TheBest Family Portrait PosesClick Here for Authentic Photos
Yep, we’re talking family photo posing ideas! Amazing photos your clients will treasure for many years!
This guide will show you how to create the perfect family portraits. Come join us today for all the information you need to capture stunning family portraits and engaging compositions.
Are you confident that you know the basics of photography. Are you ready to move on and be a great family photographer?
You can take your photos to the next step by paying close attention to how you pose and capture the best moments. Now, let’s take your family photos to a more professional level!
1. 1.
If we stand family members, they will tend to turn towards the lens with their arms at their sides and face us.
Are you a bit stifling?
You can connect them in many different ways. You could do this by putting your arms around one another’s waists, balancing on your shoulders, or laying on your backs. Small children can wrap their arms around mum or dad’s legs.
For naturally looking family portrait poses, not everyone needs to be facing the camera – mix it up by asking the little ones to turn and hug mum or dad’s belly, or leg.
It’s a great way to help them relax by having them lean against something. It’s also great for mixing up the poses.
2. 2.
It can be difficult to figure out how to place large families without placing them side-by-side (boring!).These are some of the things you should know.
Then, how do you pose them?
You can use shape and lines! The photo below shows mum and her two daughters making a triangle. These diagonal lines create an image that is visually powerful.
3. Diagonal Lines
Similar to the above shot, you can see all the diagonal lines created by the different positions. It’s sooo much more interesting than if they were seated side by side on the grass. And, it’s also going a long way to convey connection and love.
From this position, you can create many different family portrait poses.
- Get up and aim your gun at the top. You can either focus on each one or all of them.
- Zoom in on individual faces by getting down low.
- Photograph details like hands being held.
4. Side by Side
Sometimes you can’t avoid positioning subjects side by side, eg. This is the shot where they were seated next to each other on a fence. However, you can elevate your portrait session simply by getting them closer together and asking them for their arms to be around one another.
Find your inner child by digging deep. Sing silly and get involved to find your inner child’s laughter and smiles.
Related:Ten Ways to Get Kids Real Smiles
5. 5.
Put the whole family in a pile to get the best portraits. Ask them to play, tickle, and do whatever they would normally when they’re trying to get their children to laugh. Stand up and shoot them down.
Whilst you’ve got them there, move all around them to capture close ups of details, wide shots, head shots, hands holding… everything! Next, take a step back to get a wider shot of your family for a candid and natural photo.
This way, you can get tonnes of variety in your compositions without needing to move them, and it’s another interesting way to pose.
6. 6.
When shooting family portrait poses, you’ll convey connection far better when subjects are encouraged to turn their bodies toward one another rather than your lens.
Unless you’re trying this beautiful pose! It’s important to note dad’s head resting on his wife’s head may seem a small thing. This is a crucial distinction between a formal and intimate pose.
Similar:20 Poses for Natural Photos of Kids, Families & Couples
7. 7.
You don’t want to take boring family photos. Instead, try to capture genuine connections by encouraging interactions. Ask your subjects to smile and offer tickles, kisses and games. You can make playfulness out of singing and playing.
Children should be raised to the same height as their parents. Ask them to hold them and cuddle them.
8. 8.
You can add variety to your family portraits gallery by stopping posing and taking photos of parents and kids playing. You should have a fast shutter speed in order to capture the best moments.
TheThe bonus to doing this is that it breaks up the session with fun stuff, which makes it easier for the children to stay engaged and happy.
Related: How to take action shots
9. 9.
Avoid poses that require adults to stand. Small children will appear lower in the frame. Families will find it more difficult to connect because of the difference in heights. It will make it difficult to capture emotion. You will also need to reach further to get everyone in.
Instead, ask adults to get down to their children’s level. You’ll be amazed at what a difference it makes to their interactions.
…or bring them up to their parent’s height!
That being said, don’t completely rule out everyone standing at the same height… because you can take shots like this. Note how dad’s arms and hands acting to beautifully framing her face.
Or this beautiful family portrait, which captures the care and protection this little girl receives. And all the expressivity, without even showing her family’s faces.
This one captures the playful playfulness of the boys and the unique dynamic between their family.
10. Avoid empty spaces
Avoid big gaps between your subjects, whilst at the same time ensuring they don’t look too squashed together… unless you’re shooting a group hug, in which case all bets are off! You can squish them!
11. Head Heights
Avoid using straight lines for family portraits. At all costs, shoot family portraits from the shortest to the tallest (or vice versa). You’ll create a much stronger image by mixing up head heights, and thereby adding levels.
12. Sunset Silhouette
For something really stunning, the kind of wall-worthy family photography that makes everyone say “wow!!”, try a sunset silhouette.
You’ll need to use the natural light that comes around sunset or sunrise. Also, there are some key technical and compositional aspects you’ll need to consider to nail it. We have a tutorial on silhouettes that we prepared previously. It includes the settings and what you should focus on.
Similar Post: How to Shoot a Sunset Silhouette
13. Shape, Connection & Meaning
I mentioned shape and lines in relation to seated subjects earlier. It goes beyond that.
Posing for me has three main functions: connection, composition and meaning.
It is easy to make strong compositions that communicate connections by using shapes in family photos.
