Getting your subject(s) to relax?

[lputman]

There's a feature on my camera phone that always makes a "I'm smiling for a picture" smile into a genuine smile. When I press the button to take the picture, the phone actually says, "say cheese" right before the picture is snapped and the person's very posed smile turns into a genuine smile almost onto the brink of laughter. I wish there was a feature that can be turned on like that on a DLSR.

[KimberleyPhotography]

Great advice everyone! I like "monkey" and "bread and butter" ideas! I find that since I'm still learning its harder to keep up a conversation as well as fidling with settings etc, but I suppose I should know what setting to use before actually shooting.

Keep the ideas coming!

[Brady]

Like a lot of folks, I will usually chat it up with the subject... often about totally unrelated things. Also, for the first 15 minutes, if we are outdoors, I will just shoot randomly and tell them that I am just getting everything set. That gets them used to the camera, and I often get some good keepers because they don't feel like they are 'on the spot'.

One other thing I do is encourage them to bring a family member or friend. Someone earlier in the thread remarked that great photos can come when the subject is not aware of you shooting. Many times, I have seen the subject just be talking to their child / father / friend and share real smiles and laughs... that tends to yield a pretty good photo.

...at least that is the stuff that I do...

[commongrackle]

I've heard the "bread and butter" one...

My Dad always, always, always makes some sort of face in pictures. Really. Like every one of them since I can remember. I don't know what it is...like he just can't smile...even camera smile...for a picture.

[ScottAW]

This is something I run into a lot when trying to photograph my daughter. I haven't had her sit for a portrait or anything like that, but trying to get a 'natural' look out of her is maddening if she knows there is a camera pointed that way. She is seven.

What I try to do is basically set the aperature, and then get in focus with the shutter button half down and wait until she isn't expecting or ready. Then I say something to make her look my way and then click.

Or take a lot of shots in hope of catching 'that moment'...times like that I think of how much I'm not spending on film...or using my film cameras for that.

[Liz Caldwell]

another thing that works pretty well is the tickle stick... it's one of those long crazy colored nylon duster things... looks kinda like this... but "household size"...




My usual line was "Just cause your grown doesn't mean I can't tickle you!" poke... poke poke... poke...

[WooD]

My wife in no way can pull off a fake smile. It drives me nuts. I usually end up shooting her with a more serious look which ends up with her looking mad. I have on occasion caught her laughing, or giving a real smile, but its few, and far between.

The girl I shot a few weeks ago was a 100% natural. As soon as I fired up the lights she was in her element. She is a self proclaimed flirt, and tease which really helped, and made the shoot a lot of fun for both of us.

[RussHeath]

My mom is the same way regarding the "camera smile." I've only recently been able to overcome this, and I do so by telling her that if she can't muster a real smile I'm just going to keep clicking the shutter until she gets sick of me. I usually end up with lots of fake looking photos and then several at the end where all of my gentle prodding gets her to laugh and relax a bit. So despite a lot of advice to the contrary, I find that pointing out people's crappy fake smile sometimes is just the thing to get them to smile for real.

[oldwolf]

get out from behind the viewfinder. get a remote shutter release. talk to your guinea pigs....errr...victims.....i mean models. set your camera to continuous mode or whatever that's called when it just takes pictures until you release the shutter button.

start talking with just idle chit chat and get into subjects that you think will evoke the emotions you want displayed. have them tell a happy story (first kiss or car), scary story (paying taxes or paying taxes), etc., etc.

[slleali]

My mother is coming to meet her great-grandson this weekend and it is driving me nuts because she hates her pictures so much. The last time she was here she wouldn't even let me take a photo of her with a granddaughter who was graduating. She has the fakiest looks in the world! I have to get her to relax and not think about the photo. It's really a tie though, because she and my husband both won't stop talking long enough and their mouths are generally open in the photo. I hope something here will help me with this problem...Thanks for the suggestions.