What to Wear Wednesday: Spring Trends | Ann Arbor, MI Photographer

Emerald Green is the Pantone color of the year for 2013, but there are plenty of other colors that are trending for the Spring. Here's a few hues that might inspire your own outfits for your portraits.

Spring 2013 Color Trends by callmeunwritten featuring diane von furstenberg

What to Wear Wednesday: Winter Layers | Ann Arbor, MI Photographer

Things should be thawing out in the next couple of weeks so if you're wanting to show off all those winter layers in your portraits you might want to book your portrait session now before it's time to bust out the summer clothes. Call to schedule your portrait consulation 517.499.9380 or email nataliemaephotography@yahoo.com

Mens Plaid by tracireuer featuring tapered jeans

What to Wear Wednesday: Plaid Professional | Ann Arbor, MI Photographer

It's been awhile since I posted anything for the men to wear, so I figure it's about time. This look would be great for ANY portrait session. Dress up senior portraits, look sophisticated in your engagement images, or just be the stud in the family.

Get The Look: Men's Fashion.... by majksister featuring yves saint laurent

What to Wear Wednesday: Retro Love | Ann Arbor MI Engagement Photographer

Put a little retro spin on your engagement photos and get inspired by the set below. Did you recently get engaged on Valentine's Day? Call me to set up your wedding consultation at 517.499.9380 or email nataliemaephotography@yahoo.com. If you book your Wedding Collection before March 31, 2013 you'll receive $150 off a She Said Yes! engagement session.

Scene it - Mad Men by tracey-mason featuring vintage cat eye glasses

What to Wear Wednesday: Valentine's Edition | Ann Arbor, MI Photographer

Looking for something adorable to wear for that special someone tomorrow night? Look no further than this darling little dress and red flats!

Diamonds and Valentines by polybaby featuring maroon shoes

What to Wear Wednesday: Love in the Air | Ann Arbor, MI Engagement Photographer

How cute is this outfit?! I just love the rustic, woodsy feel to it and the deer on the skirt is adorable! I can so see this being worn for an engagement session with pine trees all over and maybe a red barn in the background. If you were recently engaged or are planning on an engagement over Valentine's Day give me a call for a wedding consultation at 517.499.9380 or email nataliemaephotography@yahoo.com. If you book your Wedding Collection before March 31, 2013 you'll receive $150 off a She Said Yes! engagement session.

The month I was born - February by tracireuer featuring fancy scarves

What to Wear Wednesday: Be Brave | Ann Arbor MI Senior Photographer

Today's What to Wear Wednesday was inspired by the Disney movie "Brave." From the minute I saw the trailer for it, I knew that I would love it, so the minute I saw this set on Polyvore I fell in love. This look would be awesome for a senior portrait session, even if you don't look like Merida :) The earthy tones would be great for every season of the year. So call and book your senior portrait consultation today 517.499.9380 or email nataliemaephotography@yahoo.com. Let your Ann Arbor senior photographer take care of all your portrait needs!

Emerald Green by jenniemitchell featuring brown boots

What to Wear Wednesday: Kiss Me | Ann Arbor, MI Boudoir Photographer

Valentine's Day is only three short weeks away and if you're anything like me, you're still trying to figure out what to wear (I always wait until the last minute!). Anyway, here are some really cute ideas to wear for the special night out on the town...or any date for that matter.

Pretty for my Valentine by polybaby featuring strapless cocktail dresses

What to Wear Wednesday: Teal & Orange | Ann Arbor MI Portrait Photographer

What a great way to switch from 2012 to 2013 with the merging of both Pantone Colors of the Year (tangerine tango & emerald). I adore this color combination, they compliment each other without looking too much like a carrot. This would be a great jumping off point for coordinating family portrait outfits, just add a base color like brown or white and they would make any portrait pop!

not finish * / season for 2013 by megan-bernier featuring junghans

Staying Creative | Jackson, MI Photographer

Just like in fashion, there are trends in photography; so how do you stay trendy but fresh at the same time? Easy, draw inspiration from everything around you and add a little of you in there! Anything that catches your eye, it could be something in nature, the way a building is designed, or even in something abstract. Look at other images, find what you like, and put your own spin on it. Sometimes, I will go on Pinterest to get some new posing ideas, or just Google the type of session I'm about to shoot. I make a mental note of what I like and go from there. Or I just practice in front of the mirror, what poses will look good, what kind of light I think should it be, what angle the camera should be at; all of these can effect the outcome of an image. Another good source of inspiration is magazines, from fashion to parenting they're filled with images of all kinds. Definitely a good place to draw new ideas from.

