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Shoot: Posing Families

Lesson 23 from: Bumps to Babies: Photographing Motherhood

Kelly Brown, Sue Bryce

Shoot: Posing Families

Lesson 23 from: Bumps to Babies: Photographing Motherhood

Kelly Brown, Sue Bryce

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Lesson Info

23. Shoot: Posing Families

Lesson Info

Shoot: Posing Families

What we're going to do is yesterday kelly was shooting on those two little white boards I said to kelly she can either do that or we can push this back and shoot the kids against that white wall here on the floor or on the ottoman I think they have less chance of falling off if they're on the floor um so maybe we could just put the three kids there and see what happened so this is that um time really well, you've got the five year old a three year old in the baby and um and this is the shot I think all parents want but maybe not the easiest shot we're going to get so let's make it happen my god this sir cute hi, guys, come in. Hey, could we have kelly's camera to swap the teeth? Uh she'll feel more captive with who sittings on the table one of the boys khun swap over the tether that would be great. And while they're doing that let's push this this way and you can see the kids up look any questions while we're doing this let's start in our studio audience. Any questions, ladies? Yes. De...

scribe a mike get mike down, I have a quick question we have a lot of moms that are gonna have a c section and you're always having them push their heinie out that type of stuff and they can't but they can do this so they can rock instead of pushing through the hip they can actually just rocked back like they can actually just lean forward um what they can't do is lie and they tell me um so they can't do that lying on the floor post that with the baby, but they could kneel in lean on the ottoman if they supported um they also can't lie on this side, which is opposed that we wanna do with the newborn um I have this post that I love to do with a couple where I lay down a black sheet and I lay the man and the woman facing each other or spooning, you know, and I do this beautiful shot and so what I want to do is to open the couple up so that they're in the love heart position lying down as the syrian candy there either because they can't lie on the side and it'll hurt them that you just have to have those conversations also, I feel like if our newborn is this assyrian, we're not going to be able to do it um so but I still want to show it so old demo it, you know, I'll find a way to demo it because it's the only pose on the posing manual we haven't done today and I really love it all right, well, listen, does this family will say now this is the world's most gorgeous family they are cared? Yeah, I have a really quick question back here, sarah, because yeah, I feel you know, like curves is like something just like everyone can get those, you know, like a lean body, but curtis is just like something you're right is there is a reason why you used the darker colors behind her yes, and you'll see when I re touch her because when I open it in the role window, you'll see the adjustment I make, which makes it more about drawing attention to her face and the baby is opposed to her body, and then I'm going to make simple tax, but I would never shoot a black outfit on a white background because it does nothing for the body shape, and it also is a very contrast ing in color, and it becomes more about the outfit. This is the background instead of the face. So when she's on the brown, the tone of the image or goes to softness and you'll see on the images on the wall behind you with the opportunity which this the video we're going to show you in about half an hour um we had afternoon tea or did we just see it? I don't even know what we've got two more videos to show you off their bonus videos in one of them is I shot the pregnant girls on the brown background and they're in golds and pinks there sort of in the mid tonal range, but if they were going to be on white, I would have put the white straight on that white background white on white, black on black mid tones with brown photograph beautifully make it more about the face. So the one thing about my photography like kelly's that are all toned, smelly like all of her toned images of the same, which brand who very strongly, but whenever you see my images, everybody says to me, I always look at the face no matter what's going on, I'm always looking at the face, and I do that with the tonal range of the image. I make sure the here frames the face and the color tone range matches the background and I just kind of turn it right back, so even the black on the brown didn't really work, but she had the grain to break it up, so when I put a filter on it like there, I'll show you how I retouched the opportunity shots with alien skin, which gives it that beautiful yellow tone, and as soon as I take the skin tone away from real skin tone, it looks like a painting instead of a photograph so everybody always system e how do your images look so painted and I just really take the skin tone color away by either dese entering it de saturating slightly or going towards sai in or yellow because that's not the color of the human skin and when you just drop the skin tone a little bit it confuses the I and then it looks more like a painting but there's no other filter on it or secret is just alien skin so we'll do that after the second rank you so much the next right I think we have one more question but a question that came in from the bell amore and I'm not sure if we can get to this if we have time but label says how would you pose a mom with with all of the boys or a dad with all of the kids separately so if you have you know