What to Wear for Family Photos: Ideas from Real Sessions

What to wear for family photos? Clothes you feel at home in, in two or three colors that get along, and shoes you can walk in. But nobody needs to match. In the sessions below, families mixed white with soft blue, red with white or ochre with royal blue, and every outfit still looked like them.

This guide is for every family planning a session, from a toddler’s first steps to three generations together. Every photo comes from a real session, from Haarlem to Utrecht, so it shows what that family actually wore. You never have to work it out alone, because I share outfit suggestions before every session. That is how my family photoshoots in Amsterdam work, and the same goes for every city in this guide.

Coordinated Colors for Family Photos

The families who looked most together, in fact, never wore the same thing. In Haarlem in July, a family of four chose white and soft blue: a light blue shirt, two white summer dresses and white jeans, plus a lilac blouse for the mother. In front of a red house, those soft colors stood out at once.

Another Haarlem family went for red and white. The mother wore a red skirt with a small white print, the father a white shirt, and their little girl wore white. You can follow that afternoon in first steps in Haarlem, in red and white.

Big groups also work this way. In Park Clingendael in The Hague, ten people from three generations kept to white, blue and pink. However, nobody matched exactly: a light blue dress stood beside navy prints, and two girls wore coral-pink dresses. Even so, from a distance they clearly looked like one family.

In Delft, a family of eight from three generations each wore their own style instead. There was a floral dress, a sage sweater, a cream cable knit and rust corduroy overalls. The grandmother wore a royal blue knit vest over a black shirt. Because none of these colors fought for attention, they all sat well in an old street of brick and white plaster.

Clothes That Move

Clothes that move bring a frame to life. For example, at the Zaanse Schans in June, I asked a family of three to hold hands and spin by the water. The mother’s long pink dress swung out at once, and so did their daughter’s dark red one.

So skirts and dresses with some fabric in them do this best, from a tiered summer dress to a long maxi. Still, nobody needs a dress: in that same frame, the father kept it calm in a white shirt and tan trousers. And in Haarlem in July, a girl in a flowered dress turned every pause into a little dance.

What to Wear in Autumn and Rain

Autumn is the season for layers. In a Haarlem park on the first of November, a family of five wore ochre, rust and soft peach, the colors of the beech leaves around them, with royal blue as the contrast. Ochre and rust sit close to the complementary color of blue, so the royal blue dress stood out against the leaves.

Coats count as an outfit too, because in October and November they often stay on. That is also how one family in Utrecht found its whole palette. On the Oudegracht, they wore a mustard leather jacket, a long camel coat and a dark green parka.

And when the sky turns gray? Light rain is usually no problem, and a stylish umbrella even adds a Dutch touch. In mid-November, a toddler came to Haarlem in bright yellow rain boots. Against the old brick walls, they were the brightest thing in every frame. Her afternoon is in Haarlem in November, in yellow rain boots.

What Babies and Toddlers Wear

For the youngest, soft and easy works best: clothes they can sit, crawl and play in. In Haarlem in July, a baby wore a knitted romper with blue and white waves, just right for a picnic on the grass. In Utrecht, a fluffy cream vest matched the parents’ cream and camel, so the baby fit right in.

A favorite toy is welcome too. In Utrecht that was a soft Miffy, who ended up in the photos herself. For toddlers on the move in autumn, warm tights and sturdy boots do the job, like the green parka and brown boots on the Oudegracht.

When the Dog Comes Too

Pets are very welcome, at no extra cost, and they usually need the least direction. In Haarlem, a small white dog joined a family of five. The parents wore royal blue and navy, and one daughter navy trousers. As a result, the white fur stayed clear in every frame, while against white clothes it would almost disappear.

Their three girls also showed how patterns can share a palette. The coral of one dress came back in the flowers of another, and the stripes picked up their parents’ navy. There is more of that summer afternoon in family photos with a dog in Haarlem.

One Outfit or Two?

One outfit is enough, and two are plenty. As my FAQ explains, a second adds variety, while a third mostly takes time we would rather spend photographing. When you bring two, you can usually change in a nearby café’s restroom, or outdoors where your outfit allows.

In Leiden, an expecting couple did exactly that. She wore one rust-red dress for the whole hour, and halfway through, he swapped his gray T-shirt for a taupe polo. So the red door and the brick wall show both looks, about half an hour apart. Their story is in a red dress and a baby bump in Leiden.

So, what to wear for family photos? Whatever feels like you, in colors that get along. I take care of the rest: before your session I share outfit suggestions, and on the day I plan the route and guide you through the hour. Hair and makeup are entirely up to you.

Still deciding what to wear for family photos? Discover how my family photoshoots in Amsterdam work, outfit suggestions included.