Clothing Tips

Planning Your Outfits to Ensure a Great Portrait Session!

The clothing you choose for your portrait session is a critical factor in creating a successful portrait. Your ultimate goal should be to choose clothing that does not attract attention to itself. After all, the most important part of the portrait is you, not your clothing.

Your clothing selection could mean the difference between a very successful portrait and just another picture. That's why we strongly encourage you to follow the recommendations on this page.

Creating a Work of Art

The first step in planning your portrait session should be deciding where you will hang your finished portrait. This will help you determine the style and color of clothing that will coordinate best with the decor in that room.

Consistency is Key for Group Portraits

If you have decided to do a formal portrait, everyone who will be photographed should be wearing formal clothing. Likewise, if you decide to go informal, make sure everyone is dressed casually. Otherwise all attention will be drawn to the one person whose clothing is not consistent.

Color Coordinate Group Clothing

Clothing for group portraits must be carefully selected to blend the bodies together. This is best achieved by having everyone wear matching tops and bottoms. If this is not possible, everyone should at least wear the same color tones.

Keeping the Focus on You

The color of your clothing should coordinate with the type of background you select. This helps the bodies blend into the background and places the attention on the faces, which is the most important part of the portrait.

For example, if you wish to have a "high-key" white background, then you should wear white or light colored clothing. If you wish to have a dark background, then dark clothing is most appropriate. Keep in mind that dark colors tend to slenderize the subject, while light colors seem to add weight to the bodies.

In either case, the color of your clothing should always be toned down. Bold, bright colors attract attention away from the face. This is especially true for infants and small children. Choose solid colored clothing, as prints and any kind of pattern - no matter how small - can easily become a distraction.

Finally, clothing below the waistline should be darker than above. Otherwise, attention will be attracted to the lower part of the body and away from the face.

Avoid Short Sleeve Clothing and Short Pants

Long sleeved clothing is highly recommended! For casual portraits it is equally important to wear long pants instead of shorts. When arms and legs are exposed to the camera there will be more flesh in the photograph in those areas than on the face, itself. This is a significant distraction.

Proper Necklines for a Portrait

The most flattering neckline for anyone is something that comes up close to the neck such as a turtleneck or V-neck. These tend to slim down the person and frame the face beautifully. A wide-open neckline tends to thicken the neck in a photograph.

Spot Clothing Problems Before the Session

Finally, lay out all the clothing onto a bed. Shoes, socks, stockings--everything should be included! Then, take a careful look at the collection. If your eye goes to any one item in particular, you can be certain the same thing will happen in a photograph. That item should be changed.

For appearance as well as your comfort, clothing should not be too tight or too loose. Also, keep in mind that your portraits are meant to be enjoyed for generations to come. Fad-type clothing should be avoided to create a timeless portrait.

Simplify Your Hairstyle

Keep your hairstyle simple and off the face. Hair falling down onto the sides of the face will create distracting shadows. Likewise, bangs that come down too low onto the face will keep light from getting into the eyes--the very most important part of the face.

Makeup Should Look Natural

Everyone has a color palette (cool, warm or neutral) that best compliments his or her skin tone. If you are having your individual portrait taken, choose clothing and makeup colors that specifically compliment your skin tone.

If you are having a group portrait taken, it is often best to choose clothing in neutral shades so that it is complimentary to everyone. In this case, neutral makeup colors are probably your best choice.

All makeup should be well blended to create a natural look. Too much color above and below the eyes attracts attention to itself. It actually takes attention away from the eyes, rather than attracting the viewer to the eyes.

Eyeglasses and Glare

There are various "tricks of the trade" that I can use to minimize glass glare in your portraits. However, I cannot guarantee that it will be totally eliminated.

Non-reflective lenses, of course, are a big help. Better yet, sometimes it's possible to obtain a matching set of frames without any lenses. This is particularly helpful, if your lenses sometimes distort the outline of your face. You may also simply wish to remove your glasses to avoid expensive retouching costs.

Remember, Cinderella is always here to help!
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