Happy to see you?

How does any one get good/natural responses when doing engagement

shots?

 

This is often not my strongest area and lately i am trying to

improve the 'Look' I get from the B&G.

 

If you have any ideas or shots I would love to hear/see them. I

belive getting one good shot at this point of thier experince helps

make 'the day' go much better.

 

Thoughts?<div></div>

It depends upon whether you want the look "designed" or not. What you have is casual

and funny. In the newspaper, it will be fine. But this is because the newspaper

reproduction will downplay the massive tree in the background. You also photographed

alittle too low for the bride-to-be. Therefore, we see under her chin. So, while it is a

funny, sort of athletic picture with alot of good health messages about it, it still could

stand a tune-up.

 

Firstly, I would not choose a tree trunk as a background unless it had vines on it or it were

a redwood tree. I see any tree as a type of wallpaper. Tree trunks are "male" in my visual

message library, ivy vines are 'female'. Now, if i were taking a picture of a Ranger bound

for war, i might dress him up and put him in front of a tree trunk with his beret and

soldier's shirt; or maybe I would use a brick wall. But a bridal couple? I feel safer placing

them in a "female" environment of soft foliage, backlit sun, climbing vines and backlit

grass. Or, I could go halfway on the male-female mode, and pose them against a range

fence for cattle at sunset with them rimlit by a low sun. Massive things like rounded

walls, tree stumps and other "symbols" of strength and muscles and hardness don't send a

message of "love and kindness" to the viewer.

 

I make my backgrounds flow around the couple oftentimes. Think of graphics of the

Rennaissance.

 

I design their arms and hands so as to minimize confusion. Oftentimes, they look like

they share the same hand! I do not photograph quite so low on a woman as you have

here. I will likely photograph higher on the woman, and let the man "run" in height. And,

by gosh, men are usually taller than the woman. But I will re-set his chin so that his

height does not show me his 'adams apple'.

 

For the newspaper, its o.k. to showing them sort of laughing. But for a desk portrait, give

them a choice of something more subdued.

 

Dressing them in white was good. However, we have a broad wall of white there, and this

makes them look wider and less, well, 'graceful'. Graceful isn't the term I was looking for,

but they look more massive in this wall of white. Fix it by having him dress in beige or

gray. This recedes the man alittle in relation to the bride. Of course, a color like blue will

have an emotional "receding effect" to make it all more complicated! Go for simplicity, go

for harmony. If she is in white, she will attract more attention; the eye will attract itself to

white areas firstly. That is what you want: more attraction to the bride-to-be, visually

speaking. Now, WHY DO YOU WANT THAT? This is a larger subject; not now.

 

But you 'broke the rules' on placing her higher than he, and this is playful and it works

fine. But you have the problem of her under chin area to solve. And she will see it. And

she is the client.

 

Simplify hands; make arms flow.

 

I guess you can tell that I am not influenced by whatever is the latest fad on defining

'political correctness' in the placement of men and woman in relation to each other. My

influences are a mixture of old fashion traditional values, Eastern thought, and some

fashion photography visual posing concepts picked-up along my way. I do not allow

androngenists and people struggling with their personal identities to influence my work or

ideas. I am in San Francisco, so I see alot of these 'struggles' and 're-definitions' every

day. So, I advise you to think of natural items in your environment as "male" and "female"

in form, and to apply them in harmony to your couples as backgrounds and as props.

 

Maybe someday I will show my couples.

I just 'hate to say this' but I think that her friends are going to make cute, funny comments

on the fact that he is 'rubbing her tummy': Is he indicating that something is happening in

there? Be prepared for these definitions and views of viewers when you photograph. It is

funny now, but the joke may tire the couple; they will will want a "nice", not "funny",

picture later.

Never place a woman in front like that,or shoot people straight on like that(always angle people so they have a front & back shoulder,not a right & left shoulder).Placing her in front of him like that makes her appear larger!Also that bright area above their heads is bad news.I would sit the happy couple shoulder to shoulder at slight angles toward each other.Then have them lean their heads together.

Michael, just keep it simple.

 

Ask what the shot will be used for. The primary one is usually to put with an

announcement in the newspaper. The image probably won't be used very large, so get

closer to your subjects. Head to head like my example usually works for me. Just the act of

doing that get a good vibe from the two love birds ; -)

 

Also, newspaper reproduction is lousy, so keep the tones simple. Solid clothing rather

than patterns, medium tones rather than white (which news print often blows out)<div></div>

I tell them to walk around and pretend I'm not there. Or I pose them a little and take pictures while they're still getting situated.

Here's a posed one.<div></div>

Nice shots Colleen.

Thanks Mark!!! Coming from you that is an awesome compliment!! Now if I could just get someone to pay me to take their pictures.......

Timber,

thanks for all your insight and help. This shot was a fun 'candid' one. I never really think of the backdrop as male/female, that is a great use of visual ..... whatever is there.

 

I used this image to explore the expressions you can get by trying new stuff/unposing. I hope to get more adept at this area and explore at least a few fun ideas each time I shoot engagements.

 

This is more normal and they preferred it (I think).