the baby in their arms without one parent basically labelle says I know I have clients that want shots with both children individually and it tends to be really difficult get fake baby for me so I can if I had fake baby and I was cyril with fake baby then syria was standing here she had the green draping fake baby find an older child will you come and stand here with me betty will you come in heaven you can be my pretend buddy and come and stand up here for me on this box you as tall as me when you stand oh, nearly as tall as may all right, so when we did it first when we put him on the box with mom and dad I feel like she could have held baby and then come forward and embraced here or him you know, whatever the child wass is a toddler what I love about it is the box just gives them a little bit of an elevation if I'm a bit short so if I had the half box so it drops him down to a more realistic height he can literally cuddle into me like he would a mom so let's get his mom in the baby and I'll see if he does it to her. So what I would do here if I would take her shoes off straight away okay, so normally but do you couldjust come and stand here and I'll show you so if you swap baby to this arm there that's it and bring him around a little bit more there you go. I'm going to fix here here straightaway so what I really have to do is connect them together and so I would bring them in like that now when you're talking about a third child ok, then I have to go this way what's your name gavin come on the side. You're pretty cool, gavin I think you have the best haircut okay, jump out given because I'm going to give you a little bit of a booster so let me put this here and you stand up tall there and what's your name princess naomi naomi you come and hop up on the big princess books, okay? Gavin, can you give mummy a cuddle so you turned towards money, okay? And if I can get both kids around her and I can get baby up play with gibbons here you play with gibbons here then I would go with this deck straight away if that doesn't work, what I would do is put here what's your name lisa sorry, lisa I would put later down on the box against the wall I put given behind I would put baby in her arms well, let's do it. I'm talking about it so let's just all right, so what I would do is I would take this box here and while you're doing that, I'm gonna get you to take your shoes off. I'm still holding my baby it's very hard to hold your baby and work mayor may hopped on the and I'm going to get this and you take your shoes off for me lisa so exactly the pose I did before with the couple except righted their husband wife on the box so if you're just going to do one parent with all three kids and that happened she get a lot of one parents come on with up to three children let's build on the post so first of all I'll get lisa to sit here and the first thing I do is fleder lisa's body first so I bring her up onto her cheek like your butt cheek here and she's up here like this tilting towards the camera. Okay, so I get here into position first so she's in there I'm gonna take the shot even that's not tv it okay? And I need a little half reflector would be really good around the side. All right, so the first thing I don't appear around here up yes, I look back yeah, come on, let's, just drop it down. That's it exactly right? So I post lisa first hand onto your thigh ly set and then just slide it back that's a girl bring ten all the way around this way and I'm just going to push this against the wall so I can actually take a bible shop for you, not just a protein shop. All right, so the first thing I'm going to do is post lisa and then on what I want you to do is tune your shoulders towards me night this way mirror me there that's exactly right now too in this hand down that's the one and bring your chin to the each of your shoulder okay so I want to make sure lisa doesn't turn her face away from a so I need to work her shoulder that's it they're okay bring me some light around kill so festival I see it mom's position and I've got two choices bring you turn around to me lisa and down down that's the one so first thing I'm gonna do is take this shot here tiny little smile in your eyes good girl then I can go the side two in the shoulder away from me there you going to stop now bring your chin down incoming that's it good girl right there love that now let's head on given come and stand here behind money and when you put your rounds around mommy for me because she looks like she needs the most beautiful couple I ever all right then I'm going to get baby coming here bruiser you come and help on mommy's name okay, so there's two children so now I've got a toddler and baby so same sit up mom first the dead babies okay so he's perfect given just bring your hands down so they're not strangling mummy that's it so you bring your face right into mummy's face that's a boy one two three right there oh my goodness now we're going to admire me so we've got two choices name you can either stand up behind lisa's legs in lisa can put your arms around her there so I can make this get complete or so right and tack up behind your knee and bring her forward so you just bring here right forward that's a girl and now me do you want to give baby a cuddle you put your arm around him all right the go okay and then I'm one two three four there so if I can get his attention just dropped that we don't need a reflector you come and talk to him given bring your face into money baby boy naomi bring your face forward to may like this good girl there we go given don't hide in there you bring your face forward and tip on to mummy stand up normally nice and tall big tall boy that's it now bring your face like this to me notice how the children can all bring their face forward and