What to Wear to a Beach Photoshoot in the Winter - Charleston Edition

So, you've booked a sunset session on a Charleston beach during the winter months and you are not sure what to wear to your photo shoot. You might be coming from out of town or you don’t go by the ocean in the winter months too much. I’ll provide quick tips to help you out. I look forward to the colder season—there’s less beach traffic, and the cold nights are a nice change of pace.

What should you wear?


If it's in the 40s, layers, layers, layers! Wearing jackets and sweaters on the beach is my favorite look because it’s comfortable, functional, and warm. If you’re that person that is always cold, “hidden layers” will be your best friend. Things like long underwear or leggings under pants will work great.

Mittens, scarves, and hats are great accessories, and you can always take them off if you get too hot.

Shoes


Anything you don’t mind getting sandy! Boots are usually the best choice. My winter shoes are hand-me-down off-brand Doc Martens from my sister, and they’re still going strong. I tend to keep my clients moving around a lot during sessions, so I recommend wearing something you can move in comfortably.

Colors combinations


If you prefer bolder colors, jewel tones are navy, teal, maroon, purple. Combine these bolder colors with neutral browns, creams and blacks.

If you like earth tone combinations wear colors such as blacks, browns, tans, grays and olives.

These colors are for inspiration, as most of us will have to match around our coats. Most importantly neutrals work better as bright colors will reflect on your skin.

What if it rains?


I hope it doesn’t, because my gear is definitely not weatherproof! Unfortunately, I don’t have the weather-predicting powers of Karen Smith from Mean Girls, but I’ll do my best to keep you updated before the session. I don’t mind light rain but I will reschedule a photo session it’s more than that.

Will it be windy?


Maybe! So consider this when styling long hair.

The pictures in this blog are from a recent winter shoot I did and the couple dressed perfectly!