CHAPTER FIFTEEN

Posing Variations

As previously discussed, posing kids is often a matter of positioning them in great light, interacting with them, and “inspiring” great portrait opportunities. Whether the child is old enough to follow some basic recommendations (as was the case in the images of the young man below) or just doing their own thing (as was the little girl on the facing page), we want to create great moments that show the personality, and hopefully, have the subject relating to the camera in a somewhat traditional presentation. Sometimes, our posing standards are compromised for subject comfort. In this case, great lighting, personality, composition, and a real sensitivity to seeing the unique aspects of a subject’s personality can, in combination, make for a great portrait the client will cherish.

With young subjects, creating multiple portraits in quick succession is sometimes a must, as it can be difficult to ensure their participation for long periods of time. With teens and adults, capturing multiple and varied poses allow us to capture images that showcase various moods.

Below—Older children can often follow some basic posing advice, making it easier to get a variety of poses that their parents can choose from. Facing page—With young children, structured posing goes out the window. Your best bet may be to get storytelling images showing the subject interacting with their environment.

The image below is an album page created for an engaged couple. The three images shown are just a few of several portraits taken during the couple’s session. We captured a variety of photographs of the couple posed together, as well as a selection of portraits of the woman alone and the man alone. Creating a variety of portraits allowed us to sell more prints. If we had just posed the couple together, we’d have likely had a good print sale; however, by photographing the man and the woman individually as well, we’ve effectively tripled our portrait sales options and created an album that will be an heirloom. Note the posing basics used in each of the three images. The subjects are presented at an angle to the camera, and in the two right-hand images, we have nice dynamic lines.

When posing a couple for engagement portraits, be sure to take some individual photos as well. It’s the perfect opportunity to drive your portrait sales and increase profits.

When conceptualizing poses for the session, consider the portrait recipient.

Here we have a trio of images of a beautiful woman. The subject was comfortably posed, and her relaxed demeanor shows in each portrait. There is a slight variation from one image to the next. The main difference is the expression. When creating images for your clients, ask if the subject is creating the images for a specific recipient, as this will guide you in determining an appropriate tone for the images. Though I like the image on the lower right best, if the image were intended as a gift for the woman’s mother, I suspect she might prefer the smiling pose.

When “posing” our youngest subjects, safety is a primary concern. Sometimes, we must include a part of the parent’s body in the frame. Even when your subject is a toddler, it’s a good idea to have a parent come to the session dressed in a way that allows us to include their arm/sleeve and leg/pants in the portrait. This can provide the subject with the physical and emotional comfort and support of having their parent nearby.

Chairs and other furniture can also be helpful when photographing toddlers. You’ll often see a great armchair or other padded chair or sofa included in the frame. It’s typically not for decoration’s sake. Rather, it provides a support for the unsteady youngster, and it also allows for a soft spot should there be an accident. Be sure to keep the area clear of sharp edges, and capture images of the child interacting with their environment.

Facing page and below-Toddlers can benefit from soft props-be it furniture or the body of a parent-to help keep them steady on their feet. Keep in mind that the portrait can often be creatively cropped to put more emphasis on the child or, in some cases, the parent’s body or other supportive prop can be edited out postcapture in Photoshop.