Who says you can’t take Family photos in the winter?

I always thought that the family photography season was done in the midwest come mid-November and that noooo one would be interested to take photos in the dead of winter. Then I had a few inquiries for snowy family photos and thought, gosh, it will be way too cold, the kids will fall apart, and it will end up being a total disaster.

Well guess what, I WAS WRONG! Snowy family sessions are not just for your destination vacation to Aspen, Colorado… they can happen right here in good old Indiana or anywhere you have a good ground covering of snow! All you need is a blanket of snow, warm layers (including hand-warmers if it’s frigid), a good attitude (most important!), and we can make magic happen!

What to wear for Snowy Family sessions

One of the first questions I get asked when families schedule a snowy winter session is what to wear. This can be especially challenging if you don’t own many winter weather pieces besides a snowsuit.

My best advice is that you want to look and feel warm. It is definitely not advisable to put your kiddos in cute sweaters or dresses only to take off their big old winter coat when you arrive. Not only do the kiddos look cold without proper winter clothing on but they actually will be cold in a matter of minutes and cold kiddos are a sure way to guarantee bad photos!

When it comes to cold, layers are your best friend

Skip the ski jackets and snow-pants and opt for layers. Start with a thermal or base layer, long-johns or thermal leggings, add a sweater, button-down, fleece, or fashionable coat. From there accessorize with cute hats, scarves, mittens and of course cute warm winter boots! Please leave the old black boots you use to shovel the snow at home and opt for leather Sorels or some other more fashionable winter boot that will be fitting in snowy conditions.

Think Textures

Teddy fleeces, chunky cardigans, wool hats, knitted scarves… all these textures add dimension to the photo and make your outfits pop, not to mention keep you warm.

Keep it fun, Keep it fast

You might be wondering how cold it was for this session and how we kept the kiddos happy for so long? Yes, it was 15°F during this session and the windchill made it feel about 2°F. It was COLD and no, the kids were not decked out in snow pants or winter parkas. The girls all had hand warmers in their gloves and multiple layers on and we kept it moving fast! We sang songs, made silly fart noises, ran, blew snow, and hand a grand time!

Even with all of that, their youngest (almost two year-old), only lasted about 20 minutes… which honestly blew me away she lasted that long! We got all the photos we needed of her first and then dad took her back to the car to warm up while I photographed the older two girls playing with mom! Once the older girls were sufficiently cold and we had all the photos we needed, they ran to the car and dad came out for a few last minute shots with mom. All in all, the session lasted almost 50 minutes when I only anticipated 20-30 minutes given it was such a cold day!

Curious on other tips for preparing your family for a photo session? Click on my blogpost here to read more!