Family photo sessions are very popular in the Spring, Summer, and Fall—yep, pretty much every other season except Winter. But the winter time can be a great time to update those family photos—and you don’t even have to do it at Christmas time (don’t we have enough going on at that time of year anyway?).

The good news is that you can be both warm and stylish in your outdoor winter family photos by just following a few tips.

1. Dress in Layers.

Unless you actually plan to do your family photos in your winter coats (I’ve actually seen this done and it’s very cute—especially when there’s snow involved) then you’ll want to dress in layers in order to look nice and stay warm. This means adequate undergarments (for example, t-shirts, thermal underwear, tights), a middle layer (for example, a long-sleeved shirt), and a top layer (for example, a sweater or sweater vest).

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2. Select a color palette that complements the location of your session.

Most time, you want to select vibrant, warm colors—especially in cases where the background may be lacking. Other times, you may want to select a dark or cool main color, but then add something to that. You can add pops of color and texture to your outfit through accessories such as scarves and hats.

3. Avoid distractions.

Keep in mind that although you can dress your outfit up as much as you’d like, you don’t want to create too many distractions in the photo that will take away from the subject (i.e. you and/or your family). This means no large logos or very busy patterns.

At the end of the day, you want to be warm and comfortable during your outdoor winter photo session, but you also want the photos to still be timeless and classic. Following these tips can help make your outdoor winter photo shoot a success.

Sharetha Monique is a maternity, newborn, child, and family portrait photographer in Charlotte, NC. Follow me on Instagram: @sharethamoniquephotography or join my private community on Facebook. To keep up new content, and stay informed of exclusives and special offerings, sign up for my newsletter!

Note from Sharetha:

Thank you so much for reading this blog post! I love featuring my clients’ images on my blog (as well as some personal favorite images), and this will give you a glimpse into what you will receive when you commission me for your Charlotte Family and Children’s Photography.

If you would like to see what an entire gallery looks like, please don’t hesitate to ask. Some of my favorites are posted here, but all of the images you receive are worthy of being in a frame, an album, or displayed on your walls!

For pricing information, please click here. If you would like to reserve your date on my calendar, please fill out my contact form or email me directly at sharetha@sharethamonique.com.

Due to the custom nature of portrait sessions, I take a limited number of clients each month.

Capturing a family’s story and creating beautiful images brings me tremendous joy, and I would be honored to capture yours!