Okay, POSING VS. DIRECTING! What do you need to know? Well first, I want to start by saying, I totally understand that not everyone is born being comfortable in front of the camera. You may be thinking, “Your photos are beautiful & I truly do love them! But — I’m not a model like the people in your pictures! How do I navigate that?”
Guess what? NONE of the people in my website portfolios are professional models!! All of the galleries on my ‘weddings & elopements’ and ‘engagements’ tabs are real couples who inquired and booked! Nobody should feel like they “need to be a model” in order to book me. I’m just as awkward as you might feel in front of the camera — and honestly, probably more. I totally understand that a majority of us don’t constantly get their picture taken. And that is why my goal is to make you feel 100% comfortable with me! Establishing that trust from the beginning means that not only will your images be beautiful, but you will feel completely at ease while shooting!
As I’m sure you saw in my work (and I’m sure the reason why you may be interested) my style of shooting is very relaxed and natural! I am very very much on the side of documentary, shoot-the-moment-as-they-happen, and less “pose-y” and stiff. Now don’t get me wrong I love channeling some Vogue & GQ vibes every now and then that are magazine worthy, but for the most part — I value the in between moments. My motto is: I value shooting moments as they happen, not as they’re “posed” to be.
Some of those moments are going to happen naturally (like mom wiping tears as you put on your dress, or bridesmaids getting excited watching you get ready) and some of them require just a little direction. My philosophy approaching both engagements and weddings is this: you are hanging out (or marrying!) your best friend and there are emotions that naturally surface when that’s happening. I want you guys to have FUN together and enjoy each other, as well as enjoying the nature surrounding us! And I just HAPPEN to be there hanging out with you too. So my directions are more playful, and require actions – not a “pose” I want you to hold and freeze in until I say something else. I will direct you guys to hold each other, but I don’t want you guys to become frozen and feel like you can’t talk or interact with each other. I actually WANT and NEED you to talk, interact, laugh and gaze into each other’s eyes. The result of that will (hopefully) mean that you’ll naturally want to kiss or hug, or tickle, or caress the other person.
Does that make sense? I hope you’re nodding 🙂 but final re-cap: I direct you guys to do something, but then I want you to relax and focus on each other so that other actions happen naturally between you – like that sweet kiss on her cheek because you’ve been staring into her gorgeous eyes for the last 30 seconds 😉
One more real quick note… it’s super important that you guys are willing to listen and take action on the directions I give! The moment you doubt the process is the moment your photos will start to look unnatural. I can only go so far on my end behind the camera to prompt you and guide you — you, in turn, have to be willing to trust that what I am directing you to do will create timeless moments that can be captured and remembered forever! You need to be excited about the process, and trust the direction I give. It may sound like a no brainer, but unfortunately there have been various instances where one or both parties I am photographing are not excited about the process and were not willing to take action. I will never jeopardize your safety, and I would never force you to do anything you are truly not comfortable with — but if I tell you to kill each other with kisses, I would hope that you are more than happy to do that — not even because I asked, but because the person you’re kissing, you’ll be kissing forever, and you’re excited about that!
Now something else you should know… you may agree with and understand the process I just explained, but I wouldn’t be surprised if some of you are still thinking, “Okay. I get that. But that might take us a little bit to feel comfortable enough to do that!” AND THAT’S OKAY! I don’t time my engagement sessions because I understand that some couples need a little more time to feel comfortable and at ease than others! And that is also a reason why I LOVE taking advantage of engagement sessions before the wedding because by doing so, you both know what to expect the day of the wedding, and are comfortable with me and know the process fully!
Wow, if you got this far I am eternally grateful. You’re both rockstars and you are going to absolutely kill it on your engagement and wedding day!! I have NO DOUBT about that 🙂
Hope the rest of your week is wonderful!!
Kate
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