I absolutely adore the gorgeous, flowing maternity gown that Christine chose for her maternity session. Not only was it a beautiful, neutral champagne color (oh, so elegant and timeless!!) but it draped the floor and flowed around her as she moved, reminding me of a beautiful Madonna with child.
When trying to figure out what to wear for your maternity session, my first priority is yielding to a client’s preference. Ideally you will look at and love these photos for a lifetime so you need to be happy with and comfortable in whatever you choose to wear.
However, most of the maternity clients I book are looking to elevate their session a little by glamming up moreso than they would on your basic Tuesday so, if they come to me for my opinion, I’m going to recommend the gorgeous, flowing maternity gown.
First things first: a dress that flows over your pregnant tummy is just so attractive. I mean, we’re all here to see that beautiful bump so let’s dress it up with an empire waist and some stunning fabric, right?
Secondly, if I can see your ankles, I’m going to be distracted by them. Sorry not sorry for the truth — but we all came here to see the bump and if ankles are in the periphery, my eyes are going to stray. Not because ankles are so beautiful but because they’re kind of not, right? And I’m not talking about pregnant ankles, I’m just talking about ankles in general. Unless you’re barefoot and pregnant on a beach, I don’t really want to see them at a maternity shoot, if I have a choice.
Now. I mentioned this to a potential client on our phone call yesterday and she commented that she was considering a sweater dress and, boy, did I backpedal HARD. Sweater dresses are cute. Other types of dresses are cute! I’m not going to dissuade you from wearing what you feel best in (especially if you pair that adorable sweater dress with a belt, some coordinating tights and some cute boots)…BUT — if I’m given a choice, I’m going to root hard for that floor draping, utterly gorgeous, flowing maternity gown.
Color is important. As a light and airy photographer, I’m always going to steer you toward lighter, neutral, solid colors that are going to be timeless and look good on your walls for decades. Remember when the chevron pattern was a big a bunch of years ago? No. That is no longer on trend and no one wants to have that plastered all over their home.
Outside of being timeless, lighter, neutral solids also contribute to my style of photography. Darker colors are so saturated, they just drag the photos down and make looking at the subject like looking into a dark hole. I don’t like dark holes in my photographs and if you’re looking to hire me, you don’t like them either. So shoot for cream, champagne, lighter sage, light blue or gray, light pink, super neutral earth tones, etc.
While this next color seems like a good choice for a light and airy photographer, I prefer not to have clients show up in WHITE because my style of shooting tends to blow out highlights and white doesn’t look so good (unless it has a lace fabric and then the lace gives it dimension and makes everything better) but always feel free to ask if you’re considering a specific color that you’re not sure about. I *promise* I will help steer you in the right direction ❤️
My usual go-to when giving dress recommendations is Baltic Born – they seem to have nothing but gorgeous, flowing maternity gowns. But I also love Morning Lavender, Petal + Pup, Lulus, and Show Me Your Mumu.
Regardless of what you decide to wear for your maternity session, rest assured that gorgeous, flowing maternity gown or not, you will be stunning and the memories made will be priceless.
Liz Viernes Photography is based near Potomac, Maryland, and specializes in maternity, fresh 48, posed and lifestyle newborns and first year milestone portraits.
I thoroughly enjoyed your article. This dress adds beauty to her. I loved your collection.