Our Family Style Guide

You Are the Star of the Show

The goal of our session is to create a beautiful heirloom portrait that will be treasured for generations. We want to capture your family’s personality and the relationships you share.

To do that, the focus must be on YOU, not the clothing. Think of your outfits as the supporting cast. They should work together in harmony to ensure your faces and your connection are the main event. Simplicity creates timeless art.

What is Color Harmony?

Color harmony is about choosing a palette of complementary colors that look beautiful together. Instead of everyone matching perfectly, we coordinate. The most classic and flattering portraits are built on neutral mid-tones.

Think of a range from creams and tans to soft blues, grays and charcoals. These colors ensure your faces remain the brightest and most important part of the image.

To create a timeless look, we recommend you avoid:

• Logos & Graphics: Please avoid clothing with words, logos, characters or fraternity symbols.

• Busy & Conflicting Patterns: A single, simple pattern can work as a "statement piece," but avoid mixing plaids, bold stripes and other loud patterns.

• Bright & Neon Colors: These colors can be distracting and pull the eye away from the subjects in the portrait.

• Mixing Warm & Cool Tones: To create harmony, please stick to either all warm tones (like browns, tans and warm greens) or all cool tones (like blues, grays and cool purples).

Here are two simple methods for planning your family's outfits:

Method 1: Start with a Statement Piece

Find one outfit with a simple pattern that you love. For example, if Mom has a floral dress with blues and purples in it, you can use those colors to build the outfits for the rest of the family. Dad could wear a solid blue shirt and your daughter could wear a soft purple sweater.

Method 2: Pick a Color Palette

Choose two or three main colors to build from. A great example is denim, cream and tan. Some family members can wear denim jeans, another can wear a cream dress and someone else can wear a tan jacket over a simple top. Using rich textures like denim, knits and linen adds interest without the distraction of busy patterns.