Becky,
To me they were just a uniform, I had to wear a suit and tie for all my weddings over a thirty year period, the rest of the time I wore a shirt and tie with a sports jacket . It never bothered me I was being seen as the professional doing a paid job . Casual was never acceptable , you may start in the CEO's office for the brief and then I would slip on overalls , safety boots and hard hat to do the work. At the end of the day maybe go back to the CEO for a run down on the job. At weddings I always made sure I stood out as the professional, my equipment was Bronica with all the lenses in those days no amateur could compete, digital screwed the whole thing up, and the standard of photography suffered !
If you asked the question which I prefer , it's a no brainer, I'd much sooner be dressed and present as a woman .