POSING THE COUPLE: 5 BASIC RULES

Hi there!

I cannot tell you how excited I am that you’ve

downloaded this PDF. See, I remember how overwhelming

the concept of posing was when I first started—it literally

kept me up at night before weddings and engagement

sessions. I felt this pressure to PERFORM, to roll through

100 different romantic-but-totally-natural poses without

ever losing steam.

What I should have realized was that posing isn’t about

forcing a couple into a cookie cutter picture of what I think

love should look like. It’s actually about taking their

relationship as it is, and just framing it with a bit more

polish and elegance!

And that’s where posing is really helpful! When you think

of it in terms of simply guiding a couple into a natural

embrace, the whole thing becomes a lot less intimidating.

Enjoy this mini ebook we put together for you!

I hope your next session is the best one you’ve ever

photographed—go get ‘em, tiger!

xoxo,

Abby

RU L E # 1 : H AV E 3 - 5 G O - TO P O S E S I N YO U R B A C K P O C K E T

Start by memorizing three basic poses, so that if you have a total brain freeze, you can choose one of your go-tos and never miss a step. The more you shoot, the more you’ll learn to expound upon these basic frameworks! If you look through an entire session of mine, you’ll actually find that most of my images are based off of three to four basic poses that I adjust little by little to give the session more variety—and from there, it’s easy to take a pose from playful and fun to that quiet sense of intimacy that sets my work apart with just a few minor adjustments.

A F E W O F M Y FAVO R I T E B A S I C P O S E S :

facing one another walking toward or away from me slow dancing

arm in arm one slightly in front of the other sitting down together

facing one another walking toward or away from me slow dancing

arm in arm one slightly in front of the other sitting down together

RU L E # 2 : S H OW YO U R C L I E N T S W H AT YO U ’ D L I K E T H E M TO D O !

Instead of simply describing with your words that you’d like for him to place his arm around her waist and pull her in close, demonstrate as you’re talking! It leaves less room for confusion, and they’ll feel less silly doing whatever you’ve asked them to do if you’ve show them first how to do it.

And along that same vein, if you ask for them to relax their smile, go ahead and relax yours. If you want them to laugh, you should laugh too. It’s a bit of the concept of emotional contagion—if you’re smiling, it makes it easier for them to smile too!

If it takes me more than 5-8 seconds to explain a pose, I know it’s too complicated. Barraging them with a ton of direction at one time will beoverwhelming, and then instead of evoking real, authentic emotion, they’ll be concentrated on “getting it right.” I don’t want my clients to “get it right,” I want them to be themselves! Simple direction allows for more natural reactions, which is what I’m going for in the first place.

Rather than trying to accomplish something complicated right off the bat, start with a basic pose, then make adjustments from there! EASE your couples into it, and they’ll be pros in no time.

RU L E # 3 : K E E P I T S I M P L E

RU L E # 4 : P R A I S E T H E H E C K O U T O F T H E M !

I learned this one from my good friend Katelyn James — never, ever ever criticize or make fun of your couple for doing something “wrong.” If you ask your couple to walk while holding hands and they instead loop their arms around each other’s waists, go with it! If you were to stop and say “No, I said holding HANDS,” what you’ve just done is destroyed their confidence—now, instead of focusing on what a good time they’re having, they’ll be preoccupied with feeling like they’re doing a bad job.

The more positively you praise them, the more likely they are to relax and feel at ease in front of your lens! Call out the things they’re doing well (“I LOVE how close you’re holding her, Rob!), and subtly adjust the things that aren’t working (“Let’s have you bring that right hand up just a little bit” instead of “This looks weird—move your hand higher”).

RU L E # 5 : B E S P E C I F I C

Instead of “hold hands and walk,” try “hold hands and walk in THIS direction as you take turns looking at each other and me.” Or instead of “Rob, put an arms around Alicia’s waist,” try “Rob, let’s loop your right arm around Alicia’s waist, left hand in your pocket.”

Leave as little room for confusion as possible! With every command that’s executed correctly, you’re slowly building their confidence—they begin to move from “I don’t know what the heck I’m doing” to “hey! This is actually really fun!” and THAT is where the best photos happen!

Look at that—you made it all the way through! And you’re on your way to mastering bride & groom portraits on the wedding day. For more instruction on posing and wedding photography

in general, we’d love to have you join us for A Practical Wedding Workshop Live, an 11-module video course that will walk you through how I shoot a wedding from start to finish!

Find more information at A B B Y G R A C E S H O P. C O M

M E E T U S

We’re Abby & Matt, the husband & wife team behind Abby Grace Photography!I’m the dreamer, he’s the doer. I’m the artist, he’s the strategist. He’s the Sriracha to my

Pho soup, and I’m still not sure how I tricked him into marrying me.

I’m an international wedding photographer, a speaker, and a sing-in-the-car-er. I love all things old-school chic, classic and French! And Matt? He’s a fan of all things

Marvel, Nationals baseball, and board games. Together, we live just outside ofWashington, DC with our two rescue pups, Lily & Siris.

And yes, they were named after Harry Potter characters.