Ok, now onto my post. This is a revised blog post I did last year for Wardrobe Wednesday, but I thought it would be fantastic to start here with my wardrobe posts!
When planning your shoot, whether you are the photographer or the client, you likely discuss the following: prices, products, location and wardrobe. Am I right? Shake your head yes, please. :D Location and wardrobe are SO important to a photoshoot. They can both essentially make or break a shoot. I don't care whether the location is a bedroom, the beach or a downtown area...I bet most clients have a specific "look" in mind when booking their session. But sometimes it's difficult to actually coordinate all of that. Enter Wardrobe Wednesday.
I consult with each and every one of my clients before doing a photoshoot because I feel wardrobe is so important to a client's images. I often encourage color, whether it is muted or bright. I feel color brings so much character to an image! When reviewing wardrobe options with a client, one thing I cover is where they plan to hang or display their images. I specialize in wall art, and the majority of my clients purchase wall art for their homes. I am an advocate of getting your photos printed HUGE and hung on your wall. It's all about the wall art, and what better wall art to hang than your beautiful family? I see far too many people purchasing the "disc" and doing nothing with it. Get those gorgeous photos printed and HANG THEM, mkay?!?!?
So now that we've got that settled, think about where you'd like to hang them. Would you prefer a display in your living room? Bedroom? Dining room? Wherever you choose, consider your decor and colors. Is your decor contemporary and colorful? Is it shabby chic? Traditional? You'll want to take these things into account when planning your wardrobe. If your decor is traditional, you'll likely enjoy a more traditional look to your shoot. Chances are you won't choose a colorful and trendy look. Are you following me yet? Ok good.
I do best explaining things while using my hands, but since they are busy typing and you can't see me, I will have to use examples. Here's a personal story:
I was a client a few years ago, when I booked the lovely and talented Jean Smith of Jean Smith Photography. I was going to be on the other side of the lens and I was FREAKING.OUT. What should we wear? Where should we do our shoot? I decided to start with location first. I had seen Jean's work time and time again, and I really enjoyed a combo of some urban/downtown shots and some grassy areas. So Jean suggested a downtown location. Phew. Now that was out of the way. Next up? Wardrobe of course!
I viewed some samples of where we'd be shooting and saw lots of greens, red brick, grays and blacks and other splashes of color. So...where to start? First, I thought about where we'd proudly be displaying the art of US. We have high ceilings and lots of wall space so we would be hanging HUGE enlargements, of course. I looked around my house. I LOVE lots of color (as if you can't tell in the following photos) and therefore have several different colors throughout my open floor plan. If you stand in the living room, you can see the kitchen, breakfast nook and dining room. One thing that is consistent is RED. I have pops of red everywhere. I heart it, as you can see.
I KNEW somewhere in our clothing choices for our shoot I would incorporate red. I always tell clients to start your choices with the girl in your family. IF you have a daughter, start with her outfit, then branch out from there (if not, start with the mom) . I decided to take my own advice. One day I walked past The Gap. I saw an adorable little girl's dress in the window. The colors were different shades of blue with a bit of rust in it. It totally reminded me of fireworks. Our session was in the summer, a few weeks before the 4th of July. How appropriate! I thought HEY, I can pair up something RED with this dress. And so I did. I found a red dress for myself but it was sleeveless. GASP! Did I really want to see my flabby arms in every photo? NOPE. So I thought and OOOH, solution! I had a jean jacket to go over the dress. I finished it off with a cute necklace with pops of color in it and neutral colored shoes. I dressed my little guy in red, blue and khaki and my big guy in blue and khaki. VOILA! We were coordinated, but not too "matchy-matchy". AND when I hung Jean's art of US, it would coordinate with our home as well.
Here is the final wardrobe compilation!
Aaaaand the art on our wall!!
Let's review:
1. When booking your custom photography session, think about where you'd like your session to be held.
2. When compiling wardrobe ideas, make sure it goes with the location AND your home decor. If you are hanging your photos in your bedroom, perhaps you'd like a "soft" look? Light blues and whites at the beach perhaps?
3. Get those gorgeous photos ON YOUR WALLS! You've invested time and money in the photoshoot...what good is it doing you to keep them on a disc? :)
We'd love to hear from you...has this post helped you at all? Would you like to see more of this in the future? Please feel free to post on the Wardrobe Wednesday {where fashion meets photography} wall on Facebook!
One more thing: I mentioned before how important I believe wall art is. For all of my clients, I take photos of the walls in question, so that they can preview their "art" using the handy dandy app, Shoot & Sell. I can't tell you how valuable a tool this app has been to me and my clients! It will show them how fabulous their photos will look hung in a particular room (or not so fabulous, depending on the wardrobe choice! in this case, you can always show them some black and whites, which of course, look great ANYWHERE).
Shoot & Sell has offered to give away ONE FREE SHOOT & SELL APP or ONE FREE SET OF WALL TEMPLATES for Photoshop (if you don't have or use an iPad) to one lucky winner! You'll have plenty of opportunities to enter, and the more you do, the more entries you'll have! So what are you waiting for? Go ahead and enter!
a Rafflecopter giveaway
image by Aubri Graybeal of Pink Sky Photography
Shannon Dodge is one of Love Photographs Beautifully's contributors. She is a child and family portrait photographer in Southwest Florida whose style is fun, fresh and vibrant! She specializes in natural light and aims to capture moments as they unfold. You can view her work HERE or HERE.
Great contest, ty for the chance!!
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