Hellobee

I love getting pictures of our family taken and looking back on how we’ve grown. So far, we have done three photo shoots as a family of three and I hope to continue as our family grows. We are lucky that one of my close friends is an amazing photographer and is willing to trade sessions for babysitting or other small gestures. We have also had one shoot with our wedding photographers, as they live close to Mr. TTT’s parents, where we got married.

Before each family photo shoot, I like to gather inspiration and plan our outfits. Sometimes I buy new things for us to wear, but this last time I challenged myself with just using what we already had. I ended up buying one shirt for Liam, but everything else was already in our closet. Here’s my method:

1. Start with the pickiest and/or hardest to dress person in the family. For our family, this person is me. My husband is only comfortable wearing jeans and a button up shirt, and Liam will (at this point) wear whatever I dress him in, but I am the hardest to dress. I’m also the most expensive if I want to get something new for photos; if my husband needs a new shirt, but can wear jeans he already has, that isn’t too bad and Liam clothes are the cheapest. For our family photos at the ranch, I wore a new dress from Asos that is still one of my favorite dresses, but it wasn’t cheap. For our latest photos, I wanted to wear something I already had, so I picked a dress (from H&M 6 years ago – it’s a skimpy halter on top, but the cardigan covers it) that I thought would look great in pictures and show off my baby bump in the most flattering way.

Photo by Michelle York Photography

2. Vary colors and patterns, but make sure everything works well together. I remember when planning the outfits for our engagement pictures 6 years ago, I had us both in the same colors, very matchy-matchy. The more I look for inspiration, though, the pictures I fall in love with don’t feature families or couples in matching colors or outfits. My favorites show many different colors and patterns that all work well together. Once I have one outfit planned (mine), I pull pieces from everyone else’s closets and hold them up together or lay them out so I can see how it all looks together. Then, I change out pieces and try different combinations to find something I like the best.

Photo by The Caldwells Photography

3. Layers are your friend. Layering adds something to an outfit, much like an accessory might. Cardigans, jackets, fun socks, leggings; all of these can add more color, pattern, and texture to a look to make it feel more dynamic and interesting. A t-shirt and jeans is fine – it’s what I wear most days – but it doesn’t make for very interesting pictures. If my husband were more adventurous with his clothes, I’d love him to layer a vest or chunky cardigan over his button downs, but that’s just not him, which brings me to my next point…

Photo by The Caldwells Photography

4. Be yourself. Since my husband feels most comfortable in a button down or simple sweater and jeans, that’s what I always plan for him to wear. If I force him to wear something he isn’t comfortable in, it will show in the pictures. Liam needs to wear things he can move around in and that he won’t be constantly tugging at. No bow ties for him, as I’ve learned recently. Hats are also a no because the only ones he likes are baseball caps, fireman helmets, pirate hats, and cowboy hats; none of which are appropriate for family photos, unless it’s Halloween.

Photo by Michelle York Photography

5. Consider the season. Or don’t. Last year, we took our family pictures at a Christmas tree farm. It was a beautiful setting, especially for holiday card photos, so we dressed in wintery (at least for So Cal) clothes and chose a holiday-friendly color scheme with hints of red and light blue. This year, since I’m pregnant with a girl, I wanted to wear something with pink in it, so the dress I chose out of my closet has a very springtime look. Even though we took these photos in November, I decided to go with a lighter, brighter color scheme and the pictures still looked great on our holiday cards.

I know that adding another family member will make planning outfits for photo shoots more difficult, but I also think it will be so much fun, especially dressing a little girl! I already have ideas for our holiday card photos for next year…

How do you plan outfits for family pictures?