Congratulations, you’ve set the date and you’re ready for the perfect portrait. Well, almost. Clothing is one of the most essential elements of the portrait and it’s important that you choose appropriately. Our stylists will help you, but be sure to come prepared by following these tips to help ensure a timeless and beautiful portrait:

SIMPLICITY, SIMPLICITY, SIMPLICITY
• Timeless, simple, solid colored clothing produce the best images because they don’t distract. Try to avoid loud and busy patters, prints or stripes and refrain from wearing branded clothing (we know Abercrombie is cool, but we don’t need to see it). We want the emphasis to be on YOU, not the latest trends!

COLORS: DARK IS DELIGHTFUL
• Try and avoid white clothing, as they tend to scream their presence in the portrait. Instead, opt for darker hues as they look better and are always slimming, especially on the bottom. Also, do your best to avoid white shoes!
• Be sure to think about your environment. If you are on a lake with blue shirts, blue pants, blue sky and blue water, there’s probably too much blue. Another example would be dressed in green in a green forest; you might get lost.

SLEEVES PLEASE
• The longer the sleeve, the better. Quarter length sleeves are good, half or full length sleeves are better. Too much skin competes with the face. If you are worried about your weight, avoid spaghetti straps and extremely short sleeves.

CLOTHING TLC
• Feel free to bring as many options as you’d like; our stylist will help sort through them. However, be sure to bring your clothes on hangars. Folded or in a pile from the back seat are a wrinkled disaster waiting to happen.

HAIR AND MAKE-UP
• Please come camera ready, meaning hair and make-up already done plus a little extra mascara. Ladies, please bring your favorite brush, comb, make-up for touch-ups throughout the shoot.
• Don’t experiment with tanning lotions a day before your portraits; we all know how that usually ends up! Tan lines can cause issues, so think about your timing.
• Also, if you are going to get your hair cut or colored, please do so a week before the session so you are used to it and know how to style it just the way you like it!

GLASSES
• Glasses often have glare over the subject’s eyes and sometimes distort the face. If possible, bring an empty pair of frames (lenses removed). When that’s not an option we can correct the problem digitally.

HOW DO I DECIDE WHAT TO BRING?
• Wondering what dark color to wear? Bring more than you think you will need. We’ll sort through it together. Consider where the portrait will hang. Does the clothing color match the décor in that area?
• High school seniors: be yourself! With all of these rules about what to wear, be sure to bring clothing and props that express who you really are. If that means a lettermen’s jacket, a snowboard, your cheer uniform, pets, horses or whatever may define you, bring it along! We want to express the real YOU in your portrait!