The Best Poses for Family Portraits
It’s family portrait season! During the holiday season (Late October-December) my calendar fills up with sweet families getting together to get that perfect picture to send out, post, or print. Family photos can come with a lot of pressure especially when you have outfits to plan, hair to fix, and kids to entertain! It can be easy to forget what to do when you actually get to the session! Plus, if you have little ones, it can be a good idea to tell them what to expect. Of course, I am always there to guide your family during our sessions and arrange family members so that your photos turn out perfect, but here are some pose ideas and tips to go over before your session!
The obvious first pose… Standing! When I take photos, a family’s natural reaction is to stand head-on towards the camera with their hands at their sides. But, to make the shot look a bit more natural, I tell clients to lean in, turn towards each other, hug, laugh, or put an arm around one another. This also helps clients feel a bit more relaxed and comfortable – which reflects in their smiles! Dads, this is the perfect time for you to tell one of your good jokes! (;
Next, I tell clients to interact! Especially with children, I love natural photos of kids looking up at mom and dad, laughing, kisses, tickles, hugs, jumping into their arms, etc. You could also pick up your child to make everyone be at the same level!
For families with young children, seated poses can work great for getting everyone to cooperate and be close together in one shot. To make a seated photo look less posed, I’ll tell families to have a little one sit on their lap and all lean in! I love seated poses for young sibling shots too.
And, finally, you don’t always have to be looking at the camera! I often tell families to turn around and walk slowly or interact with each other and photograph them from behind. This can be a really sweet, intimate shot almost like I’m not even there!
While I will be there to tell you how to pose during our sessions, I always want to give my clients all of the tools for a successful shoot! If you are ready to schedule your family portraits for this holiday season, contact me at elaine@elainegates.com! I also have fall & holiday mini sessions coming up that I would love to get you penciled in for!
10.31.22
