Dealing with portraits is a great way to start a career as a photographer and have fun with it. Unlike photos with professional models, working with a family, you will have the opportunity not only to waste your time in a stupid studio but also to create precious memories for that family.

Sometimes when a family, especially one with young children, enters a study, there is an air of nervousness and stiffness in the air, and this is the cause of many unnatural and forced photos. Nobody wants to look at their picture and see fake and tense smiles. Getting a natural family portrait should only be a fun thing and should elicit the right emotions.

• Make them Fold

An excellent way to eliminate each pose’s rigidity is to try to get the family moving and folding. Sitting or standing in an extremely orderly way is anything but natural. Make good use of the joints of the subjects in the photo and bend their elbows, knees, and hips. People can put their fingers in their belts or pockets to loosen their arms

• Capture the Reaction

Most of the time, you are doing a family portrait; you will not be photographing an action, but rather a reaction. Tell the family to do something, and wait for the moment after it has happened. Have one person whisper a secret to another’s ear and capture the moment immediately after they laughed at that secret. Have the children surprise their parents by surprise and catch their next reaction, which melts into laughter soon after. Ask them whatever you want them to do, and then photograph their responses, the shot will be ideal when the family has fun, and their smiles will be real. Capture a real natural family moment.

• Get the Right Light

Unlike such intense fashion photographs or bright, outdoor shots of nature, here you want to get a family photo with a soft and funny light. Use a light-coloured background, white is better, and use a large window with natural light or just a light. Make sure the light isn’t pointing directly at them or coming from above. It would be better to have a very bright studio and use a flash to help contrast. Position the flash at a 45 ° angle to avoid strange shadows.

You can learn more from https://skylum.com/luminar/color-splash.

Danny White