What to Wear for Family Photos – the Dad edition
Trying to decide what to wear for family photos? For so many of my clients, all the details that go into planning what to wear for family photos has been a big point of stress in the past. This can even prevent some families from planning ahead for upcoming family sessions!
Generally, our first focus in preparing what to wear for your family photos is on finding beautiful, flattering dresses for Mom and sweet little outfits for the little ones. But even though we start with selecting what Mom will wear first, this post is for the guys. To have family photos you ALL love, it is important for Dad to look and feel great on photo date as well. 🙂
As a full service family photographer in Virginia Beach, one of my favorite ways to help you prepare for your sessions is helping you coordinate and style your family’s outfits.
If you’re anything like me, and my other clients, I know that deciding what to wear for photos can get overwhelming, especially if you have multiple children or are just welcoming a brand new baby. This is why I love including personalized styling assistance in the experience of working me as your Virginia Beach family & newborn photographer.
My goal with this blog is to share some insights on the how style Dad’s outfits for your upcoming family photos, and takes some of the stress of planning off your shoulders!
What to Wear for Photo Sessions
3 tips from a professional photographer for helping decide what outfit options will be a great fit for Dad, AND look great in photos.
For the Dads, we keep outfits fairly simple and neutral. I am located in Virginia Beach, VA, and it’s hot and humid for several of the most popular months for photoshoots, so weather is always something to consider when styling Dad. In addition to those humid Summer sessions on the beach that are so popular, it will be warmer during newborn photos since we keep the temperature higher so that baby cozy.
For this reason, both Dad’s style AND comfort are key!
With that in mind, here are my 3 must-haves for the best outfit options for Dad:
- Breathable and moisture-wicking fabrics: Performance, tech, or linen fabrics are great.
- Well-fitted clothes: Try to avoid baggy clothing* and find options that fit well while still being easy to move around in comfortability. (Avoiding baggy clothes is important especially for newborn photos, when Dad will be snuggling baby, we don’t want them to get lost in excess fabric.)
- Wrinkle-resistant: Less work on your part!
As a full-service photographer in Virginia Beach, I have found that many clients love that I offer a client wardrobe of dresses for Mom. The client wardrobe that all my clients have access to has been carefully curated and stocked with beautiful, flattering dresses to help Mom look and feel her best on photo day.
Below are some style boards with inspiration (including links!) of what wardrobe pieces I would recommend for the man in your life when deciding what to wear for family photos!
These are options that will photograph well for your upcoming photo session. Below, the linked outfit options are great for newborn photos, family photos, as well as maternity photos with both Mom and Dad.
Style Boards: What to Wear for Family Photos
Links for each item are below the each style board!
- J Crew slim-cut linen blend long sleeve – sea white (light blue)
- Abercrombie – light blue and white linen blend button down
- Untuckit – Wrinkle-Resistant Linen short sleeve shirt – white
- bonobos – everyday bedford shirt – blue gray
- Bonobos – Pima Performanca henley
- Bonobos 2.0 Chinos – tailored cut- oat milk
- Bonobos 2.0 Chinos – straight cut
- J Crew slim-cut chinos (light grey; “a stone’s throw” is also a great, light khaki option!)
- Shoes – J Crew lace up canvas shoes
Portrait session styling for Dad – style board 2
- J Crew Slim baird irish mcnutt irish linen blend shirt – pebble grey
- Untuckit – wrinkle resistant linen button down – white
- Eddie bauer- supersoft henley – long sleeve, heather grey
- Bonobos everyday shirt – night aqua (sage green)
- bonobos – hudson sweater polo, cable knit – white
- Old Navy – Straight Chino Pants, a stone’s throw
- J.crew slim fit tech chino pants
- Shoes – Casual brown loafer sneaker
Pants vs. Shorts
Yes, even in the summer I still recommend pants for Dads! I know its a weird concept with the southern heat and probably not Dads’ favorite idea, but I promise you won’t regret it. Shorts aren’t as flattering when it comes to photos of Dad, and again, we want everyone to love the way they look in the final photos and art we create with your portraits!
Pants give a more classic look for your session so I always recommend them over shorts. The performance pants from stores like J. Crew and Lululemon are lightweight enough to stay comfortable for our session even in the summer. Trust me! We can always cuff them a bit for beach sessions to play in the water, too!
Shoes
I recommend closed-toed shoes, always! The only exception is for beach sessions, since we will kick off our shoes anyway. For in-home sessions, most families go sans shoes.
Casual sneakers, slip on shoes or loafers are a great way to fit into multiple color palates and seasons.
Layers for Fall
When it comes to deciding what to wear for family photos, Fall is a great time to add layers! Layers in similar color palates can add variety and texture to your photos, and are especially great if Dad is wearing a more simple or plain fabric shirt.Layers give extra add visual interest without getting too busy with color. It’s also a fantastic way to add a bit of warmth during the colder months. Ideas include adding a vest over a long-sleeve henley, or a button down under a sweater.
Looking for a full-service photographer in Virginia Beach?
Then, I’m your lady! As a full-service photographer here in Virginia Beach, I take pride in offering an exceptional level of service for each of the families that invest in having me capture their family’s milestones. From maternity sessions, to newborn, and annual family portraits – as well as baby’s first year – I’m a photographer who loves to grow with my clients as their family grows.
Not only do I help clients decide what to wear for family photos, I offer personalized styling for the rest of the family. The session experience is relaxed, natural and fun, and includes professional hair and makeup for Mom.
Sounds good, right?
Even better than that, I help families just like yours to get their memories off of their phones and into their hands by creating custom heirloom artwork, completely done for you, so you don’t have to lift a finger.
You can learn more about the unique photography experience I provide by visiting my website!
Ready to go ahead and inquire for your family’s session. You can send me an email here!
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