So you want awesome pictures, but hate posing?
If there is one thing that I hear more than anything else when I meet up with couples is how much they don’t enjoy having their picture taken. In fact some of them absolutely hate it!
You might think this would be the worst thing to hear as a wedding photographer, but it isn’t. It is perfectly natural to be anxious and apprehensive about being the focus of everyones attention and then also having a photographer take lost of pictures of you, something you don’t enjoy anyway.
So I wan’t to share some tips with you on how to make the most of your time being photographed and also how to do it so that you don’t need to pose at all, or do any kind of photo face or fake smiles!
/ Natural Photos /
This is what we are all striving for. Pictures that capture the essence of somebody without any barriers or ‘posing’. Now the easiest way to get a natural photograph of someone is to take it when they aren’t aware, but that won’t be much use when we are shooting images of the two of you and you are most definitely ‘aware’!
The easiest way to relax is for you to focus on each other and not the camera. You can talk to each other (Still pictures have no sound!), make each other laugh, hug, kiss, whatever you feel like doing in that moment.
Sometimes the best pictures I’ve made are small in between moments, the way hands are held, a certain look or gesture can really make a striking image. These are things that you can’t plan and happen in seconds. Most of all its all natural, without you even thinking about it!
/ Smiling /
Ok, heres the thing. Sometimes people look better when they aren’t smiling.
Wait, aren’t people supposed to be smiley and happy on their wedding day? Happy, yes of course. But that doesn’t always mean a smile has to be on their face for the entire day!
So its ok not to be smiling in every single photograph. I think a smile should be a reaction to an emotion or feeling and brought upon in that way, not forced into for a photograph. Its perfectly fine to be however you wan’t to be in your pictures.
/ Close /
A peculiar quirk of photography is that it can make people appear further away than they actually are. So when you think you may be close to somebody, the camera can sometimes see it as there being space (Its to do with certain length lenses that can compress the scene, technicals..!).
I don’t tend to offer much direction when I photograph, other than placing you in certain places or asking to turn a specific way, but this is one thing I often find myself asking, closer!
/ Relax /
Finally the most important part. This is supposed to be fun, its your wedding day and for the short time you spend alone with your photographer its probably the only time all day you’ll both get to spend with just each other.
I always try to make this part of the day as easy as possible, its not my style to make you do anything you aren’t comfortable with.
Hopefully these tips have been of some help, please shoot me an email if you’d like to ask about anything at all , or if you are looking for a wedding photographer Wales then please drop me a line and tell me about your wedding plans, I’d love to hear from you!
