Posing is hard! Those three words have rung in my head forever (or at least as long as I’ve been photographing people). Humans are three dimensional objects, but have other issues you must keep in mind that will affect your choice of poses as well:
- What’s their body type?
- What kind of hair cut do they have?
- Do they have anything that they are outwardly self-conscious about?
And when you add another person into the mix, you more than double the items you have to consider!
- How do these two people interact with each other?
- Are they comfortable being in an “intimate” pose?
As you can tell, posing couples is H.A.R.D!
I’m going to try to explain some of the small things that we (Chris, my husband, and I) do when working with couples, either during an engagement session, on a wedding day or even after they’ve been together for a while. We tend to go towards more natural poses or relaxed poses, if something seems too staged, it takes away from the natural beauty and the emotional connection of the people who are being photographed which is what we are trying to capture! We all want to capture that special connection and that spark between a couple in their images and you can’t if they are overly concerned about the “pose” and aren’t able to be themselves.
Lets Get Weird…
We tell our couples early on at the session, that we’ll ask them to do some pretty weird things, and to move in ways that may not be completely natural. This is to let them know that weird stuff is coming, this will usually get them to laugh and start to relax, but right after that we also tell them that if there is anything that they are uncomfortable with, to speak up. We want them to tell us if a pose we put them in is not “them” or not the way they hold their fiancé normally or whatever we may be asking them to do. Our objective is for the pose to look natural and not very posed. We want them to look back years from now and remember that’s the way their spouse would always hold them or look at them… We want everything to be natural, but of course look good! Our top priority is to make sure our clients look the best they can, but if someone is uncomfortable, they won’t look their best or feel their best.
To get the more natural types of poses and capture their personalities and unique relationship we will generally set them in a casual, relaxed position or pose, whether that be sitting on a bench, leaning against a tree or fence, holding each other or sitting on the ground. At that point we will tell them a few key things to remember, hand placement, leg and foot placement and just tell them to just enjoy each other. We will have them stay in that position and tell them to talk, kiss, tickle each other, and just have fun… The only rule! No weird faces! Only laughs, talking, kisses, smiling and having fun! By letting the couple just be themselves and talk to each other they are able to let their guard down a bit and get a little more comfortable. Once I feel they are relaxed a bit and I got the images I needed in that setting, I have one person look me, while the other person is still looking and smiling at them (the person looking at the camera). Then have them swap (the other one look at me while looking at the other person as before) and get another shot. Then I have them both look at each other. Then finally have them both look at me. In that time always remember to get some portrait and landscape shots as well as tight, middle and close shots! This will give you lots of variety in a short period of time. I also try to get a walking shot… Remember with these shots that they will be moving so make sure your shutter speed is up and your aperture isn’t too shallow. Other shots that work well are just holding hands and looking at the camera and then at each other.
Get Comfortable, We’ll be here a while…
During our session we try to keep a gage on how comfortable our clients are, we will even ask, “Are you guys uncomfortable yet? No?? Then we aren’t doing our job very well!” It’s always good to make them laugh! It usually will automatically make them a bit more relaxed.
Being physically comfortable is only part of it. We also have to make our clients comfortable in-front of a camera, and that’s just as unnatural as sitting in the same position for 45 minutes with a fake smile on your face! We try our hardest to keep the mood light, Chris is the goof ball and takes A LOT of ribbing during sessions, most of the time if we can get them laughing and out of their “heads” they will feel more comfortable and that will show.
Believe it or not most of the guys will tell us at the end of the session they were not really excited about it, but in the end because we would joke with them and put them at ease actually had a blast!
It’s all about the Base.
Their feet that is… If people are standing for a long time, their legs and feet will get tired, it’s just normal, so get them moving! Don’t keep them in the same pose and position too long, once you have your shot move on. Back to the base, you always want the guys to be relaxed and legs slightly apart, not straight legged and knees locked. One of the first tips we give our brides or any woman we photograph is to always start by standing with your weight on your “back” leg, which is the leg that is furthest from the camera. The combination of this and “popping” their front leg will naturally slim her and force the body into an “S” shape, which is flattering with women.
Go toward the Light.
Or at least look toward the light. We are always looking for little tricks to make our clients look the best no matter their size everyone wants to look skinnier, the best way to do that is with the right pose and the right light. You can hide a lot by turning a person’s body away from the key light and then turning their head back into the light. This hides the “far” portion of their body in the shadow while keeping good light on the subjects face.
The Devil is in the Details.
This is one of the biggest truths there is with photography, a hair out of place can make or break an image, but only posing part of a subject can also hurt the impact of the image. Sometimes we miss things, that’s human nature, but there are a few quick things to always look for when posing that will improve your images. We tend to start from bottom up. Make sure their feet are in a good position and then make sure legs are in a natural stance. After that we make sure that the trunk of their bodies and arms are nice and loose and natural, but not so much that they look slouchy. Then their hands, always take a second look at the subjects hands, see if they are natural and relaxed or tiger claws, you can express a lot of emotion with someone’s hands and generally a viewer’s eye will follow a subjects hand to where that hand is pointing, so keep that in mind! And finally, the subjects’ head(s), at this point, if you’ve done everything right (meaning the way you feel it looks best), the head will naturally fall where it should, but you might have to tweak just a bit to get the angle and expression you are looking for.
Combining these tips with some of the other tips that we’ve picked up from resources around the web (including guides right here at BP4U) you’ll be able to make sure your clients look the best! And when they look their best, they will recommend you to all of their friends and family!
About Lisa Shelby Photography
Even more than capturing a moment in time, Lisa Shelby Photography believes your wedding photographs should give glimpses into your personality and story – the adventure, the romance, the beauty and the exquisite details.
What began with a desire to provide newly married couples with quality wedding photos has grown into our Nashville area business, Lisa Shelby Photography. Here we capture wedding images we wish we had to remember our special day! Like many engaged couples, we did not realize the significance of using just “any old” wedding photographer. Even though we regret this decision, it was a defining moment that changed the direction of our future forever.
As a husband and wife photography team, we balance each other well. Lisa has an incredible ability to stay organized, and Chris keeps the mood light and fun. When a couple hires us, we treat the day as if our clients are close family members.
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