It is easy to create connections between subjects (both physical and emotional). You can incorporate shapes into the way you group your subjects together.
For family portraits that are well-composed, you can use strong shapes.
Ok so now that you have some fabulous family portrait poses ideas to try, let’s look at other considerations that will make the difference between snapshots and professional portraits.
14. Light
The difference that light can make to an image is something we always emphasize. When looking for how to shoot family portraits outdoors, it’s best to look for soft light. This type of light produces the most flattering photographs.
Soft light is distinguished by absence of harsh shadows. Take a look at the outside at different times of the day. The shadows will change as the bright sun rises from early morning until mid-day.
How to recognize the difference
- Soft light – you’ll see a gentle graduation between the light and shadows
- Hard light – you’ll see a sharply defined line between the light and shadows
Soft light is the most flattering for family portrait photography, and it’s easy to find! If the sun is low, you should go outside early or late in a day. You can also find shade!
It can be in open, shaded areas like doorways, porches, and garage doors. It can also be the shade of a tree (but make sure you don’t get any dappled light on your subjects faces). You can use these places to take portraits. It will make a big difference in your photos!
I love shooting from my shaded patio to my front door.
15. 15.
First, choose your location with light in mind when you are considering it. You’re probably aware of all the above.
Second, comfort. I don’t just mean physical comfort although that’s very important too. But if your subjects are physically uncomfortable, they’ll also look uncomfortable in their photos. It will be harder to engage them, and you’ll probably lose the kids pretty quickly!
I’m talking about a relaxed location which will make for a relaxed family. Photos always show that! Think of places they might normally go to have fun or relax.
Best Location Photo Ideas
Here are some places that I love to take families pictures:
- Mum or dad’s bed
- Children jumping on the bed
- Uncluttered space on their porch
- In the shade of a large, mature tree
- They are seated on their front porch steps.
- Standing or sitting in the front doorway of your family home, with the door wide open
- Beaches
- Under piers
- Gardens and parks
- Laneways in the City
Similar: Behind the scenes PortraitLocations at Your Home
16. 16.
Get rid of all the clutter
Keep in mind that clutter in the background can distract from the main subject of the shot. Make your portrait a snapshot.
Clutter means anything that doesn’t need to be in the frame. Look out for people, rubbish bins, cars and poles in the distance when you’re taking family portraits outdoors. Be aware of the sun dappled light from trees. If you can’t move the item, move your subject. You can also position yourself to frame or blur the item.
Indoor clutter could be in the form of toys, laundry baskets or piles of newspapers.
Related:Get rid of the clutter
Backdrop
Once you’ve chosen your location for family photography, take a moment to look around for any items that need to be moved in the area, and move them. Adjust your subjects as needed.
An uncluttered wall can look great and be very clean. A place with some interest and naturalness will give you a more natural, interesting image.
Local parks and gardens provide beautiful and natural portraits that are clutter-free.
Similar: Even with your Kit Lens, you can get blurry background photos
17. Styling & Colour
My motto is keep it simple. I try to keep colours neutral and my styling simple by removing clutter and any elements that don’t need to be in the shot.
A busy bed with many cushions and brightly colored pillows can distract from your shots. It may work wonderfully if you’re looking for a busy crazy, fun and exuberant image, or if it suits the family’s personality.
A neutral or white bedding can help ensure that the subject is the focal point.
If you are shooting outdoors in natural settings such as parks, gardens, or beaches, make sure the background is clear.
You can also fill the frame with foliage to create amazing bokeh!
Similar: How to Take Bokeh Pictures
Open shade is not a good idea when taking family portraits on the beach. So, you’ll either be wanting an overcast day when the sun is filtered through clouds, or you’ll need to shoot during the golden hours of the day. That’s the 1-2 hours before sunset or after sunrise.
Similar: Shooting at the Golden Hour
18. Clothing
Too many patterns and colors on the subjects’ clothing can distract and is a form of clutter in photos.
Try to keep your outfits simple using classic patterns such as stripes and spots. A good mix of solids, patterns is also possible (more solids rather than patterns). It is important to find outfits that complement one another in different color families, but not in a matchy-matchy fashion.
19. Framing
It is a great way for your viewers to focus their attention directly on the subject by framing them using the environment or architecture. It can also make a powerful composition.
20 20.
You should consider the lenses you have if there are more than one. Wide angle lenses can be used to create a cartoonish appearance when photographed close up.
Longer focal lengths will compress the background and enhance the bokeh effect. This will allow your subjects to pop out beautifully against the background.
Related: How Lenses Affect Portraits
Photographing outdoors can be a great way to make the most out of the natural light. Make sure you have a long focal length and that your subject is at least 10 feet away from the background. To get the best effect, you should open your aperture.
This image was taken using my favorite lens, the Canon 135mm F/2.
Let me end with a last word. A professional photographer is not just a business. It’s an insight into your clients’ life and stories, and an opportunity to experience their special moments.
Take care of each opportunity and make memories they’ll never forget.
Are you using your DSLR in manual mode but you’ve reached a plateau in your skills? Advanced Photography Courses will push you beyond your comfort zone to improve your technical proficiency, enhance your understanding about light, exposure, creativity, and more. Get on our waitlist to be the first to know about it!