rotate and they do it when you ask them no different than an adult they all move exactly the same way now let me bring your ten forward bring your chin forward to may good girl like this push your face forward keep coming that's it button you're such a clever girl then you go so if I pull back a little bit and everybody has to smile tio day o miami looks like she's in pain like this push your ten forward baby girl everyone looking at me everyone look at me like this push it forward that's a girl okay so that's how I would do that so one, two three so no different than father ma'am baby and then toddler steck him up go for your triangle now if I was smart here I would slide lisa ford with the kids take given out put dead behind and then have given behind dead and then I would have a stack of five okay, so it's about building your stacks but you build from mum first make mom look good first let's take some kids away given come away baby go away you could just put him down that's exactly right? And then I've got these two sitting here so straight away you come and hop a mummy's name nami yeah with your little princess dress and turn her this way towards you that's it so she's out on her navy ago nice little prince history's all over your league's lisa so pull it out two beautiful princesses uh okay and from there, all I have to do is watch you here because, you know, just like when you're shooting glamour or beauty the girls moved the here moves I want to really style a shot off the two of them like this and then I can go in here naomi going this head too, sweetheart stay right there and I'm going to get them both here so I've got two things little baby smile just a little little no like a baby baby smile mmm mmm mmm mmm okay ggo naomi push it in forward towards may that set stabia lisa to the same thing name is so the one thing that I would do here that I would change and photo shop is lisa has a big gap in who here but I'm not going to stop what naomi's doing in order to give it shot that's something I can fix I am going to fix it you know because it's something that that changes you know so I think that's beautiful so you could just keep heading then you could do the same pose with dead but you could swap the kids around naomi might be to go behind. I might be to get given to sit down with the baby on his lip and also a child consider on the box in front so naomi, if you sit down there given you go and sit you go and sit behind mommy, stand behind mummy again and then we get baby to come in I could stagger them this way so given you just put the sam around mummy you stay the elisa that's a boy okay, so they can sit up tall like this use that box I can't shoot that two point eight because now naomi is in front of mom so I could put her down now and I could get a shot off the four of them stepped like that and look at how this decked in that staggered line makes it so much easier and remember, if you kind of make a big deal about the props like if you sit here and say to the kids, does anybody wanna sit on my special books, they go and do it, you know they'll go and you know, they think it's special they like it and they make benefit to go and do it so I think now would be a good time to get these three kids on their own, cal so you go for it? Um they're not too christian. Yes, well, what was cool in the chat rooms? What people were saying was that question was great also because there's so many single parents, yes, well, this truth and you know what? I actually photographed a lot of parents singular that come in and a lot of parents that come in with the kids because they were just bringing the kids in and I talked the mom's into being photographs that wasn't necessarily a family portrait is a girls day you know it's definitely a girls day out when the girls come in with the young daughters and I just often do the girls on their own and then they come back for a family shoot so I don't describe the boys I just make sure I include them in the marketing afterwards and can I just say that the chat rooms are absolutely in love with this family I mean we're going teo and and a big family shot too okay so you do the three kids and then we're doing family steak over here right high you can you can go and stand over there for a second if you like I'm gonna get the older kids set up first and then bring edwin in come out here for me a little bit I want you to sit down and face me I love your tie it's really great so I want to sit them as close as possible because they're bigger than edwin and then we're gonna bring him in I'm just gonna crush your legs over and bring this one up in towards your bottom and then you can bring this one up so he's a bit of a cool dudes were gonna put him in a cool pose ok and yeah you can hold onto your leg feel like around here let's bring your pretty dress out. Lift your arms up for me, sweetheart. Oh, good girl. You look like a ballerina okay, edwin edwin come here, come instead of here yeah he says no okay, all right, now I'm gonna sit him I wouldn't put them together because they're wearing this you know, similar outfit? They're wearing jeans so I want to separate that so I'm gonna bring no means little leg out and bring edwin in here and he's a crawl on who wants to go boom so I want you to hold on to him and put your arm around here and you can bring you up see, bring your elbow in here boo I can sit there for a minute. We sit there for a minute, see how quick I convey before he goes he lying down on the job are you lying down on the job we get? Oh, you're a good sister. You're a good sister dad, would you be able to just throw me that little green stars so I can distract him? Oh, no, it's, not for you and we don't want a lame down, so don't pull him let's just sit in back up that's it so, he's