Fall Outdoor Family Photography Styling Guide

This is the number one question I get asked after a family books their fall session! I hope to make the process of choosing autumn outfits to be as stress free and seamless as possible with these six recommendations.

• Coordinate but do not match. Go with neutral colors such as greens, creams, yellows, blues, and maroon. Pick colors you gravitate towards as a family and also what colors might complement or look good on your walls at home if you plan to frame them in specific rooms. Also, start with mom’s outfit first and choose from there. A long dress, skirt/blouse top, or leggings and cardigan and sweater are perfect options for the fall.
• Wear layers! Fall sessions tend to be unpredictable weather wise in Boston. We might get a particularly windy or cold day or a day that feels like spring! As such, layers are always best and plan to wear a cardigan or sweater over blouses and long sleeve shirts. Outer layers can also add more color to pictures, however, keep these on the lighter side and avoid bulky jackets as we will be moving around!

Boston Outdoor Family PhotographyBoston lifestyle photographer specializing in family and newborn photography. Based out of Cambridge MA.

• Patterns: stick with only one person having patterns and make these are small and not too visible. Multiple shapes or patterns tend to be overwhelming in images where the focus should be faces and the interaction
• Balance. Make sure your color scheme complements between top clothing and bottom clothing so that if one person is wearing a maroon scarf or or khaki shirt the other is wearing a maroon or khaki pants. Another suggestion is for mom or another female identifying member to wear a skirt, dress, or one piece to avoid the infamous “line” in family photos that clearly cuts tops and bottoms and sometimes makes photos appear too formal or staged
• If you have long hair, I strongly recommend you wear your hair down for some of the shots in order to get the natural flow and life through action shots with your kids!
• Some things to avoid: pinstripes, neon colors such as hot pink, too much makeup or jewelry, tight clothing, sweats or sports clothes