How to Prepare for Your Family Portrait Session in Huntsville, AL

Preparing for your family portrait session can feel overwhelming. The good news is I’m here to help!! Below I have listed out everything from choosing the right location, what to wear and what to expect for you. If you book a session with me I also walk you through all of this. I try to guide my clients through the whole process to make your family session as stress free as possible. If you are interested in booking a family portrait session in Huntsville with me click here.

Choosing the Right Location for Your Huntsville Family Session

You might be wondering where to have your Huntsville family session in your preparation process. The good news is most photographers will have several locations that they know and recommend for your session. Part of our job as photographers is to scout locations to look at what will be in your images, the lighting, and much more. I personally provide my clients with a list of locations that I love to choose from. This list includes different settings to fit the clients style and it takes the stress out of having to think of a location for clients.

Huntsville, AL offers a wide variety of backdrops for outdoor family sessions. This is part of the reason I love Huntsville. Depending on the time of year sessions could take place in a beautiful park, field with mountains in the background, downtown Huntsville, or even a flower field. Huntsville offers so many stunning outdoor areas that you really can’t go wrong with any location that you choose.

What to Wear for Your Family Portrait Session

Deciding what to wear for your family portrait session may feel overwhelming. First, I would start with considering the time of year and the weather. You want to be comfortable for your family portrait session. We want to be able to capture those genuine smiles and if you are freezing you are going to be uncomfortable. For colder weather, some great options are jeans, jackets, beanies, and maybe even gloves. Accessories can really help to create a whimsical dreamy family portrait session. For warmer weather, light colors, dresses, skirts, jeans and khakis all photograph beautifully.

When trying to create a cohesive look for the whole family here are a few things to consider. I personally recommend not matching 100% unless you are wanting the classic white t-shirt and jeans family photos. Some great ways to look cohesive without completely matching are to consider including patterns. A pattern on dad’s shirt, a patterned dress for your daughters, or even a patterned dress for mom can help to stick to a color scheme without completely matching. Try to avoid any bold colors as these colors can reflect off skin tones. For example, a bright hot pink shirt is going to reflect onto a toddler’s face standing next to you. When picking a color scheme you all don’t have to be in the exact same color. Neutral colors photograph BEAUTIFULLY especially outdoors with green grass and trees. When thinking of a color scheme pick 2 or 3 colors that compliment each other.

Below is a list of some of my favorite outfit color schemes for family portraits

• White and light tan such as khaki
  • Mom: Cream dress
  • Dad: Patterned white shirt with brown pants
  • Sons: White shirt with khaki pants
  • Daughters: Patterned tan or brown dresses
• White with light grey
  • Mom: Light grey/blue dress
  • Dad: White shirt with grey pants or jeans
  • Sons: White button up shirts with pattern with grey pants or jeans (opposite of dad)
  • Daughters: Patterned white or grey dresses
• Light green, pink, or blue with tan and dark brown
  • Mom: Light tan or cream colored dress
  • Dad: Patterned light green shirt with khakis
  • Sons: White shirt with dark brown sweater vest and khaki pants
  • Daughters: Light green dresses

Above are some examples to consider when picking color schemes for your family portraits. You certainly don’t need to follow the outfits exactly, but I hope that helps to give some examples. I like to consider different groupings for photos. For example, think of how all the outfits pair together. Next, think about how just mom and dads outfits pair together for couple shots. Then, consider how just your kids outfits coordinate for photos with just the kids together. Lastly, how do the kids outfits match with just mom and just dad. This process will help you to make sure you love how all of your outfits coordinate regardless of the photo.

Preparing Your Kids for a Smooth Family Portrait Session

My number one tip for preparing your kids for a family portrait session is to make sure they are comfortable. First starting with your child’s outfit make sure they won’t be too hot or cold. Next, be sure to bring along some water and snacks. When packing snacks try to choose snacks that aren’t messy to avoid staining outfits. Some great options are apples, carrots, cheese sticks, trail mix, gummies, etc. Then, consider bringing a toy or 2 with them. This can be helpful for when we are getting photos of their siblings or just mom and dad. I also love shooting lifestyle photography and capturing real memories for my clients. If you child is really into Legos, Barbies, etc. that you want captured by all means bring them along. I’d love to capture photos in a park for you with your family playing a board game or Legos together. Lastly, try not to stress too much about it.

What to Expect During Your Family Session

Huntsville, AL is a beautiful location for family portraits. Whether you choose to have photos at a park, downtown Huntsville, or in a field with mountains behind you the scenery will definitely be beautiful. If you are booking your family portrait session in Huntsville, AL then you can expect to have a fun and memorable family session. From the time your inquire to book until the time your photos are delivered I strive to keep you informed and create a seamless process. I know families are busy, so I try to take away the stress, as much as possible, with preparing for your family session. At your family session, I will guide you through prompts and poses to create beautiful lasting memories for you and your family. After the session you receive your edited photos within 30 days by email with the link to download and print your images. If you are interested in booking a family portrait session in Huntsville, AL with me please click here. I hope you found this information on preparing for a family portrait session helpful. For more tips and to follow along with upcoming sessions I’m offering follow along on Instagram.