Is the brick in shades of brown?

Pretty house. Biggest change would be a portico which would emphasis the entry and detract from the out of scale window above it.

Yes Renee. It's a mix of tan/brown, cream and hints of red.

Beautiful home.

Maybe you have one, the photo cuts off the left side, but I would make sure there is a tree on the left side out front, so your eye transitions down from the two storey roof and then down to your landscaping on the ground.

Consider solid stained cedar shakes for the shingled wall area.

Pull out the darker color from your brick and paint the garage doors. White advances, you don't want your garage doors to be the star.

I'm not feeling the burgandy shutters, maybe because the roof is grey/blackish. This could be your final decision if you do make other changes. They appear to be properly sized except for the pair on the wide window above the entry, I would remove those. I do like the photo below, the shutters are a deeper shade pulled from the brick also, seems to match the garage doors. Some people may say it's boring, but your front doors would stand out.

I really like the idea of a portico and completely agree with the out of scale window. Would a portico make it more formal than it already is? I would really like to figure out a way to make our home look more simple and inviting.

Can someone photoshop out the shutters and with the addition of a portico?

Shutters
I think the shutters would look good in a color similar to the roof color. The red dates the house.

You might find the house looks better without shutters once you take them down.

I think the bay window looks out of context to the house the shutters above the door are too small just get rid of them

Remove the shutters. I'd replace the shingles with siding in a color closer to that of the brick.

There is too much contrast on your house. The eye is drawn everywhere at once with the too-dark and too-bright shutter colors, and the bright white garage doors and bay window surround. You could go with blues, grays, beiges or greens as long as the color is about the same darkness as the brick, and muted/greyed in tone. Some examples below.

To your original question, the flat portion of shingle is fine. And in my opinion you should paint and landscape first before you consider whether want the expense of a portico.

These are the colors Sherwin Williams "sees" in your brick photo. If this photo of your brick appears true to you, these might be colors to consider for shutters, garage doors and trim. You definitely want the bay window and the one above the door to recede. Removing the shutters above the door will help there. Consider emphasizing the trim round the entry door and windows by coloring the brick of the arched portions to the color of the keystones at the top.

If you want me to landscape too, that'll cost extra. ;-)

I agree the front door could use a roofed pergola, but I would go for a simple style which doesn't compete with the bay window's roofing. Guests would appreciate a covered entry
on a rainy day. You can make the decision about painting or losing the shutters once you take them down. I think the windows above the door don't need shutters once you have the pergola installed. The house is beautiful. The landscape just needs to grow a couple of years to be the right size for the house.

Beautiful house! I actually prefer it with the shutters except for the window above the entry. Consider one of the SW colors decoenthusiaste posted...preferably one that blends with the brick mortar or your roof color (very nice!).

Love the portico idea!

Much better in the rendering without shutters. Maybe nix them and hold off on the portico/pergola. That would improve the whole look at almost no cost. What could be better?

Thanks so much for all of the ideas and suggestions! Everyone is in agreement about the window above the front door and that the shutters are the wrong colors. I'm liking the idea of going darker with the garage doors and matching the shutters. Thank you!