Three Secrets That Your Photographer May Not Be Sharing With You

I've been photographing families since 1989.

I KNOW.

I'm old.

In 30 years, I've seen all kinds of trends come and go.  Stirrup pants, and lips with dark liner and pale lipstick, fluffy eyelashes, and heels that raise you up about 6 inches.

Amongst other things.

What hasn't changed is posing, lighting, and emotion.

I'm about to share with you three secrets that your photographer probably isn't telling you...

1.  Posing
It's true... some lenses are short and will put 10 pounds on a person.  Other lenses are long, and will take off 10 pounds.  But a sure fire thing to help anyone look better is great posing.

Typically, when you are with your kids, and you hand your cell phone to your girlfriend and ask her to take a photo, because you're never in photos with your kids, you're trying to wrangle your kids in the photo.  Because you're trying to keep them in one spot, your arms look double their size, your shirt is hiked up making you look pregnant, and the ketchup stains from little fingers that wiped on your jeans is showing.  You just never look good, no matter what, in photos.

Unfortunately, sometimes your photographs done by a new photographer, might end up looking very similar, and that is where the belief is cemented, that you just never look good in photographs.

Good posing will help you look like you've lost 10 pounds.  Good, directed posing will help you to look great in a photograph with your kids when wrangling them.  Good, directed posing will look natural and help you feel confident during your session, as well as make you feel great every time you see your photographs.






2.  Good lighting
There's something to be said about natural light and using it well.   And then there's not using it well.

Typically, when out and about with your kids on your favorite trail, and you want to get a quick photo, and you are under a tree, with the sunbeams filtering through, it looks so pretty. Surely that will look pretty in a photo.  Instead, you get shadows of branches and trees all across your children's bodies and it looks weird.

The secret to good lighting outside is being in open shade with the sun behind your subject.  This creates all kinds of wonderful effects by photographers who know how to manipulate light.

Good lighting can make you look 10 pounds lighter, too.

3.  Emotion
Something I heard a lot from moms in the late 90s and early 2000s was "I don't want my daughter smiling like that.  Her eyes get squinty and I want to see her beautiful eyes."

This was disheartening to hear.  Usually, the daughters looked natural and smiley, and happy, when I spoke with them and helped them to feel confident in front of the camera, while entertaining them, to get the natural, reactive smiles.  What these moms were looking for were photo smiles, where there was no emotion in the eyes, but you sure got to see their irises.

What this also said was "Your smile makes you look ugly".  I also heard a lot from moms was, "I don't want her looking angry, either".  Trying to get a young teenage girl to look happy without actually smiling, took a lot of work.  I often got in trouble for my sessions going over the time limit we were given.  I didn't care.  I wanted these kids to feel comfortable in their own skins, and with their emotions.

A reactive smile (a smile that is a reaction to something funny) is natural, and emotion is carried up into the eyes.  Squinty or not, genes play a big part, and Mom is probably saying the same thing that her mother said to her.  Just let me help you smile.  Let me help you feel during your session.  We'll get the best emotion if you let me.

And there you have it.  Three secrets that your photographer may not be sharing with you.

Bee in love with the heartwork of your life.