Natural posing – what to expect from your couple portraits

Is ‘Natural Posing' even a thing? I have put together a few tips in this short blog post how to get the best out of your couple portrait session and engagement shoots and to put your mind at ease. 

A lot of couples bring this topic up at our first initial meeting: “We don’t like our photo taken” …Well, most people, including me don’t like having their photo taken. So I worked on my approach to make the couple portrait session as comfortable and fun as possible. “Posing” doesn’t need to be cheesy or unnatural. First of all, my top tips for couple photos and feeling like a natural in front of the camera: 

• Trust me/your photographer and let them direct you 

• It’s a chance to have some alone time on your wedding day (apart from me following you around!) – embrace it 

• It’s okay to be nervous, but I will tell you what to do and will be with you all the way. Plus you don’t need to look at the camera most of the time 

• Always be touching or giving each other attention! This is soooooo important – you need to connect with each other. Without connection there is no magic in the photos! 

• Keep moving, dance, paddle in the shore or just be be silly – it makes for beautiful natural images if you’re moving around 

• Don’t look at the camera (unless told!). We will take a full length portrait with you looking at me towards the end of the session. So we can see your outfits and makeup etc.

• Try and keep hands occupied – ideally touching and connecting with your partner. Believe me, hands are so important in an image 

• Get close, and be in the moment, you have just got married and it is fine to hug, kiss and get close 

• Schedule in your couple shots after dinner when you have had a few drinks or a second session

• Try to forget you are being photographed  

• Book an engagement shoot before your big day to learn how it feels to be in front of the camera and work with your photographer

• Have a laugh! 
  

It feels like a lot to take in right now, but believe me it will be easy. Here are a few of my ‘go to shots’ to give you an idea:

Walking towards me / Walking away

Heads together

Dance and Swirl, Pick Up

Sitting

Close Up of Details

Standing together looking away

Getting Close

Generally being silly - one of my favourites!

The landscape - aka tiny people

Classic Standing Together

Candid Shots during the day- definitely my favourite!

If you want to practise ‘natural posing’ please contact me for availability of a portrait session or engagement / pre wedding shoot. Let’s go and have some fun!

Cornwall Family Photography // St Ives

It was a pleasure to meet these guys again for some family photos in St Ives. I photographed their wedding back in 2015 and they now have a little family with another one on the way. Where has time gone? I can’t believe it’s 7 years ago! Sara wanted their photos at the same place we shot their wedding a few years back on Porthminster beach. St Ives is also is a very special place for them. It was a baltic day with the north winds blowing into the beach and soon got a little cold to build sand castles, so we decided to head to the Arcades for some shelter…

I love meeting couples again after a few years, it is so nice to stay in touch and I can’t wait to meet their newest member of the family soon, hopefully it will be sunny and a little warmer next time!

Cornwall Family Photography // Watergate Bay

It was a pleasure to meet the ‘Flints’ earlier this week for a family photography session at Watergate Bay. Winter is a great time here in Cornwall for a portrait photography session on the beach. It is less busy, so you can get almost a whole beach by yourself to play with plus late afternoons and early mornings have a beautiful magic winter light on a sunny day.

Rory wasn’t in the best of moods that afternoon, but I managed to capture the little smiles in between. And he loves the beach! I aim to let you just do what you always do when you venture to the beach, just observing ‘you being you’ on a fun day out. Like this I can create more natural memories of your loved ones. Here is a little taster of a mini session with the ‘Flints’

If you would like to book me for a natural family photography session here in Cornwall, please contact me for availability and prices. For more information on my family photography packages please visit my family and portrait page

Family Photography Cornwall // Watergate Bay

I recently met the Stokes for a family photo session at Watergate Bay. They broke da mini break at the Watergate Bay hotel and Helen approached me a while back that she wanted to surprise her husband with a family photography session for his 40th birthday. We got so lucky with a warm sunny evening and some stunning light. I had so much fun with this session, it was all about play, run, spotting dolphins (well trying to) and splashing in the sea, a family day on the beach captured in a documentary style to produce natural portraits. So here you go, just a small selection of my favourites…

Photography for the Clancy Family on Crantock Beach in Cornwall

I photographed Daniele and Connor’s wedding a few years back at the Eden Project. A lot happened since then. They now have a beautiful little family and I was so excited to meet them again to take some natural family portraits during their stay here in Cornwall. We went to Crantock beach and were blessed with beautiful evening light even though we had to deal with a pretty cold strong wind swirling up sand in our faces and on my camera gear! Tricky conditions but I love the results. Family photoshoots are best on the beach or in a familiar surrounding in your family home or holiday rental, where we can work with natural light where possible and you can just ‘be yourselves’ with no posing needed, just portraying a day out of your family life to capture beautiful memories…