just gonna sit next to you in here the address down beautiful. You put your hand up here like down okay, and I want you to hold him right there, hold his hand but hiss uh uh oh oh, oh oh oh edwin uh can you come and bring him and sit him back down because he's going to keep growing away so I used the parents yesterday to get them in involved so I don't want him sitting in front of her yes so she can cross her legs she likes no I mean you can cross your legs, sweetheart that's a girl and put your arm around him that's it no he's not gonna what are you doing? What are you feeling? Well you lay down okay let's turn you back around this way so I'm opening up this space in here can't cross your legs cross your legs like this cross your legs like that in journeys it's been around this way keep coming love has who gave me the hard one come over here ok you stay there I know you sit there you sit there point good boy stay there. All right let's try something a bit different are you going to stay there now you're gonna go through me let's see would you like to come and sit up on this special box again and that way if I bring him up off the ground sit down here for me staff and open your legs up for may and would you like to sit up here as well? Ah come here, basketball player sorry he can stand he can walk we don't want him holding you we're going to send up stand up. Oh, boy oh, boy e let's sit him down. Open your legs up for me and you can hold on to him there for a second. His buttons of commander what is it? What is it? Okay can around a little bit more come forward. Oh, no, you don't owe that guy hanging like ivory minute. Let him slide down good boy. Good boy. Pull your dress. Damn! Who where you going? So if I could get one of you to come and sit over here close by and talk to him, come and stand on this side over here, you ticklish! And this is what happens in my studio every day. Well, npr andrea says, pr underscoring doing good to see this happens exactly the same way with kelly there's. So many distractions in here for him so much he wants to play with and one year olds it's a big playground for them. So he's already been in here for a while and become familiar and he was in here yesterday. So now he just wants to crawl around, touch everything and do his own thing and this's where I would move on and get the family shots and then come back and give this another go before because if he continues to get upset and doesn't want to sit and kelly daniel ross says what do you do with children that aren't as cooperative as these children yeah just break the patton do something different and come back to it always and you know you've got a little bit more time in your studio we've got less distractions they've got an audience here in the studio so it's a bit overwhelming for them especially at this age because they don't understand why they're here or what's expected of them and you can't say sit there and stay there because they they don't get it yeah, but twelve year olds can't be bribed two year olds and three year olds can be bribed but they can't be bribed I love that they didn't in ages that we can be bribed that's a good that's a bribery works perfectly for after a session with all the kids but this one you couldn't bribe him if you tried but do we um turned your family shop in st let's do a family show on mama yeah and that's why he set with mom and the other shots because he's comfortable with her okay well let's do when we're given you stand up but in pick both of you stand up now me you stand up to and dead come sit down so what's your name carrie come in sit down carrie or carry her carry I still didn't give it carry spell it uh carrie okay okay I don't want to call you carrie if you're carrie all right so dead you're on the bucks so did he get down there all right and now I think what we should do is let mommy sit down between deads leagues so you could sit in the front given you could go around the side with dedi and naomi you can too and so I just want you to sit sort of on your side like that so to the left side of carrie so that he can come forward on one side to you the yugo and so given you come forward and put your arm around daddy that's it made you look awesome I love your white tie by the way I know you got a few smooches there all right? So my first instinct is to pile everybody up and that we're doing it all by themselves I love that why not just go with what they're doing? All I really need to do is clear bring him down so that naomi can sit up forward on miami's being perfect as well so if you could bring him around I'm going to get his attention everybody looking this way for me and I think how little buddies I'm going to come and get you you don't behave yourself yeah given bring you hit up this way mate that's it's davia on maybe come and give you carry okay he was hiding behind all stadion army you're perfect you give daddy a cuddle ok kids ready set everybody's there okay given dang damn good boy ready naomi chin around this way, sweetheart that teo hey, this fight just a bit half it and lean forward a little bit kevin okay so shooting a little bit wide on you if star sorry not that my mouth is going to fasten a little bit ryder on your appetite to allow for this staggering if I could get cured to come for it would be even better security instead of having your arm around me just lean it onto your elbow and come down to him and you put your arm around him both of them and circle them naomi you give daddy a big cuddle here you get ready come forward a little wee bit and you give daddy a cuddle you could get his arm a cattle like this around ditties on that's a girl all right, bruce a and you come down given put your arm around eddie too but stay here so I could stay in my years ago given