Portrait Tips

What to wear? 

Putting a little planning and clothing harmony into your session helps create a better looking portrait.

For anyone:

• I recommend avoiding busy or distracting/contrasting tones.  In the finished portrait this will lead your eyes to the most important part of the portrait, the people (not the clothing)
• Long sleeves and higher necklines are more flattering for almost everyone.
• If you like dark backgrounds, medium to dark clothes tend to look the best. 
• Medium to light colors look the best with light colored backgrounds.
• For outdoor portraits I especially recommend solid colors, to avoid adding distractions when the background is more busy.  Some bright greens can clash with the greens of nature so you might want to avoid that.
• Darker colors minimize body size.
• If you have glasses with thick lenses it can cause a serious problem.  Please consider having the lenses removed from your frames (or popping them out yourself), or getting a pair of frames with no lenses.  The soul of a portrait is in the eyes, and if we can't see them because of your lenses neither of us will be satisfied.  If your lenses are thin I can usually work with them, especially if they have the anti-glare coating.

For a family group:

• You don't have to be in all the same color, but in the same tonal range is good - i.e. pastels mixed with pastels.  Or darks - some in navy, some in burgandy.  Avoid busy patterns and florals.  Solid colors tend to work best.

For children:

• Changes of clothing are fine, but the mood of most children deteriorates with changes of clothing.  I recommend limiting changes to 2 or 3 at most.  It makes a nice set of portraits to include both more formal and more casual outfits.
• If your child has a favorite outfit, even something funny or different, we can include that.  One of my favorites has been a little boy who wore his Batman cape everywhere - a memory worth photographing!

For baby pictures:

• It depends on what you're looking for with babies - I do naked babies and babies in princess dresses and everything in between.  If you want a simple solid background, you can use most any outfit for the baby.  If you want a more complicated "set" then solid colors work best. 
• I like to use parents in baby pictures - either as kind of a prop or with your face showing.  In general this works best when you wear a black long-sleeved shirt.  Sometimes the happiest pictures of Baby from the session are in Mommy's arms, so your shirt matters too!
• If your baby has a special blanket or toy, please bring that and we will include it in the session.  If the blanket has busy colors you might consider a simple solid outfit, or just a onesie, to go with it.
• Often people enjoy 12 month old pictures with more formal dress, to celebrate this special first birthday.

Can we include props?

I have some simple props, though I tend to focus on the faces and not the surroundings.  If you have a prop that will help show your personality it can be a real asset to the photo session.  This especially applies to seniors (and other ages of kids).  For example:

• Musical instruments
• Books
• Vehicle (this requires extra planning so please inquire about it in advance)
• Sports - uniforms, balls, helmets, shoes, sticks, bats - the more the better!
• Pets (again please inquire in advance so we can plan appropriately)

Where to have the portraits taken?

It's nice to have options with this - I can do studio backgrounds or outside depending on your preference.  Maternity and young baby portraits tend to work better indoors.  Sometimes the happiest children photography happens at the park.

Some of my favorite locations are:

• the Botanic Gardens (even in the winter - the greenhouses are in bloom)
• Petroglyph National Monument
• the Rio Grande river - especially in the fall
• local parks
• back yards - even my back yard works really well for half the year