Try things from a different angle, most people get stuck taking photos from their standing height. Be brave! Jump on a chair or get dirty on the ground, just find a new angle and shoot from a different perspective. I got a piece of good advice the other day from a fellow photographer and they said, "Once you compose your image and take the shot, take one step back and look again. It'll be a completely different image." This is so very true. I can't even tell you how many times I've done that and they will both be beautiful images, but will have a different feel to each one. Also, try switching the camera from landscape to portrait and vice versa once you have the pose down. A perfect example of this below, he didn't move his body, just shifted his hat a little.

The last piece of advice I have for you is to get out there and keep shooting. Plan "just for fun" photo shoots where there's no pressure to please anyone. You can play around with different ideas and if they don't work they way you wanted, who cares! They could lead you to something entirely different than what you set out for. That's half the fun of being creative, not knowing where you're going to end up.

What to Wear Wednesday | Jackson, MI Photographer

Time to throw one out there for the guys! This would be perfect for a senior session.  Now, I'm not saying rush out and buy everything I just posted, just consider the styling, color combination of the pieces and how a little goes a long way.

What to Wear Wednesday | Jackson, MI Photographer

Coordinating outfits is all about those few select items that just jump right out. You don't want everyone wearing one, but done right and in moderation, it can really make the portrait without looking too cheesy. Below is an example of a semi-muted color palette, with just a taste of something wild. The neon handbag and shoes just add that little umph to send this over the top! Now, I'm not saying rush out and buy everything I just posted, just consider the styling, color combination of the pieces and how a little goes a long way.

Purple with Neon Green2 by nattyjphotography featuring long sleeve silk shirts

What to Wear Wednesday | Jackson, MI Photographer

I absolutely love this, I got the idea to do the What to Wear Wednesday from a photographers group on Facebook. I thought it would be fun, especially since I always get asked the question, "What should I wear for my session?" So here's the first week!! The 2012 Pantone Color this year is Tangerine Tango, so I wanted to start off right by embracing the lovely color. I don't know about you, but I adore orange! Below are some easy outfits (perfect for an engagement or high school senior session) you can put together to make your photos just pop. Now most of the stuff listed might be a little on the high price side (what can I say, I have expensive tastes lol), but you could easily find something comparable to what's in the picture.

casual orange accents by mirapaigew featuring flat shoes

Men's Gray with Orange Accents by nattyjphotography featuring unisex shoes

The Best Way to Dress for Portraits

"What should I wear for the photos?"

I get this question all the time so I wanted to share a few ideas with you.

Formal or casual style of clothing - First you want to start with whether you want a casual portrait or something more formal. Mixing styles is never a good thing to do (ie. dad in a suit and son in jeans and a t-shirt). Think of the location you're planning to have your photos done and choose accordingly. Formal attire is usually reserved for the studio and more casual portraits generally take place outside.

Pick a color scheme - Look at what colors are popular for that year (this year is honeysuckle, vintage wine and citrus yellow). It's usually easier to find clothing in the colors that are in. Also, think of denim as a multi-tasking color like black or white, it goes great with anything. If your doing a group portrait of any kind think of going with a base color and then you can use variations of it. Uniform shades draw equal attention to everyone in the image. Or you can choose a color scheme and then have everyone pick their outfit to revolve around that color scheme, like the sample below.

Avoid sharp contrast or matching clothing - For instance if everyone is in black shirts and khaki pants...not good for photos. Not to mention if everyone is in the exact same outfit the eye tends to focus on the clothing and you loose interest in the people. You could do those colors, but think of maybe switching it up, have some people in black pants and a khaki (or off white) colored top; or maybe a patterned black and white shirt. Don't forget you can use different textures to add contrast (ie. a button down cotton shirt on dad vs. a knit sweater on mom) Not to mention if everyone is in the exact same outfit the eye tends to focus on the clothing and you loose interest in the people. Below is a great example of how they choose a color scheme and used different shades and a pattern to break up the monotony of having the same colors.The squint trick - Lay out the clothing that everyone plans on wearing for the photo and squint. Ideally, you want the colors to blend well and compliment each other. If there's any one piece that stands out, swap it out for a different piece of clothing that blends well with the others.

Don't forget your shoes! - They will show in some of your images so make sure that they coordinate with your outfit.

Avoid writing or logos - These will immediately draw attention directly to that area of the image.

Other random tips for picking out clothing:

• Darker colors are more slenderizing than lighter ones.



• Be festive - if you're celebrating a special occasion coordinate colors based on that event.



• Be you - if you're the more laid back type, don't try a suit and tie for your photo. You're going to take a much better image if you're comfortable in what your wearing.



• Keep it simple, classic, and timeless!!