What to Wear for your Beach Family Portraits | Cape Cod Family Photographer

The 4th of July means that summer is officially in full swing!  I am looking forward to spending some time on Cape Cod later this month, where I can't wait to get together with so many families for their family portrait sessions!  But of course, there is always that one popular question...

What should we wear for our photoshoot on the beach?

Since our Spring Wardrobe blog post was such a hit, I've decided to share some wardrobe inspiration for your beach session this summer!  Enjoy lots of visual inspiration, plus a couple of simple tips to make choosing outfits for your family session a breeze!

Keep it simple.  

Choose 2 colors plus a neutral and weave those into everyone's outfits.  Above you'll see that light blue, navy, and white pull all of the outfits together!

You can't go wrong with stripes.

I am a huge fan of stripes for our Salt Air sessions on the beach, and I love how classic and New England-y (we're just going to pretend that's a word!) they look.  When choosing stripes, choose ones that have only 2 colors so that the pattern isn't too busy and distracting -- white & blue are so classic!

Enjoy a little pop of color!

Teal & coral go really well together, and they are such eye-catching summer colors that are perfect for a photo session in the warmer months.  Tie the outfits together even more with matching accessories -- a coral bowtie on the baby, or a hat with a teal band on dad.

Leave the jeans at home.

At the beach, you want to lighten up and relax.  Heavy and dark jeans just don't make sense in such a relaxed and airy setting.  Choose lightweight fabrics (khaki, linen, cotton) rather than heavier ones.  Shorts are great, too!

Glam it up!

If you really want to make it a special experience, check out Rainey's Closet for your daughter (we have an entire post about this incredible rental service for little girls' dresses).  For your own dress, Rent the Runway has fabulous options, and you can also purchase beautiful dresses on Lulu's and even Amazon -- yay for 2-day shipping!  I have a growing collection of gowns in the studio as well -- ask me about it, and I'm happy to bring a dress or two for you to borrow!

Choose colors that complement your home decor.

These portraits are going to be proudly displayed on the walls of your home.  Make sure you keep your colors in mind as you plan your wardrobe so that they flow seamlessly into your decorating, enhancing the space rather than looking out of place!

Now, wasn't that easy?  Comment below and tell me what's your family's favorite activity to do on the beach!  

Shutter Session: Emma and Lila

Last weekend I was lucky enough to spend a Sunday morning with two charming little girls, collecting flowers and blowing dandelion seeds all over the grass.  Emma was a little hesitant at first, but quickly warmed up to me with a couple of pirouettes and plies from her dance class.  By the end, she was even singing her favorite songs from the radio.  Her little sister was all about the camera, running around and stopping long enough to show me a pose.  The most fun part was catching her in action, though! Their session turned out wonderfully.  I have a new-found appreciation for dandelions, and I thought that this was the perfect example to use for a storyboard...

I loved catching the little details in these sisters...

*Their sparkly shoes...

*The catchlights in their beautiful eyes...

*Their sweet interactions, sister dances, and hand-holding.

*Each girl's independence.

Lila forged her own path across the park while her big sister acted as my assistant and told us where we should go for the next picture!  Emma was such a talkative little girl and she loved helping me, telling me all about school, and taking in everything around her.  Unfortunately we couldn't fulfill her request of taking pictures next to the lion's den so it'd look like she were getting eaten!

Here, one of Emma's photo locations.  A gorgeous bench shot of the two girls.

Some more dandelion fun.  Lila wanted to do everything that her big sister did!  I love the sunlight in this photo.

And finally, two of my favorite images from the day's session.  Really, how can that last one NOT make you smile?  :o)

Shutter Session: Luke (a.k.a. "When Irish Eyes are Smiling")

Last weekend was a busy weekend for photography shoots!  I had the luck o' the Irish on my side and I got to spend the afternoon with one of my oldest friends who I've known pretty much my entire life.  She now lives in Ireland, but was home visiting family.  I got the chance to photograph her little guy, Luke.  He's a smiley little guy who moves fast and loves popping bubbles. Check out those gorgeous baby blues!  I love the way his eyes just catch the light and really pop with his shirt.

And here, I'm getting quite a lot of use out of this homemade quilt!

Love those eyelashes!

Shutter Session: Holden

Last weekend I got to spend an afternoon with little Holden at Capron Park in Attleboro.  He was such a calm, content little boy who was just starting to maneuver his first steps, skipping completely over the crawling stage!  This independent little boy didn't want to sit for a second, just stand... so stand he did! His photos turned out angelic with those dreamy blue eyes of his.  I love how I caught the perfect sunbeam in a few of them.... as you'll start to see on this blog, I kind of have a thing for capturing sunbursts and sunbeams in my photography!  I'm always searching for ways to get those sunbeams to appear in my photos.

I discovered one of the most amazing prop finds ever as I was driving to the location.  There was this beautiful, stark white wrought iron "H" at the entrance of the park.  Perfect for Holden!  We did a series of shots with this spunky 8-month old at the H.  Here are a few...

And finally,one of my favorites showcasing those stunning eyes.  Love the catchlights in this photo!

Plus, who doesn't love a toothy grin?

It was a fantastic session with a smiley little boy.  He loved the "click" of the shutter and would gaze intently into the lens every time he heard the click.  Such a cutie!