By Lisa Dillon | Lisa Dillon Photography

One of the most common questions you get as a photographer is “what should we wear?” Something about planning outfits for portraits strikes terror into the heart of just about everyone—even other photographers! The thing is—it’s not that hard. Think texture, think low-contrast and think head-to-toe. Most of my clients are teenagers so the outfits I’ve selected are for them but the concepts apply to anyone.

Let’s start with texture. One of the best looks for portraits is a monochromatic look. Browns and greys are flattering for most people and are easy to mix and match making wardrobe changes easier. In a monochromatic look, it’s important to work with different textures to create interest for the eye. In this first look, I’ve paired a casual hooded blazer with a graphic T and brown jeans creating nice color harmony and a pulled-together look.  You can start with just the T and jeans and then throw on the jacket, leaving it open and finish up with the jacket buttoned or even pulling the hood up for some dramatic looks. One nice thing about monochromatic looks is that they work very well for black and white images as well as color. (click on any image to view it larger)

In this next outfit, I’ve used another monochromatic ensemble. For this look, I chose a black/grey color palette. The sweater has a lot of texture and interest that brings your eye up toward the face. The solid-colored, simple trousers are both slimming and keep the interest where it should be—on the face. I’ve paired this sweater with either a charcoal grey simple camisole or a longer, tunic-length white tank. For a little fun, I’ve finished the outfit with some metallic silver flats. With this outfit and a properly keyed background, the only thing in color will be the subjects face and hair. Everything about this outfit draws the attention up to the face.

The next element to good portrait dressing is choosing outfits that are low in contrast. While it may be fun, on occasion, to have really vibrant colors for the clothing—I find that style of dressing to be best used as a spice in an overall portrait session rather than the main focus. When the clothes are very vibrant and saturated and rich, the first thing you notice is the color, not the subject. I might recommend to my seniors to bring one really colorful outfit and then keep the rest of them in more mid-toned, low-contrast outfits. In these two outfits, I’ve chosen printed shirts that have great detail but the contrast is minimized. Instead of a black shirt with bright white print or stripes, choose one with grey or tan print. A nice tan on brown keeps the interest without overwhelming the eye.

Even casual clothes can fit into these guidelines. These very casual outfits below have print, but it is a lower contrast print because instead of white and black, it’s white and grey and blue and beige. It’s a very harmonious look, even though it mixes plaid with a graphic T. And the hoodie looks fresh and clean with its colorful but not overpowering print.

For girls, color seems to be a bigger issue. These are examples of using color in a subdued way. In the first outfit, the graphic T has a nice range of tones in it but nothing overpowers. To keep it simple, I’ve paired it with a cropped cardigan that can be left open or buttoned up. The jeans have a nice whiskered and faded effect that isn’t too strong so it looks natural and doesn’t draw your attention to the subject’s thighs.  In the second outfit, the T is a rich burgundy color with a subtle grey/beige print and is topped with a drapey, long-sleeved cardigan and charcoal jeans.

Guys can wear color, too, of course. In this example, the color is bold but it is paired with black which keeps the outfit grounded. The jacket further softens the color so you can have the jacket on or off, depending on how much color you want in the image.

The last thing to remember in dressing for portraits is to dress from head to toe. I always advise clients to remember their accessories—earrings, necklaces, bracelets, scarves, watches—to create that finished, pulled-together look. And even if the shoes won’t be photographed, pay attention to footwear. There is something about wearing a complete outfit that imparts confidence in a person and that confidence comes through in the images. Scarves and outerwear are a great way to add variety to outfits giving you more looks with fewer clothes. In most o f these ensembles, I have included some kind of outerwear—cardigans, jackets, hoodies—to extend the outfit into 2 or 3 different looks. It saves time (if you can get 5 looks out of 2 or 3 outfits, you don’t have to change clothes as often) and increases variety.

The rest of these outfits follow the guidelines for good portrait outfits and give you some more ideas for ways to work with color, texture and accessories.

These looks can be found at www.buckle.com (guys) and www.forever21.com (girls).