Who This Guide is For?

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This guide is dedicated to all those seeking classic, more or less traditional portraits, be they family photos, business photos, couples photos or even professional portraiture and headshots.

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Assuming you don't have and aren't a personal stylist, this guide is here to help you nail down the most timeless, flattering look(s) for your moment in front of the camera. Don't feel daunted by its length - some of it is skimmable, but I tried to be thorough to accommodate every possible question I could fathom.

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If you are a personal stylist - or have one - it still may be useful to look this over briefly, if only because the lens sometimes isn't as friendly toward certain aesthetics that the human eye might forgive and vice versa. Though these notes are based on my professional experience as a photographer of 10 years, please consider these as rudimentary suggestions rather than hard and fast rules. At the end of the day, what's most important is that you feel good and like the way you look. If that means showing up dressed in a kangaroo mascot suit with a baby in your faux fur pouch and all the necklaces of Sheba strung about your neck, this list probably isn't targeted to you and we should talk one on one about a 'high concept' photo shoot. Together, we can achieve a level of artistic strangeness that will make David Lynch weep with envy.

 

However, if you're in the camp that wants photos to make your midwestern grandmother smile on the holidays, or even something a little quirky and offbeat without cruising the high seas of Vogue-grade surreal, read on, my friends - this is for you.

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'Costume' Changes

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For 1.5-2 hour group photo sessions of fewer than 10 individuals, each person should feel free to bring 2 different outfits. This way you can all let both your inner Bruce Wayne and inner Batman shine.

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For 1.5-2 hour individual sessions, 2-3 outfits are typically fine; if major hair/makeup changes are entailed in the transition, let's discuss to make sure there's adequate time to accommodate the changes.

 

In either case, it's typically best to start with the fanciest look and progressively get more casual as outfits change.

Matchy Matchy...And Effective Visual Cohesion

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For couples, families, friends, clubs, and business organizations, it's often very visually effective for photo participants to dress in a palette of one or two basic colors. This helps create a cohesive aesthetic theme to the whole shoot! So I encourage you to coordinate amongst yourselves.

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That said, the thing to avoid (unless you want to look like a high school marching band) is tops of the same color and style and pants of the same color and style. Unless Awkward Family Photos hall of fame is an ironic hipster goal of yours, such a motif is taking the "matchy-matchy" too far. For those of you not coveting such an accolade, read on!

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Color Basics: The Spiffy Trinity

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There are three color palettes that will rarely steer human beauty wrong:

Jeweltones Almost everyone looks fabulous in bright solid jeweltones.

Grayscale Almost everyone has, in their closet, some blackish and whiteish clothes. This is no coincidence, since black and white are the heart of undistracting minimalism - classic and sophisticated. For bonus points, opt for charcoal, soft gray and ivory/offwhite - these better compliment the natural range of human skintones and are universally flattering. Feel free, also, to add an accent color to liven up the whites and/or blacks - such as yellow, red, or even metallics like gold or silver.

Blue & Brown Nearly as ubiquitous to the sartorial arsenals of modern Americans are the colors blue and brown. Denim, khakis and leather, for example. This color combo can come off as more casual, folksy and down to earth, or you can dress it up. Whichever way you spin it, the outcome is generally quite satisfactory.

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Pro tips for various skintones:

- if you have light skin, dark or bold colors ensure a dramatic look and are most appropriate for outdoor shoots and/or multiple locations. Light colors (such as pastels) are suitable in darkly toned environments and/or in a studio setting.

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- If you have dark skin, light or bold colors will support a dramatic look appropriate for outdoor photos and/or numerous locations. For studio photography and/or very pale, washed out locations (like desert dunes), consider darker colors.

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Color Nemeses: the Deadly Duo

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In a world full of color, there's almost never any good reason to choose either of the following on this one momentous day when your significant other, family, friend or employer has wrangled you in front of my lens for an fleeting but intense period of time:

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1) Any shade of green paler than emerald.

2) Neons, tie-dyes and wild unnatural colors.

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The exceptions to these rules being:

- Either: it's a fashion shoot and clothes are the main focus

- Neon/Rainbow: others in the photo - if applicable - will be similarly attired

- Neon/Rainbow: the neon is thematic and represents your inner core

- Neon/Rainbow: others in the photo are fine being upstaged by Captain Psychedelia.

- Either: revenge served cold...topped with rainbow gummybears and/or pistachios.

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Textures, Graphics & Patterns

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As stated previously, solid colors are an easy win for group portrait shoots. To crank up the visual splendour, consider wearing an item or two with a noticeable physical texture, such as high texture fabrics like cashmere, corduroy, denim, wool and crocheted items. These textures offer tastefully subtle variety when paired with smooth fabrics and produce a very classy look.

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However, if one is absolutely compelled to wear a patterned article of clothing, the bigger and/or less dense the pattern, the better. Dense, small patterns, like loose knits, or garments with words and/or blatant logos should be avoided as these are typically distracting elements in a composition. Then again, if everyone wants to show up in their Seahawks jerseys or Hawaiian shirts, that's another matter altogether. Such coordination can in itself be an asset.
 

Attire Basics: Cut & Fit

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It's generally well advised to avoid strapless, spaghetti straps and sleeveless tops; long sleeves and quarter length sleeves are usually preferable due to cropping, focal lengths and other technical matters.

 

Comfortably fitting and flowing clothing is generally recommended over tight, form-fitting clothing. Try to choose something you can comfortably sit, lie down and stand in without wardrobe malfunctions.

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For individual and couples, flowy garments like long, thin/lightweight skirts and light scarves afford us some theatrical options if the wind/studio fans avail. However, for group photos, it's an especially good idea to avoid baggy and bulky garments.

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Accessories

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If you normally wear glasses or contacts and have the option to wear contacts, please favor the latter. Glasses can create glare with studio lights. That said, if you wear glasses regularly and want them in the shot, it can be done.

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It's generally a good idea to skip long necklaces and opt for earrings instead. The former sometimes result in an unsatisfying crop in an otherwise satisfying image, and micromanaging necklace orientation often becomes a job unto itself. Short necklaces like chokers are A-OK. These things said, if you love that long dangly necklace, if your neck feels bare without it, don't fret - we'll just keep an eye on it and make it work.

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Pro tip: matching belt to shoes can really tie an outfit together nicely. And along those lines, I encourage everyone to bring nice shoes. Even for professional portraits when it's likely that we'll only be featuring face & upper body in the majority of shots. In many cases, as time permits, there will likely be some creative portraiture and looking sharp from top to bottom provides us with options!

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As an aside - for group shots, coordinating accessories like matching flower crowns or capes or santa hats - you name it - can be an amusing and/or attractive choice.

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Hair & Makeup

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Do bring any touch up makeup you have on hand. I don't anticipate the menfolk having any, but if whomever has it brings it, it may come in handy. For makeup, matte finishes are preferable - glossy, sparkly & metallic finishes can sometimes cause undesired reflections. If you 'bake on' your makeup or otherwise use any sort of "finishing powder" or "setting powder", please ensure that it's flash-friendly. If you have no idea whether or not you use finishing/setting powder, don't worry - you probably don't! If you do and don't know what "flash friendly" means or how to check, just shoot me a quick text or email & I'll clarify. 206.491.9070 / imogenstraub@gmail.com

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For professional portraits, tidy, uncomplicated hairstyles are preferred; anything that minimizes flyaways. This isn't a "must" so much as a general recommendation so that hairs don't get wildly out of place between shots. Try to think in terms of clean silhouettes. However, if your hair is short and/or no one minds a few stray hairs running wild from one shot to the next, wearing long hair down is also fine.

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Freshening up haircuts and grooming facial hair on the day before the shoot is always advisable, whenever possible.

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The Day Before

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At the risk of sounding like your maternal figure or doctor: two of the best things you can do for a successful shoot are to get plenty of sleep and hydrate well on the night before and morning of our photo session. If you are the exfoliating and moisturizing sort, do both 2 days prior to the shoot.

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If it is a consideration, please try not to be intoxicated during your photo session. The camera sees all! In many cases, it tends to exaggerate the visual signs with unflattering results. Then even Photoshop will have a quite a time reversing the results. If "the party is on", kindly wait until after your photos have been taken before unleashing the beast or whathaveyou.

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In Conclusion

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Now that your life is completely turned around and you're a whole new you, we're ready to shoot. Just kidding.

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If the sum of all this advice is paralyzing confusion and/or anxiety, banish those feelings immediately without a second thought!

You aren't alone in this - just shoot me an email. I am here to help & I will make you shine like the crazy diamond you are.

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Relax! It's going to be a fun & fabulous shoot! ♡

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