It's Okay to Lie to Your Clients

"Whaaaaaattt??!??" is what I'm anticipating your brain is screaming at me right now. It's okay, just hear me out:

We've all scrolled through Instagram before, and noticed the perfectly posed engagement or wedding photos of couples who just happen to be softly laughing, eyes closed, hair blowing in the wind. How do they do that??? I used to always think to myself. 

Using a term learned during my stint at a physical therapy office - I have really bad proprioception, or the awareness of the positioning of one's body. This results in daily doses of extreme clumsiness, and the distinct inability to dance. This also means I rarely know what to do with my own body in front of a camera, let alone how to instruct others to pose. 

I've been working towards doing anything I possibly can to make my clients, and thus myself, more comfortable during shoots, especially when it comes to posing. I recently came across a newer method of posing couples, coined the method of "unposed" photographs,  which has risen to popularity with the release of the Unposed Field Guide. The idea behind unposed photos is that you aren't instructing your clients exactly where to put their hands, or where to look - instead, you're prompting them to think about a specific story, and either capturing them thinking about that incident, or the moment they speak it out loud with the resulting reaction. 

This method generates the capturing of genuine moments of someone, or between two individuals, instead of stiff poses that are uncharacteristic of them. I've begun implementing this method in my seniors and couples shoots, and the results have already paid off. But even before hearing of this approach, I organically developed my own version of the unposed method. 

I lie to my clients.

Now, that's not entirely true - I just don't tell them the full truth about my intentions.

Whenever we first get on location, or arrive to a new spot where we're shooting, I naturally have to readjust the settings on my camera. I inform my clients of this, saying something like, "Now don't worry about smiling just yet, I'm going to get these settings right with a couple of test shots first." Which is genuinely true - I am working on getting the settings perfect in that moment. And while I'm doing this, the couple usually dissolves into organic interactions while they wait for me to be ready.

Here's where the secret trick comes into play. The thing is, I usually readjust my settings fairly quickly, leaving me with time to secretly take unposed shots of the couple without them having time to realize and feel uncomfortable in front of the camera.

The results? Natural, unposed photographs of the couple interacting without any direction from me. I get photos of the clients being their genuine selves with relaxed smiles, gazes, or laughter. 

Next time you're on a shoot, whether with a couple, a senior, or an entire family, incorporate this approach at the beginning of each new location and be amazed at the images you can capture.

Already tried this trick? Show me your results in the comments below!