If you want some candid family photos taken here in Cornwall, please email me for availability and more details

Here are a few of my favourites…

Family photography Cornwall // Treyarnon Bay

Kadi and Ainsley supposed to get married this October at The Green in Cornwall. Unfortunately due to current restrictions they had to postpone their wedding to next year. So instead they came to Treyarnon Bay for a mini break in Cornwall and asked me to take some natural family photos on the beach. We met at Treyarnon where they stayed in a beautiful house overlooking the beach.

I had so much fun with these guys playing in the shore break and in between very stormy and rainy days we gladly picked an afternoon where the sun came out. Perfect for a beach family portrait photoshoot.

I can’t wait to photograph their wedding next year, but for now, here are my favourites form our family mini session in Treyarnon Bay…

I have an offer on for Family Mini Sessions at the moment, so please contact me for further information

Cornwall Family Portrait Photography // Trevone Beach

Some of my favourite photos from a family portrait photography session on Trevone Beach in Cornwall in September. We met early morning to beat the crowds and make the most out the almost empty beach. Gladly it was a sunny day and we were blessed with beautiful autumn light. A bit challenging at times was the youngest member of the family, she just wasn’t impressed at all and it was nap time… I had the feeling she would have preferred to go back to her cosy bed. I’m pleased we squeezed a couple of smiles out of her in the end…

If you are looking for a family portrait photographer in Cornwall or Devon, please contact me for further details. In the meanwhile you will find some more information about my family sessions here

Family Portrait Photography Godrevy Beach Cornwall

A few weeks ago Katie asked me if I can take some family photos while they are visiting Cornwall. They wanted some more positive memories than the hard times they just went through. Ruby was diagnosed with cancer only 2 years old. I can imagine how devastating these horrible news were with my own mum terminal sick from it. I truly believe that times like this make you a stronger more compassionate human. Ruby’s charisma is beautiful with a strong light shining in her. The strong bond this family has is amazing and I feel privileged they asked me to create some memories on their break here.

I think I mentioned this before, I’m not a fan of studio portraits, I rather go for a walk with you and capture the essence of your family in natural non-staged photography. If you’re after some candid shots with your family, please contact me for more information

We had a fun evening at Godrevy beach, here is a selection of some of my favourites…

If you are looking for natural family portrait photography in Cornwall or Devon, please email me for further information

Engagement Photos - reasons why to have them...

I have recently written an article about engagement photoshoots and the reasons why to have them for Lusty Glaze Beach Weddings

For a lot of couples, the term ‘engagement photo session’ doesn’t sound appealing because it sounds more like a posed photoshoot and I usually get booked for my natural un-posed and canid style of photography. We can argue that this is true and we are meeting for the purpose of taking portraits so it’s not really reportage style or documentary photography, but it doesn’t mean that we can’t take candid photos during a pre-wedding shoot. In my opinion Engagement Sessions should feel like you’re going for a walk with a friend who happened to bring a camera along.

More and more couples are choosing to have an engagement shoot with me as an opportunity to get to know me and my ways of working and for me to get to know them. It’s also a great way to prepare themselves for the big day, and to get used to the camera. 

I’ve had great feedback from all my couples who booked pre wedding photoshoots, as they said they didn’t expect it to be so much fun it was a great way to ease the nerves before the big day.

Have a read through the advice to help make your mind up about whether an engagement photoshoot is worth it…

here is the link: Engagement Photoshoots - are they worth it?

I’m currently offering the biggest discount ever on engagement and family photoshoots.

Contact me for further info

Family Photography Watergate Bay Cornwall

We had some lovely sunny autumn days here in Cornwall recently. Rebecca contacted me a while ago tp photograph their family during their stay at Watergate Bay in Cornwall. It was her mum’s birthday weekend and together with her sister’s family they stayed at Watergate Bay hotel to celebrate. Rebecca wanted make a photo album with family photos for her mum’s birthday present. I think its such a great idea!

So we ventured to on the beach on a sunny day to take some natural family portraits. They had so much fun playing around in the rock pools, I just quietly observed and took some candid shots. What a lovely family!

Here are a few of my favourites from the session.

If you need some natural family portraits, now is a great time of year to photograph your loved ones. Please email me for a quote.