Unique Wedding Photography Poses
Plan Ahead
Making sure you get perfect shots of everything the happy couple wants is easy if you make a plan and stick to it. Creating a checklist of every shot they want is the most important part of planning the photos. Once you have that checklist in hand, you can decide how to pose the people involved.
Meet as many people in the bridal party and the family ahead of time as possible, so that expectations are clear, and you also know if there are any odd requests, estranged family members who can’t be posed near each other, or if Uncle Jack is seven feet tall and best posed seated.
Your job is to take the bride’s vision of “perfect” photography and put it on film. Obviously, unless you know what her vision is, you can’t get this right. What does she consider perfect? Does she prefer casual, spontaneous, reportage or journalistic style, or formal traditional poses, or some combination of all of them? Have a discussion with her, show her samples, and let her show you some she’s found that she likes, so that everything between you is very clear.
Always check out the lighting ahead of time, so you can plan for it when the day arrives. This way you’ll know where best to pose everyone for formal photos, and how your candid shots will develop in the lighting you have to work with.
At this page, there is a very good, very long and comprehensive wedding photography checklist of potential wedding photography poses that the bride and groom might like you to capture. As part of your planning process, talk with them and check off those that are important to be certain you don’t miss anything.
Without further adieu….
Unique Wedding Photography Poses
Now is the time to put all your planning and organization to work. You have your checklist, you know what the couple wants, you have extra batteries and film, (you do, don’t you?) and you are completely ready to get the show on the road.
Here are some tips on getting the formal portraits taken:
- If your list of photo subjects includes kids, save everyone involved some grief and take care of any wedding photography poses they are to be in first. Patience is generally not a virtue that children have yet grown into.
- Don’t force it. Formal poses are great, but even when filming those, snap some candid shots as well. They often turn out to be everyone’s favorites. Try to use humor and a playful demeanor to make everyone feel comfortable, and make them smile naturally rather than forcing a phony smile on command.
- Always, always keep the camera ready at all times. Some of your absolute best poses will not be posed at all. You will see touching moments all around, like the bride and groom gazing lovingly into each other’s eyes as they dance for the first time as husband and wife, and those are the wedding photography poses that become treasured and special over time.
- Set up a photography session for an hour before the reception starts and get everyone there that needs to be in the photos. You will want to move from one shot to the next as quickly as possible, but don’t rush it. Always take several shots of each of the formal portraits.
- Make use of the ushers to round up Uncle Gary from the bar, and grandpa from his table where he was telling war stories. The ushers will also keep them there until all their formal pictures are done. All of this is much like keeping kittens in a box, so you will need to keep things moving along.
- Your pre-selected photography area is extremely important to the photos. Outside wedding photography poses with trees and flowers are
Groom and friends ideal. In the event of rain, your backup plan should include a large enough area to accommodate the group shots, and avoid garish decorations if possible.
Otherwise, take close-ups as much as possible and crop out the background.
With the formal portraits done, you are free to look for the spontaneous and capture it on film. These pictures can be anything from the flower girls napping in the car to barefoot dancing on the bar. You will see inspiration all around if you just keep your eyes open. Remember, it’s these little slices of life that will become the most unique remembrances of the day.
If you’re keen to specialize in wedding photography, then like every other successful wedding photographer, you’ll need to invest in yourself, follow proven steps and read. There’s more to this than having a list of potential poses. That’s why the professional wedding photographers rarely run out of work, they’re in demand! You should be aiming for the same – plan to place yourself in a position of being in demand! That said, check these few articles for some extra tips and make sure you see the two guides I’ve made available below them. If you can’t get both guides, at least get one to start!
- 9 wedding photography tips
- wedding photography poses – a list
Wedding Photography Must Have List – If you are thinking of doing wedding photography properly, you need to know about preparing invoices correctly, wedding poses or posing the bridal party and couple. Then there are things you must know like; extended time agreements, the photographers contract, skilled thank-you letters (you want more business later from this – right?), and a tactful photographer’s deposit reminder. It would be wise to have a better and more detailed wedding photography checklist than this helpful though basic list above. A wedding photography website is also a must and there are templates specifically for that purpose available.
Here’s one of the few places we know of that can help with all the above at this link – at the very least it gives a good idea of what you should be looking for if you would like a clear blueprint. This wedding photography blueprint is perhaps the best resource to make the most out of your wedding-photography-business I know at present.
PS. If the links above break for some reason, use this link below –
http://e0540g3jj16cfd6-ydqdusgu63.hop.clickbank.net/?tid=WEDDBPRINTBLOG
