I should start by saying that I don’t have professional pictures taken very often. In fact, since our wedding day 27 years ago, we’ve only had professional pictures taken three times.
Maybe that’s why I stress so much over the “what to wear” question? I have this fear that if I wear the wrong thing, the pictures will turn out terrible, I’ll hate them, and all our hard-earned money will be wasted.
Can you relate?
Recently I had a blogging opportunity that required a new, up-to-date photo. Beforehand, I found myself sitting at the computer studying other bloggers’ profile pictures and analyzing everything about them: their outfits, hair, posture… Then I moved on to Pinterest and studied family photos.
Oh, help.
There were so many options and so many opinions about what to wear.
In the end, I turned away and came up with my own philosophy. Now that it’s all said and done, I’m sticking with it.
Here it is:
Wear whatever makes you feel marvelous!
Forget about whether it should be solid or printed, v-neck or turtleneck, jacket or no jacket.
Instead, think about what you feel great wearing.
Almost three years ago, we had family pictures taken. As a mom of only boys, I found myself trying to figure out not only what I would wear, but what they would wear, too!
Since the photos were being taken outside at the camp we worked at back then, we knew we wanted something casual. So I started by choosing my favorite casual outfit, then built the rest of the family’s outfits around mine. That may seem selfish, but you have to start somewhere!
I bought some new pieces for each of us, since it was time for new clothes anyway, but I tried to choose things each of the boys felt comfortable wearing.
I’ve only ever been a boy mom, so I have no experience shopping for girls. But in this case, all the “men” in the family just wanted me to tell them what to wear. I did learn an important lesson, though.
It’s important that each person feels comfortable and authentic in what they are wearing.
I knew the boys were working very hard to cooperate for the whole photo process. After shopping, choosing, and trying on a multitude of options, one of them said,
“This will be ok for the picture, but I’ll probably never wear it again.”
I knew that if that’s how he really felt, it was completely wrong for the picture! Nothing is worse than trying to smile for a photo while wearing something that makes you feel silly. So we chose something he already wore and loved instead. It worked out great.
When you wear what feels comfortable, you can enjoy the process and be much more relaxed in the photos.
Now time has passed, and it’s hard to get the whole family in the same place at the same time for a photo shoot. So this time, it was just my husband and me.
I wondered if a floral shirt would look too busy, but I loved it. So I wore it.
It has the most fun flutter sleeves that make me feel like a million bucks. And my husband’s favorite black sweater worked great with it.
I needed two specific shots, and the photographer nailed them in only 15 minutes!
So take it from me, a former over-stresser when it comes to clothes:
Wear whatever you love, and you’ll look great!
(PS. A good photographer is key, too. Photo credits for the family pictures go to Mandy O’Brennan Photography, and for the recent ones to Little Prints Photography.)
Linking to: Get Your Pretty On, Turning Heads, Jo Lynne Shane
