What to Wear for Your Session

A few minutes of prep goes a long way. The right outfit choices mean less time fixing wrinkles and glare on session day, and photos that hold up years from now instead of looking dated. Here’s everything you need to know.

The Basics

Solid colors work best. Patterns, plaids, and busy prints can look distracting or shimmer oddly on camera, an effect called moire.

Mid-tones photograph better than pure white or pure black. Think navy, gray, burgundy, or forest green. Colors with some depth read better than stark extremes.

Bring a backup option if you can. A second shirt or jacket gives us a different look and a safety net in case something’s off with the first.

Collared shirts and blazers read as more polished, but this depends on your industry. Casual is great too if that fits your role.

Avoid busy logos, characters, or wording on the front of shirts.

Choosing Colors That Work Together

If you’re coming in for a headshot alone, the goal is simple: pick a color that complements your skin tone and won’t compete with the background.

For individuals: cooler skin tones tend to pop in jewel tones such as navy, emerald, burgundy, or plum. Warmer skin tones often look great in earthy colors such as olive, rust, warm brown, or mustard in small doses. When in doubt, navy and charcoal are safe, flattering choices for nearly everyone.

For corporate and team headshot days: if your company doesn’t have a dress code we should know about, solid navy, charcoal, or gray tops paired with white or light blue keep a consistent, professional look across everyone’s photos. This is useful if the photos will sit side-by-side on a website or directory. A little coordination goes a long way here. It doesn’t need to be identical, just similar enough in tone that the group looks cohesive when photos are shown together.

Small Details That Matter

Check for lint, stray threads, or pet hair before you head out.

If you wear glasses, bring them, but let us know, since we may adjust lighting slightly to avoid glare.

Minimal, simple jewelry tends to photograph best.

On Arrival

We’ll do a quick check under the lights before we start shooting, just to make sure everything looks sharp: collar, wrinkles, stray hairs. Totally normal, no need to worry about it in advance.

Questions before your session? Reach out here, we’re happy to help.