What do I wear? Three tips from a photographer for an easy, enjoyable photo session
You’ve picked your shoot package, locked in your date, and you’re feeling excited… until you turn to your closet.
"Oh my god, what do I WEAR?!"
Suddenly everything seems itchy, too small, too daring or even too safe. You think about where you can try to shop before your shoot date, but it’s hard to squeeze a shopping day into your schedule, and you never know that you’ll be able to find anything that feels like you in time. What are you going to do?
I’ll tell you the one thing you don’t need to do: panic. As your portrait photographer, I know how stressful pre-shoot prep can feel, and since my goal is to make things as smooth and fun as possible on all levels, I’ve got you covered!
And when it comes to choosing what to wear for your photo shoot, here are three questions to think about:
What makes you feel your best?
One of the easiest ways I find to determine what looks best on you is starting with what feels best on you: your slump-busting outfit. What do you wear when you want a confidence boost? That’s a great option to bring to your shoot. Not only will you feel comfortable, you'll also be showing off your personal style: perfect for a portrait or branding photo shoot!
Another way is thinking about what clothes get you a lot of compliments. I don’t necessarily mean compliments about the clothing itself, like, “What a lovely blouse!”, but rather the kinds of outfits that get YOU noticed. Even thinking about the kinds of colors that bring out your features helps you gravitate towards pieces that’ll help you shine on camera.
Fit is also important for great photos. While I personally love an oversized sweater or button-down, I wouldn’t wear those pieces for a portrait or branding photo shoot. Oversized clothes can swallow up your form, and on the other end of the spectrum, body-con or skintight tops can shift the focus away from your smiling face. Clothes that hit that happy medium and comfortably fit your body will read the best on camera.
I would also recommend wearing clothing you already have and feel comfortable in rather than buying new. Wearing something you haven’t tried on before is a bit of a risk. It may end up being uncomfortable or not photograph the way you want.
If it’s a one look shoot, you don’t want to waste it on something you don’t feel comfortable in! If you really want to buy something new for your shoot, I highly recommend wearing it around the house to make sure it feels good on you before the shoot.
Ultimately, your personality is key to making your images feel true to you. How you express yourself through clothing is one of the ways we can work together to make sure you look like you!
What photographs well?
In general, here are a few things to keep in mind when picking out an outfit for your photo shoot:
Think about fabrics
Fabrics are key to the story you’re telling.
If you need something simple and professional: cotton or polyester are fantastic. It reads as matte and clean on camera, and it holds its shape for a while after being ironed or steamed.
If you want the feel to be luxurious: satin, silk, and velvet are great for you. Their colors come across vibrant or deep, and the slight reflective nature of the fabrics gives it a feeling of opulence.
If you’re going for a more casual vibe, you can always incorporate denim for a laid-back feel, or wool for a cozy sweater look.
Linen can bring a low-key, summery quality to your images, but keep in mind that it can get wrinkly really fast. If we’re moving around to a few different places, or you have multiple outfits packed, you may want to skip your linen pieces!
Incorporate layers
I highly recommend this as an easy way to add visual interest and give you multiple styling options.
Clothes with some texture add visual interest to your look. Jackets, sweaters, scarves, textured fabrics: all of these things add a little extra oomph to your image.
Choose pieces with movement
There’s a reason you’ve seen so many flowy dress photographs on Instagram… clothes that move can make for impactful images! Dresses that catch the wind, or jackets that you can wear open, closed, or wrapped around you can help give you more variety in your images.
Bonus: it’ll give you a lot of different options of things to do with your hands while posing!
Avoid loud patterns
We want the focal point of your portraits to be YOU. If you're wearing neon green paisley, your outfit will be the focus instead of your face.
Don’t wear all black or all white
As a New Yorker, it’s hard for me to say this, but: wearing all black for your shoot can be tough unless the piece has some interesting texture to it (think velvet, leather, or lacy black top.) Black washes out most of us, and we want your features to pop!
This goes for white, too. Not only does it reflect more light back into your face, giving you a less defined jaw, it also distracts: your top becomes the brightest part of the image and pulls attention away from your face.
Let me just say: there are exceptions to nearly every rule. A good way to test if something will photograph well is to take a few photos at home in fairly bright natural light. Then feel free to send me those photos, and I can help you plan what to bring to your shoot!
What tells your story?
One of the first things I talk about with potential clients is where you’ll be using your images and what your message will be. Are these photos intended for a website refresh? A dating profile? LinkedIn or Instagram? Are you aiming to educate? Inspire? Entertain? This conversation usually helps us land on a few key words or phrases that define the look and feel of the shoot.
While location, lighting, and posing style go a long way to creating a mood for your images, clothing is also a very important element. You want to make sure that your outfit is aligned with the story you want to tell.
For example: I had a client whose career coaching business was focused on working with women, nonbinary folks, and the LGBTQ+ community. She wanted to make sure her photos came across as professional, a little playful, and queer. We brainstormed a few ways to bring all of those pieces together in her images. She landed on wearing a blazer over a structured black patent leather top, and bringing a fuzzy pink pen for a few shots. The photos perfectly illustrate her professionalism with a little wink and a nod to her sense of humor and community.
If you describe your brand as “light, open, and airy”, it wouldn’t make sense for you to show up to your shoot in a dark, thick, wool sweater. You might look great in it, but the photographs of you won’t be a proper representation of your brand. However, if you come in a lighter silk or cotton top, your outfit will be more aligned with the way you express your vision of your brand.
Even when taking personal portraits, it’s important to know what your end goal is. If these are photos for LinkedIn and your job is more corporate, a blouse and blazer are likely the way to go. But if your photos are going on a dating profile, your outfit should be more casual and everyday to show off who you are (and why you’re an absolute catch!)
The last word
Choosing your outfit is an important part of preparing for a photo shoot, and knowing that what you pick will be comfortable, flattering, and accurate to your brand will help you feel at ease in front of the camera.
I hope these tips are helpful and give you some assurance that your closet does in fact have what you need for your next shoot! And if you want that next shoot to be with me… go ahead and click that button below :)
P.S. Curious how skincare and makeup might factor into your pre-shoot routine? Check out this AMAZING photo shoot prep guide from the talented hair and makeup artist Kaley Were!