Styling Tips for Extended Family Photography Sessions
The holiday season brings a lot of families together- whether physical distance or busy schedules keep you apart, this time of year is often about reconnecting and enjoying the company of your loved ones. So it’s not surprising that I see an uptick of inquiries for extended family sessions in my inbox. These sessions are so fun because I love working with a big group, feeling out family dynamics, and finding ways to show your connection as we create photos together.
However, I think one of the biggest challenges (aside from actually organizing your session- more on that later) is trying to figure out how to style a big group of people. You don’t want to be too matched up and risk turning into a single amorphous blob. A little bit of pattern can add interest, but when is it too much? Luckily, I am a bit of a fashion nerd and I really love putting together looks for clients that not only photograph beautifully but showcase some personality. Let’s go over some ideas!
The Monochromatic Look
Remember how I said we want to avoid the amorphous blob? Well, normally a monochromatic look is a one-way ticket to blob zone- but done well, it can create a cohesive style for your extended family session. The idea here is to pick one pop of color and use shades of that color to map out outfits for everyone. You might even consider having each household rock a particular shade of that color to highlight the smaller groups in those large group shots.
In this example, I’ve selected three neutrals (various shades of tan, beige, and grey) and one pop of color (various shades of green). Families A, B, and C represent smaller units in one extended family dynamic.
You can see how each family unit has a cohesive aesthetic, but we can pull individuals from each group while maintaining the overall color scheme. If we selected all the children from all the families for the photo, we would be able to arrange them in such a way that they have pops of color without overwhelming the photo. We can also group all three families together for a group photo and still maintain the overall theme.
One Color Pallet to Rule Them All
If creating a nuanced color pallet feels too chaotic, you can opt for a single color pallet to be used across all family units. You can create numerous outfits and color combinations from the same base color pallet to prevent your photos from feeling too stale!
For this example, I selected black, burnt orange, charcoal grey, and creamy beige. As with the previous example, families A, B, and C represent smaller units in one extended family dynamic.
It’s important to consider how each family unit will photograph separately and combined with members of the extended family when trying to style your outfits. The idea is not to match per se but to complement each other. Notice that there aren’t any repeating outfits because the goal is not to “twin” with another person. Using a color pallet can help everyone look good together in a more modern and trendy way.
Mix and Match
Maybe you like to think outside of the box, and you don’t actually want your colors to match at all. That’s totally fine! There are some things to consider to make this look work. If you use too much color everywhere, the photo can look too “busy”. If you want a cleaner look, lean into neutrals and use different colors as accent colors.
For this example, I created three completely different color pallets. Again, families A, B, and C represent smaller units in one extended family dynamic.
As you can see, each family unit has its own aesthetic. The biggest advantage of planning your outfits this way is that it requires less coordination and allows for more personality to shine through. It also makes it easier to match the photos to each household’s decor if you’re planning on ever displaying photos in your home. By relying heavily on neutrals, we can still easily pair people across family units without making the photo look too messy and overwhelming.
General Tips for Styling Your Photos
For each family unit, start with planning mom’s outfit first. It’s overwhelming trying to pick photos for everyone at once. Figuring out what mom likes and feels most confident in will help set the stage for everyone else’s outfits.
Select your key communicators (probably the other mom’s in the other family units), and share pictures of your family’s outfit selection so you can get a vision of what it will look like when everyone is together.
Go light on the patterns. Too many patterns will overwhelm the photo. If you look at my reference photos, you can see that there are only 1-2 people in each family unit that has an outfit with a pattern. Focus more on solid colors, layers, and textures.
When in doubt, opt for light neutral colors for your color pallet. These colors photograph well against most backgrounds and in most lighting conditions.
Put together a mood board or color pallet before you plan outfits and start shopping! Trust me- it makes the whole process so much easier.
If you get stuck, shoot me a message! My clients can request a complimentary custom mood board that helps them pinpoint the aesthetic they want for their photo session.
