What to Wear for Family Pictures this Fall | Tips, Tricks and Outfit Suggestions!

One of the most frequently asked questions that I get during the Fall months is “WHAT DO WE WEAR FOR FALL FAMILY PHOTOS?!” Today we partnered with vineyard vines to take the guess work and stress out of what to wear for family pictures this fall! vineyard vines consistently makes some of the best classic styles for the entire family and it was so easy to shop one retailer and come up with such a great outfit palette that made our family photos pop! Here’s how I went about choosing our outfits, some pro tips for stress free photos and also additional outfit suggestions for the entire family!

My Outfit: Gingham Button Up (4)| V Neck Sweater (S)| White Jeans (6)

Dan’s Outfit: Fleece Vest (L, Size down) | Plaid Button Up (L)| Stonewash Chinos(36×32)

What the Girls are Wearing: Sweater Dress// Lawson 2T, Landry XS (found they ran a little big)

Tips for Choosing What to Wear for Family Pictures:

-Call me crazy but I always start with my own outfit first and use it to base everyone else’s off of. If mama doesn’t feel confident or isn’t happy about her outfit, it’s not off to a good start, right?! For this outfit, I wanted pieces that I would absolutely wear again and also knew that I didn’t want my outfit to be the show stopper. Most of all, I wanted to look pulled together and feel good in what I was wearing.

I chose a classic button up that fits well and is a piece I will wear all Fall. Since the Gingham is a little bold for photos, I layered a v-neck sweater over it, so that you still get a pop of pattern, but it’s not distracting. Since my tops are both on the darker side, I paired them with the bright white skinnies and love the classic, yet modern look. White jeans are 100% acceptable in my book through the Fall and they really make darker Fall hues pop.

-Next, I took my outfit selections and moved onto the girls. I don’t always feel like they need to be in matching outfits, but this dress was too darn perfect! The bold navy stripe was a great juxtaposition to my gingham and the chambray skirt made it great for photos (just enough pattern without being too distracting). I love that vineyard vines carries such an amazing range of sizes for the girls (2T through XL), so they can match until they are darn near teenagers 😉

-Last, but certainly not least, I chose Dan’s outfit. Since Dads are typically the biggest, I always suggest having them in the most minimal pattern and instead adding interest with layers. We chose an understated button up (THESE are his favorite style by vineyard vines and he has a closet full of them) and layered it with one of their classic fleece vests. Instead of his default dark jeans, we decided on stone wash chinos to lighten up the look and he ended up LOVING the fit of this style.

Now that we have our outfits nailed down, here are a few pro-tips for your family photos

Tips to make the best of Fall Family Photos:

-Set your expectations, then cut them in half and reset them there. Photos with kids are HARD, so I like to set my expectations LOW and if it ends up in flames I’m not disappointed and if it goes swimmingly well then I’m pleasantly surprised.

-I’m not above bribing my kids…which we DID here for Landry (with a Sprinkles cupcake)…but if you have a baby whom you cannot reason with (aka my Lawson girl), make sure that you have at least one trick up your sleeve. For most of these photos we had “Baby Shark” blaring on my iPhone and are discreetly dancing along the entire time to keep her semi-entertained.

-Embrace it. Embrace the crazy, messy, fun phase of life that you’re in. Nope these photos don’t look like the picture perfect Christmas card photos in my dreams, but they do look like US and I am not going to ever want to forget that little sneaky one eyed look Lawson is giving the camera in the photo below.

-Try different things. Not all family photos have to be sitting down and perfectly posed. The ones below are some of my favorites from the entire session and we captured them simply because we were moving and dancing and swinging to keep Lawson occupied. Make sure to be clear with your photographer the age of your kids and that you are ok with less posed and more lifestyle images if that’s what it takes.

-My fab photographer Audrie says stick to the 15 minute rule with kids. Have your best tricks ready to go because kids will last about 15 minutes and after that it usually hits the fan. Use that timeframe to set your expectations and try to get in your most desired shots first. After that, let them run around and capture some fun candids like the ones below.

Shopping for these outfits all at vineyard vines really did make the whole process easier. Since they are a one stop shop for the family, I knew that I could find classic outfits that all coordinated for the photos and also styles that we would wear again and again.

…I should also mention that these photos were shot in a small field next to our neighborhood, within 10 minutes, in the 95 degree heat…all while Lawson is trying to run a marathon. We had beautiful backlight (when the sun is setting behind you), but that was about it….so my expectations were low. Thankfully, Audrie stuck with us and worked her magic and perfectly captured this phase of life that we are in. I will look back at these photos and treasure them forever…and that’s why we take family photos every year. 

What To Wear For Family Pictures Outfit Recap:

Gingham Button Up | V Neck Sweater  | White Jeans 

Fleece Vest | Chambray Button Up | Stonewash Chinos

Landry: Sweater Dress

Lawson: Sweater Dress

If you have boys, here are some outfit combinations that would also work with the above:

This Polo | These Pants

This Button Down | This Pullover | These Pants 

Other Outfit Options:

Mom: Poncho | Chambray Button Up | White Jeans

Dad: Pullover | Button Up | Pants 

Girls: Popover Top | Leggings

Boys: Polo | Pants 

I also wrote a post on what to wear for family pictures last year, so if you need more inspiration, check it out HERE.

*Thank you to vineyard vines and ShopStyle for sponsoring this post! As always all opinions, ideas and photos are my own and I truly appreciate you supporting brands that make Style Your Senses possible!