500 Poses For Photographing Children

Offering inspiration as well as guidance for portrait photographers to use during sessions with infants and toddlers—notoriously difficult subjects for posing—this guide takes a uniquely visual approach to instruction through its 500 stellar shots. With the challenges faced while working with children, it is easy to end up in a rut of go-to poses. The book counters the stock image effect with its broad variety of creative options, and incorporates experience-based knowledge on achieving successful results, such as creating a comforting zone for the child or the potential assistance of integrated props. The poses highlight what the parents love to see while considering what will work with even the most willful of young subjects.

The ultimate resource for family portrait photographers, 500 Poses for Photographing Children is designed to provide plenty of inspiration for photographing young subjects. This handy guide book addresses many issues faced by portrait photographers, including retaining the attention of infants, allowing a subject's individuality to show, capturing group portraits and posing children of different ages together. For ease of use, images are arranged by age of subject and size of image: from head shots to full length.

Next to lighting, posing is the most challenging aspect of photography—with so many body parts to capture, the possibilities are endless, and it’s all too easy to make a wrong turn. This illustrated reference provides both amateur shutterbugs and seasoned pros with the perfect place to turn when in need of quick posing strategies and fresh ideas. Containing 500 contemporary images by leading photographers, this indispensable manual explains posing fundamentals as well as how to create a flattering, feature-specific photograph—one that focuses on the head, shoulders, arms, torso, or feet—in different levels of close-ups, from head-shots to full-lengths.

It’s the portrait photographer’s job to create a flattering—perhaps idealized—likeness of the subject in front of his or her lens. There are countless things to consider both technically and artistically in order to make that happen. One thing is for certain: The more you show in the portrait, the more of the body that you will need to carefully position and refine. Nowhere is this more true than when photographing a full-length subject. Every part of the body, from the hair to the tips of the toes, must be posed, clothed, lighted, and shaded in order to look its best. The truth is, most photographers have trouble with conceptualizing and carrying out their client’s full-length poses. They have their clients strike a pose and try to envision how to make it look natural, comfortable, and photogenic. Unfortunately, their attempts often result in a stiff, unflattering, flat, or just plain awkward presentation. This visual sourcebook features a wide range of full-length poses designed for men, women, teens, kids, and groups—in the studio and on location. Photographers will find examples of poses for subjects of all ages that work perfectly for any portrait style, from reserved to edgy and fashion-forward, in seated, standing, and reclining presentations. Featuring studio and location (indoor and outdoor) portraits from twenty heralded portrait pros, this book will allow photographers to find a pose to re-create with their client—and adventurous shooters can use a sample portrait as a springboard for a new pose they conceptualize to suit their unique client or one-of-a-kind portrait concept. Complete with text on posing basics, this book is an indispensable resource that you’ll turn to over and over again.

A sample book of classic, casual, and editorial poses for family, bridal, team and other group photos.

Designed to address the challenges of posing two subjects together, this visual sourcebook offers creative, evocative poses for a variety of two-subject groupings, including romantic couples, business partners, friends, and siblings. Through the inclusion of contemporary images from some of the world’s most accomplished photographers, shutterbugs will learn how to finesse poses to show the relationship between the subjects in the portrait. Grouped according to how much of the subject is included in the frame—from head-and-shoulder shots to full-length portraits—this manual is organized to teach compositional skills and how to direct the eye to points of focus within an image. An indispensible handbook for beginning, intermediate, or professional photographers, this book provides inspiration along with a plethora of images for igniting a creative spark.

To stand out in the crowded field of family portrait photography, one’s photos must capture feelings and convey heartfelt emotions. Ed Pedi has spent 20+ years in the business, honing his techniques and establishing himself as an award winning photographer. In this book, Pedi presents 60 of his finest images, detailing the setting and the technical aspects of the shoot. Each image is also accompanied by set-up shots and or diagrams. This collection provides a concise overview of the art of family portrait photography. Family portrait photography can mean many different things. From individual portraits of babies and children, to various groupings of family members all the way to 100 people family -reunion group portraits, there are many things a professional shooter needs to be prepared for. In fact, many shoots will include multiple setups with a changing roster of family members in different poses and settings. Being able to deftly maneuver all of this and keep everyone and everything under control and on task can seem quite daunting. Pedi breaks all of this down into simple and easy to enact tips and lessons. While skill and artistry are key to creating memorable portraits, actually selling prints is just as important to running a successful business. Photographing each family member and the children separately increases options for greater sales with multiple pictures to choose form. In a similar vein, larger groups (like the group of 28 that Pedi details in the book) can be photographed in multiple breakdowns. In the book he explains a number of these breakdowns, each which works as a way to increase sales from one session. Another key to long term success as a portrait photographer is the repeat client. Imagine photographing a child every few years, from newborn to high school graduation. Many families will have their family portraits taken every few years as their children grow or more children are born. Repeat clients are more than just clients, they are relationships built between the photographer and the families. These relationships allow families to trust the photographer, not just for the standard family portrait but for special occasions like graduations, family reunions or seasonal portraits. Crafting a portrait that clients will love is more than just simple posing. Lighting plays a huge role. Oftentimes, with large groups it is necessary to shoot outdoors. The author provides a number of creative lighting techniques for dealing with everything from the single child portrait to large outdoor setups. The author provides the metering lighting setups he used for many of his shots, taking special consideration for photographing large groups or shooting outdoors. Also important is composition and many times, the use of props. Pedi always has a number of potted plants and artificial rocks with him to use to spruce up a scene. Flowers can be used to subtly add color to the portrait or fill in dead space, while the rocks can be used as posing or seating objects. In this book Pedi provides examples from his 20+ years in the industry of how to create the emotional portraits that clients want. Not only will they want multiple photos from one shoot, they will want to hire you again and again for their ongoing portrait needs. Creating a relationship with your clients not only makes everyone more comfortable during a shoot but lets them know that they can trust you and expect a certain level of quality each time they need a photographer.

Becoming more physically self-aware and thus subconsciously snapping into an unnatural pose when a camera is pointed at you is a common occurrence. This how-to guide for directing physically awkward clients who wish to commission full length images that appear unaffected contains tips on both effectively lighting a full-length portrait and honing the interpersonal skills needed to work with self-conscious clients.