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Hey all!
I’ve got a bit of a different type of question. . .
My brother and his wife have asked me to do a maternity shoot for them next week. (I’m going to be an aunty! 🙂 ) I’ve never done anything like this before, so am after posing ideas. I’ve had a look on pintrest/google images, but they’re full of such indecent pictures. Have any of you done maternity shoots before? Do you have photos for posing ideas?
Thanks!
@creative-click-photography Hi Caitlin! How wonderful!! I never have. Have you tried searching for ‘engagement/couple’ pictures? I have noticed that usually the only difference between maternity pictures + engagement photos is the baby belly (and props, and hands on the tummy. 😀 ) Hope that’s helpful – but you probably already thought of that. 😀 Engagement pictures, (at least the ones I’ve seen) are usually more appropriate, because the main poses typically focus on the ring, their faces, and hugs.
Thanks, @kina! I did have a quick look for photos of couples, but didn’t spend much time on it. Maybe I’ll have to have more of a look. 🙂
Congratulations on being promoted to aunty, Caitlin! What an exciting time. As a matter of fact, I am going to be a first-time aunt any day now too! 🙂 I didn’t actually have an opportunity to do a true maternity photo shoot with my sister and her husband, but it’s a topic that’s been on my mind in general over the past few months (for obvious reasons Lol).
Like @kina said, the concept is pretty similar to pictures of a couple (engagement, wedding, married), except you’ve got this third little “someone” to include. 🙂 The few random times I took pictures with my sister and her husband, I did find it more difficult than I thought it would be to position them and position their hands so it was obvious she was expecting. Naturally, this varies between various mamas and babies, and how far along she is in the pregnancy.
I don’t have examples to give you of maternity shoots from my own portfolio, but when I need to be refreshed in general composition concepts for portraiture, that’s when I re-read 30 Tips for Perfect Family Photos and other Pro Posing resources.
Here’s where I start my thought process: what am I trying to say in my photos? I’d take some time to think pretty purposefully through why I might pose someone how I pose them. This can also help me think of poses when I’m lacking inspiration elsewhere (i.e. google searches just aren’t cutting it!).
Like, for example, in a maternity shoot, I would try (as much as possible) to position hands so the wedding rings are visible. Why? – I’m seeking to portray is that this baby that’s growing is one of God’s precious gifts to this God-ordained marriage. Or, I’m not just going to have the couple place their hands a certain way just to show off “a bump”, but rather I’m trying to portray the love and blessing that they are sharing (and will share!) with this baby by the way I have them position their hands. So forth and so on. Think about the “why”, and it can help you plan the “what” without just copying what someone else did in their photo shoot.
Of course, you can’t necessarily think that carefully through every single shot and every single pose (that would be nearly impossible), but when possible it’s good to do!
Something that struck me when I watched Ian Plant’s video on composition (thanks for reminding me about that video a couple weeks ago!) was when he said “a snapshot shows the world what the camera sees, but a successful composition shows the world what you see.” That caused me to ponder, if our eyes see things in a wholesome, godly, righteous, Christ-honoring, Christ-exalting manner, and we utilize good composition to tell a “clear story”, we can be sharing that biblical worldview with whoever views our photo! Wow, what a powerful opportunity that affords us as Christian photographers!
In this day and age when marriage and children – God’s way – are not viewed in high esteem, a wholesome maternity shoot done well can be an awesome opportunity to shine righteousness into the culture around us.
Oh my, I’m afraid that was rather long-winded! Hopefully some of it is helpful.
On a more practical note (!), here are a few posing ideas specific to a maternity shoot from photos that my brother-in-law’s sister took! She is a professional photographer, and this was an impromptu photo shoot she did with Joel and Kathryn at a class she was giving.
I’m sure you will come out with some amazing photos! 🙂
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I am going to be a first-time aunt any day now too!
Oh! Congratulations, Aunty Lydia. 😉 Aren’t babies so exciting and such a blessing?! 🙂
And, thanks for all those tips and thoughts! After reading it I said to my sister, ‘Where else would you find tips like these?’ (Ones that actually encourage each other in God’s ways!) And my answer is definitely – only Lenspiration! 🙂 So, they’re great tips!
Oh my, I’m afraid that was rather long-winded!
It wasn’t long winded at all! But instead, such an encouragment.
Here’s where I start my thought process: what am I trying to say in my photos? I’d take some time to think pretty purposefully through why I might pose someone how I pose them. . . if our eyes see things in a wholesome, godly, righteous, Christ-honoring, Christ-exalting manner, and we utilize good composition to tell a “clear story”, we can be sharing that biblical worldview with whoever views our photo!
Yes! This is so good! Brings to mind the quote – A picture paints a thousands words. I read a book awhile back on images/pictures. And it said – “If a picture paints a thousand words, then make it a thousand words of truth.” It made me think about how us as photographers are portraying things through our images all the time. Are we directing people to God and encouraging them in His ways? What words come into peoples minds when they see our photos? Images are so powerful, and it’s exciting and humbling when I think about how our photos can impact someones life!
“a snapshot shows the world what the camera sees, but a successful composition shows the world what you see.”
Love that quote!
And, thanks for those pictures. I like how the wedding rings are prominent. I’m going to try to implement that into my photos!
Aren’t babies so exciting and such a blessing?!
Absolutely! Can’t wait to meet this little one! 🙂
After reading it I said to my sister, ‘Where else would you find tips like these?’ (Ones that actually encourage each other in God’s ways!) And my answer is definitely – only Lenspiration!
Praise the Lord! And I agree!
“If a picture paints a thousand words, then make it a thousand words of truth.”
That’s a powerful quote!
Incidentally, I just happened across a few resources on this topic right here on Lenspiration; not so much specific posing ideas, but general thoughts on the topic. If you scroll down through the archives of PRO Reports, PRO Report 2017 Volume 2 touches on the topic, and here’s a video that article links to: https://www.lenspiration.com/video/maternityphotography/
Enjoy your shoot! 🙂
How’d it go, @creative-click-photography? I don’t have much experience in this area so I’m glad others had some pointers! I did just now send an email out to some other photographers I know asking for their advice, so maybe I’ll have some ideas to share tomorrow on the webinar! We’ll see.
Thanks @bennett-family for those links! I actually remember watching that webinar live and really enjoyed that discussion. It definitely wouldn’t hurt to go back and revisit it though!
Well, @jamesstaddon, we haven’t actually gotten around to the photo shoot yet as some other things came up and we haven’t worked out a new time. So I’m still interested in tips! Excited to hear what the other photographers have to say. 🙂
So, @creative-click-photography, in addition to what we talked about last night on the webinar (here’s the replay link if needed, https://www.lenspiration.com/video/webinar071619/), here are some more comments from JessiLise Studios!
This is a topic which should be navigated carefully, but new life is definitely something to celebrate. I don’t have much experience with maternity shoots, but just in the brief minutes I’ve pondered this since I saw your email, I think it’s important to focus on relationships and joy rather than the mother’s body. For example, highlight the couple’s love for one another, and the happy anticipation of a new baby coming. (This is assuming that both parents and any older children will be present for the shoot.) I would also make sure the wedding rings are visible.
Attached are a few images . This was a more of a family shoot than a maternity shoot, though.
Hope that helps!
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Thanks, @jamesstaddon! what Jessica said sums it up so well. And those pictures portray it beautifully. Thanks for you thoughts on the webinar, too. This conversation has been encouraging! 🙂
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