Wedding photographer extraordinaire Jasmine Star offers some great tips on how to pose up and keep your portrait subjects relaxed whilst photographing them.
This info is just as useful for subjects as it is for photographers – some good insights.
…a few things to keep mind before you even press the shutter for your first image:
1. Put yourself in your subject’s shoes. Think what they’re thinking, feel what they’re feeling. If you suspect she is uncomfortable/feeling awkward, your first priority is to put her at ease. When you put yourself in her mind, you can articulate what you want in a way that makes sense and is comfortable.
2. Find good light. Sebastian looked for a cool location to shoot and I cautioned him to focus less on the environment and more on natural reflectors and natural light diffusers, like tree branches or bushes. When you master light, you can make any environment magical.
3. Move into poses. Often times photographers previsualize a great photo, but when it comes time to position the subjects, the pose is right, but they look stiff, or robotic. Then the photo loses it’s appeal because it looks so darn fake. If you have a pose in mind, find ways to coach your subjects into that pose with distinct articulation. It’s not enough to have a bride hugging a groom…how can you have them move into the hug so that the pose is natural and a true reflection of them? If you can answer this in advance, live posing becomes less daunting.
4. TALK. I can’t stress this point enough. If I was working with models, I suspect this wouldn’t matter as much, but since I work with average girls {albeit fabulously average}, it’s important to give feedback and assurance that they’re doing it right. Whatever it is. More than anything, I don’t want to make my subjects feel like they’re alone in front of my camera. I talk, engage, and participate as much as possible to get the type of photos I want. If you’re subjects look lifeless, perhaps you’re not doing enough to bring out their true colors.
5. Get photographed. If you want to get better at posing, try getting posed. If it’s a strong photographer, you’ll find ways to get better. However, even if the posing isn’t that great, at least you know what not to do and that’s just as valuable. Experiencing the emotions of being in front of the camera is just as valuable as being behind the camera.
Keep reading the post here on Jasmine’s blog.
Well, I hope you’ve found that useful – feel free to post any tips for relaxing the whole wedding photography experience – I’m always interested to hear other peoples ideas.
