Candid Photography Poses with Mariea Rummel
Candid photography poses. Sounds like an oxymoron, right? It’s not though. In elementary school science class we learned that with every action there is a reaction, right? When prompting (posing) your clients to connect with each other, it’s the same thing. Your candid suggestions assist your clients to react naturally, giving you beautiful candid moments to photograph.
I have always had a passion to help families and couples connect (it might be that Psychology degree I have). It wasn’t until years into my photography career that I realized I could assist my clients to connect in front of the camera. Candid images can tell a beautiful story. Viewers are drawn into the scene searching for their interpretation of the portrait. Whether your clients are laughing, serious, or being romantic with one another, these natural images are what set your work apart from others. They can see the emotion. They can see the passion!
Many photographers will say that candid photography is hard to create during a portrait session because they feel the need to continuously pose their couple or family. But it doesn’t have to be that way. How do you get your couples or families to relax and connect during an hour portrait session? You need to…
Create the Scene
Just like a director of a sitcom or movie, you are assisting your clients to react to certain situations. I call this “prompting candid poses.” A few days prior to the session, I start planning by looking at my client family or couple relationships. I create simple prompts or questions to warm them up. From there I build to more in-depth poses. I always have a handful of go-to movement prompts and then I create a few that are tailored specifically to that family or couple. To create these personalized poses, I start by getting to know my clients. Before their photo session, it’s good to ask a few simple questions that can create dialog during their portraits, such as:
- How did you two meet?
- What are your children into these days? Do they have a favorite superhero or princess?
- What do you love about each other?
- What grades are your children in? Do they have a favorite teacher?
- Tell me about the proposal.
- What do you do together for fun?
This Post Has One Comment
I think the key is that the couple will feel confortable with you as their photographer, if they like you and they trust you the photo shoot will go very easy