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Question from Alexis: “My name is Alexis and I have my first photo shoot for a client next weekend. I was wondering if anyone had any tips on how to make my client feel comfortable when taking the portrait photos. I don’t know if this matters–but it’s a family. Thanks. Also, what are the best places/backgrounds to take family portraits?”
Corbi: i always ask the customer first if there are any shots they would like done.. then i do my own ideas. i find when they are given a choice they find it easier
Chelsea: Shooting in front of trees is nice. Make sure your subject is far away from the background so it’ll blur and look nice.
Amy: Just tell them to be themselves and have fun. The more natural they act, the better the pictures will look. You can also try something like telling them to “pretend to laugh”. And then once they start the fake laughter it usually turns into real laughter and you can capture some genuine smiles
Nicole: Make sure you keep your aperture 4.0 or higher so that no one’s faces are soft, and a good way to make them comfortable is try having them do a walking shot (walking away or towards the group) right off the bat where you are a little farther back. Families will usually feel more comfortable because they can talk amongst themselves and you are not in their face with your camera. Or you can try a couple of shots of the ever popular waist down pictures and let them know that you are getting a couple shots waist down and they don’t feel like they have to pose perfectly and you get a couple of fun shots that families usually enjoy.
Nicole: *towards the camera
Kim: Joke with them and have fun. Make sure you never look like you are unsure of what you are doing. Be confident. Try to look up different poses before you go so you have ideas of what to do. Change your aperture throughout the shoot to get different effects for different scenes, if you want blurry background or background in focus. Parks are a good place but try not to go to a park with playground equipment it can be destracting for little kids.
John: i let my clients do there own poses and i joke with them
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