"Sure, I'll take some pictures" (10 Couples Photography Tips)

[SarahN]

Scenario #1: You like taking wildlife photos. Or still life photos. Landscapes, architecture, macro, whatever. All your friends know this and often gush about your pictures. You get an email from your aunt's neighbor. Turns out her daughter is engaged and she heard you're a photographer. You wouldn't mind taking just a few snapshots for them, would you?

Scenario #2: You just got your first nice camera on Christmas. You get a call from your best friend December 26th. Suprise, she's engaged! She hears about the camera and thinks there's no time like the present to get started on wedding announcements!

Scenario #3: You _______________________ when someone ________________________ and they _______________________ (blahdyblue, you fill in the blanks).

Oh, aren't you sweet!! Such a kind friend to help someone else out. (If you really don't want to do it, call them back and say no. I'm sure there are plenty of photographers in your area who would love the business!)

But perhaps you secretly do want to take on this job, even though you're slightly worried that all your pictures will turn out looking like Aunt Marge's shots of your parents when they got engaged. Don't worry! Lo-fi, blurry, and vintage are in!

For real though, here's a few tips I wish I could have told myself when I started out.
(With 4 pictures...because this is a long-ass post and we all love pictures.)

1. Look at lots and lots of couples photography blogs. It will make you feel like your pictures are crap, but it will also really inspire you.
(Warning: do NOT steal! I had someone come to me and tell me that she sat with her friend and sketched poses from my blog that I had because they liked my poses and weren't creative themselves. Yeah...it stunk.)
(Addendum to the warning: there are only so many poses you can do with couples. Unless you're super-artsy, you're going to have poses that look like other photographers' work. Just don't try to rip them off!)
Along with that, practice telling people how to get into the poses you want them to get into. I like to practice by pretending I'm trying to tell a couple how to stand like a picture in an Anthropologie catalog. It helps me use more descriptive language than just "move here, put your hand there".




2. Encourage the couple to spend the half an hour before the shoot just talking to each other--not about serious things, or their days, but just reminiscing on how they met, when/how they fell in love, etc. (If you're friends, don't ride to wherever you're shooting with them!) And then during the shoot, encourage them to whisper sweet nothings to each other (well, tell them that in your own terms, of course).
The worst is when couples either talk about some big problem that is going on OR they are so uncomfortable that they can't be serious and just goof around. Both are awful. I always tell couples that I can't hear what they're saying most of the time, and even if I can I'm so focused on the shot I don't understand it, and they should just talk. Sometimes I'll even pull out the "Tell me the funniest joke he's ever said" or "Tell her 5 of your favorite things about her" cards. Whatever will pull the emotions from their hearts to their faces works.


3. If they're awkward in front of the camera, or you feel like they're apprehensive about how well it is going, wait until you take an awesome shot and then show it to them. I never show couples their pictures until they're on the computer EXCEPT when I get a magic shot and I want to boost the couple's confidence in how they look and in me as a photographer.



4. The first 50-100 frames will be junk, because you're trying to get used to wherever you do the shoot, and they'll be really awkward in front of the camera. If they aren't, thank the good Lord that something magic is happening.
Natural consequence of this: Don't go to the best location first, and don't wait until the light is perfect to start shooting. Start in a so-so location with so-so light. Then when you hit your stride, so will they and so will the light and location. BINGO!
(Sometimes I'll go back at the end of the shoot to that first location and capture a few more frames, just to not waste a location.)

5. Make sure you check often what you're shooting, making sure your settings are right. What tends to happen is they'll hit a right pose and you'll get so excited and start shooting and then realize that the camera was doing something dumb or was out of focus and that whole series of shots is ruined. For real. Let's not pull out some examples.

6. Shoot wide open. Unless you have a lens like 50mm prime with a low f-stop like 1.8 (hello, if you have an SLR and don't have one of these, sell something on eBay in order to buy it. I had this lens before I even owned an SLR!), in which case you have to watch that your close-ups have both of them in focus, you should just shoot as wide open as your lens will let you go. This will give you the creamy backgrounds perfect for focusing on their love.

7. Shoot during the golden hours, either in the morning or in the afternoon. Make sure your location gets lots of light DURING those hours.



8. Be aware of what types of pictures you're taking. If you're getting a ton of shots of their faces, step back. Look at where you are. Take some wide angle pictures. If all you've got is shots of her face, focus more on him. Don't forget the ring either! Think not only variety of angles and shots, but styles. Even if you hate formal pictures, the most formal of your pictures will be the one that her mom will be printing out and putting on her mantle!

9. These are all micro-tips:
-Make sure you know how physical the couple is. Some couples have certain physical boundaries for spiritual reasons, others just don't like PDA. Make sure they know that if you ask them to do something they can say no.
-Be willing to bomb. You will try poses that just don't work, and will have pictures that just look awkward. Don't be scared of them.
-Don't give them a picture unless you want your name associated with it.
Storytime: I shot one of my best friends and her fiance. I thought I was just practicing. Turns out these were their engagement pictures. The shoot went horribly, and I edited probably 75 pictures out of the 300 I shot. I ended up giving her the edited ones AND the non-edited ones. Next thing I knew, she had put 5 albums up on Facebook, all crediting me, all of them the un-edited pictures (I don't even think she used the edited ones). And yes, all 300 showed up at her wedding reception too. Awful, awful, awful
-Please manage their expectations. If you've never done this before, you won't be as good as Jasmine Star or The Parsons. Know your own limitations.

10. Have fun! Shooting couples is an absolute blast. Don't forget to enjoy it!


Hope these help!
-Sarah

[FirstLight]

Wow what an awesome post! Thank you so much for this!

[Cam Monroe]

Great tips!

[SarahN]

I'm glad they were useful for you guys!

[wizziewoo]

oh this is perfect timing for me cuz I'm planning on doing a shoot of my older brother and his girlfriend in a week or two, and I've never done couples before. This was really helpful, thank you!

[ZestPhoto]

Fantastic tips, thanks! I photograph mainly families and many of these tips adapt easily for those situations too!

[SarahN]

Originally Posted by ZestPhoto

Fantastic tips, thanks! I photograph mainly families and many of these tips adapt easily for those situations too!

Oof...family photography is a whole different beast - I did one family shoot and was so overwhelmed at the end I couldn't believe it!

[flowrider]

Great post with some very relevant suggestions.

Thanks

[kelleyrie]

love the post and the pictures!

[Gobae]

Originally Posted by SarahN

-Don't give them a picture unless you want your name associated with it.
Storytime: I shot one of my best friends and her fiance. I thought I was just practicing. Turns out these were their engagement pictures. The shoot went horribly, and I edited probably 75 pictures out of the 300 I shot. I ended up giving her the edited ones AND the non-edited ones. Next thing I knew, she had put 5 albums up on Facebook, all crediting me, all of them the un-edited pictures (I don't even think she used the edited ones). And yes, all 300 showed up at her wedding reception too. Awful, awful, awful

Were THEY pleased with all 5 albums they posted? If you're working for a customer then THEY dictate what is acceptable and what is not. There are plenty of forum threads here and elsewhere showing that customers are often pleased with shots that are "less than perfect" because of it represents more than the technical expertise that was executed. It represents the feeling, emotion, situation, and synergy of what the customers are trying to convey to their audience.

Does that mean that you should shoot less that ideal shots because the customer might allow/like it?; absolutely not! But there is more to a photo than just technical perfection.