how to coordinate everyone properly. 

If you’ve booked that shoot already, and are wondering the same-fear not! We cover all the details here. Read on and you’ll pull off the most beautiful photos, ever.

Step 1: Choosing the colors:

Choosing your main colors is the first step, and most important. 

A-It is recommended that you choose three or four colors at most, (more than that gets too busy), and then build everyone’s outfits around that. 

B-Use neutral, coordinating, and complimentary colors, in soft tones. 

C-What are some good colors to go for? Try warm shades of ivory, beige, tan, cream, camel, mocha and brown, as well as greens, rusts, olives, grays, muted blues, and burgundy’s.

D-You can use one pattern (/floral/striped etc) but it should be comprised of fall friendly colors, and be used on only one family member. 

 (As a side note, some families choose to coordinate their clothing colors to the color tones in their home, since they’ll be hanging the portraits there. So keep that in mind when choosing your main colors.)

Step 2: How to use those colors: 

A- Once you chose your 3 main colors, work on placing them strategically on different family members. 

 B-Use  the colors in various solids, patterns and accessories in your family’s outfits. However this doesn’t mean that everyone has to wear every single color, the aim is for the whole family’s outfits to complement each other, but not match exactly. 

 C-Look at it as if your family’s clothing is one big outfit- rather than individual ones. Each member should be wearing one or two of the colors, rather than each one wearing every single one. That tends to make things look too busy.

Step 3: How to pull it together: 

A-A good place to start is to use one patterned piece in your color scheme as the focal item.  

What is the focal item? Take for example, your daughter's floral dress. Or your son’s plaid shirt.  Use that as the focal point, and pull solid colors from that focal point for the other outfits. 

Mom, for example, can wear a solid dress in a color pulled from the focal point, and then pull colors from the focal item into her outfit in a small way-with a statement necklace, a belt or shoes in that color. 

B-When pulling the solid colors from the focal point,  try not to use the same type of clothing item in that color, for a few members. Rather, try having the  pulled color in different clothing pieces for different members, for example, one person should wear that color in a top, the other on the bottom,  the third in accessory, and so on. 

Step 4: Additional things to keep in mind: 

Once you’ve established your color and pattern choices,  there are some additional things to keep in mind.  

A- Make sure to dress everyone properly for the environment, in clothes that are aimed for the same weather and occasion. Fall can include a range of temperatures, so a good way to prepare for that, is by incorporating layers in your outfit scheme. Aim to plan two looks, one with jackets/sweaters etc, and one without, and bring both to the shoot. Then you can add or remove layers according to the weather that day.

 B- Besides for being a good solution to unpredictable weather, layered clothing also looks cozy in the fall, and it creates a more flattering silhouette, which can help- especially for the adults.  As the saying goes, “the camera adds 10 pounds” - so  adding a nice cardigan sweater can do wonders for creating a more flattering shape. 

Step 5: Some other practical tips:

A-Try the clothes on your family members, especially children, in advance, to make sure they fit well.  

B-Plan ahead to ensure that everyone is comfy and happy with their choice, and that those choices fit well with each individual’s likes and personality.

C -Prepare kids as much as possible in advance, for example, make sure they get enough sleep , they're  well fed before the photo shoot, and have been told what to expect. All that can help the whole shoot go smoother.  

Step 6: Know what to avoid:

A-Avoid wearing any bright whites, choose whites that are off-white, ivory, cream, or grayish in tone, instead.

B-Avoid pictures or slogans on clothing.

C-Don’t pair your neutrals with bright spring or summer shades. 

D-Bright neon colors don’t work well against nature’s softer backdrop and can make people look washed out.

And Finally…

Step 7: Enjoy these Gorgeous sample color scheme ideas!: