How to Plan Family Picture Outfits that You Will Love

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Family walking through the leaves holding hands for Family Pictures

We all desire to capture moments of our families’ lives forever in family pictures. We want to cherish every moment, every season in our marriage, and our little one’s lives.

As a result, we often find ourselves attempting to capture moments through family pictures that will grace our walls, our Christmas cards, or possibly even our social media news feeds. I want to help you pick outfits for your family that look good together so you get those seamless-looking pictures you desire!

Here are My Top 5 Tips to Help You Plan Family Photo Outfits:

1. Pick out your outfit first

Listen…I know the temptation, kids clothes are super cute! But, let me remind you, your kids are most likely not the ones that are getting super excited about family pictures….you are!

So, pick your outfit first, and make sure it’s an outfit you feel beautiful and confident in.

If you are able, grab something a little flowy, this will add some movement to the photo and bring some fun to it.

Pro tip: in doing this, try to stick with neutral, solid colors that aren’t going to pull focus to something or someone and distract from the rest of the picture. If you go with a print, try to make it as minimal of a pattern as possible and limit it to only one person! If you’re struggling with what to wear for your specific body type you can always search on Pinterest for outfit ideas that flatter every body type.

Also, don’t feel pressure to buy something new. In the past, I’ve even borrowed something from a friend to help me achieve the look I was going for without having to purchase something I may or may not wear again!

2. Go neutral for guys

Think, simple is better. It will most likely be best for the guys in the picture to wear a solid, neutral color.

Stay away from logos, pictures, graphics, and heavy patterns. You want to look at the pictures and your focus to be drawn solely to the people. Keeping the men/boys in the image in neutrals will also allow a little more freedom with what the women/girls will wear.

3. Pinterest boards for the win when it comes to planning family pictures

Pinterest can be such a good tool for thinking through & planning out so many different things, and that’s true with planning family pictures too!

Putting together a board with pictures you find where you like the colors, styles, and maybe even poses will help you think through your whole family picture experience.

I’ve put together one here that you may find helpful as you think through this yourself.

How Your Photographer Edits for Family Photos:

Also, take notice of how your photographer edits. Do they have a warm/glowy style or lighter/airy style to their pictures? You’ll want to take that into consideration when planning, as well.

When photographers have a lighter, airy editing style, I think colors like whites, blues, and tans tend to look better. In contrast, photographers with a warmer/glowy editing style tend to do better with fall outfit colors.

Want to see what I mean? Here is a Pinterest Board for light and airy editing. And here is a Pinterest Board for warmer/glowy editing…notice the outfit choices.

Family sitting on a bed together smiling for a picture with newborn baby

4. If shoes don’t match, go barefoot

If shoes don’t all match for the kids, consider them going barefoot. This will look better than a bunch of random tennis shoes, and most likely, your kids will love it too!

My Favorite Shoes for Family Photos!

These are the boots I have bought for all of myself, kids, and for my husband. They pass down perfectly as gender neutral boots for family photos. They have quality handmade leather footwear for kids and adults that would look beautiful in pictures together & for your on-the-go, everyday looks.

If your pictures are in the spring or summer I love these matchy-matchy mom and daughter sandals.

Use the discount code: LANA10 for 10% off your whole purchase.

Woman wearing a hat while sitting in a chair holding a baby

5. Add accessories to your pictures for fun & character

You can do so much to add a little extra to your family photos. For example, add a hat, maybe a nice blanket you could all sit on or use in the pictures. Perhaps there are other props you could include that are natural to you and your family, possibly coffee mugs, books, certain accessories, etc.

Thinking through these small things can add A LOT of fun & character to your pictures and without being overwhelming or stealing the show.

Finally, I won’t wrap up this without sharing a few of my bonus tips to make the experience more fun for you & your family!

Bring snacks for the kids but make sure they are easy & won’t leave them messy. Things like gummy fruit snacks, pretzels, dried fruit, etc., are all excellent options!
Talk your kids through what you are about to do. Show them pictures possibly from your Pinterest board to help you explain it to them.
Make sure you schedule your family pictures for when your kids are well-rested and try to have something fun your kids can look forward to afterward to help them through the picture time.
Try and relax. Your family will feed off this if you bring a fantastic, fun attitude to the experience. If your photographer doesn’t play music, put some music your kids enjoy or music that makes you happy to enjoy the process even more!

I hope these tips are helpful & leave you enjoying both your family photo experience & the pictures you’ll get back!