staying heaven okay, yeah, here we go. Oh, nice me oh it's looking this way, manny okay? I mean yeah, good job give daddy a cuddle given bring that hand down baby bring back that's it stabia so they're niamey yes and now the baby's way I can't stand up standing up so much easier for me because I feel like you can't go mobile so let's do exactly what we did here but make it wig security come and stand here I'm gonna bring two boxes in for the kids are going to get carried to stand here the side actually stadia lisa come on this side I'm going to have put the are actually let's go back up to him so he can put his arms around you the side so we'll go back to baby that's a given you can come here and you can come and stand here and I think you're a big tour boy so I think you should turn around and give up okay? I'm going to scoot you in like this what? She to's mom, you can give these to earth snuggle and you can tickle baby boy here you little brother and you come here, sweetheart. Okay? You come and stand right here and carrie, step your foot on this side so you're their curious body language is going to go around the outside of the kids who should've bank stuck behind you're gonna put your arm around and connect here and I'm gonna swap you ever given you come with me, you jump up the enemy, can you jump up on that box there could kill tune around you give mummy a cuddle given you come up here to earn around this way we're going to see you now you're a dude so I need your thumbs in your jeans I need the dude pose okay and you can put your hands on him just connect everybody with hands and all we really need to do then is make mom look gorgeous and then bring her chin all the way around okay I want you then too. Two new chin open your body up to may bring him around with you and then you two need to come together at the top all right, well it works actually you know what? Because it's good for your arms so just drop the shoulder down that it's a girl so if she's going to do that I want you to lock in there and then I've connected everybody I just need that baby he needs to come round a bit more edwin that's it may I may I give even at the cuddle and look at the camera, huh? I see every day is everybody ready? Ok, wait this way. Ok, come this way cow go straight down the barrel nice square and low. All right, guys yes, okay, carrie coming to lisa that's the one I can't given naomi yeah everybody looking high given stand up tool could be the dude part so release it baby one more one more even it went before giving giving and don't smile given only naomi come into money quit like this look at me so I told kevin oh oh well uh I love that droopy shoulder lisa it when given they may don't be so totally tio had been given you know what when I prize women I get them into a pose so I got this they say come up onto your toe across your knee over push your hip out put this hand here put this hand here nice and tall three nick and shoulders pushing really back bring your chin forward and as I start to talk through their expression they slowly reset themselves families no different you just looking at five people keep it steady keep it moving keep it fast don't stop saying the kid's name I should faster than kelly like I get a bit more aggressive and my you know I start yelling at kids kids get to you know like kelly's way more count than I am I like I start just banging away and getting anything I can in that situation okay, so what they're doing now if you come to the side I want to see if I could make this box special enough can we stand up on the soapbox do we have to can we stand upon the special box here and you stand up the cyber side you can't really tell edwin come up here look can you yet stay close he's not not a good walker that that that that's okay but you're close to our he's not walking yet okay just stay close right there because all I have to do tonight he's that kind of guy stay with mom something on the books kevin kevin don't your feet on the box e let him explore it just put it on the floor here and that I'm just climb up on it but you two stay on him okay how about sitting down kids sitting down kids quick let's have a look at who what's up there see if you can sit him out there later just put him on up everybody looking this way folks back together with naomi naomi I haven't danced way hey john me yeah so I was photographing a child went camel fell right I photographed a child once and I said to the mother you just stay looking at the baby but I was making all these funny noises and faces and she keeps looking at me and the baby with smith on the ground and then she blamed me and I was like look at the baby just look at the baby and the thing is is it the end of the day we are making the districting noise and people start copying me like even appearance ago like you and they're watching may a lot of time and not them so yeah maybe not do that no jumping out of the box now that's it up down up down way all right so we almost got one two three let's try this sometimes if you let the kids do it the little man's follow so throw bring the box to me given that's it and actually come over here buddy are you going to pick that you're so cute put it down okay come on lie down here over here come and lie down in your tummy you're strong you can can you come and lie down by givin lisa can you come and lie down too but you're gonna put him between you and see if he'll lie down with you yeah miami you come closer to you can close it too given miami closer closer here we go way teo me uh uh just keep it autographing they stay and just say boo I can't I am eu look at kelly you see here given stay up here for mae that's it good yeah miami looking here given mayor may yet get up on your elbows good boy little smile yeah ah and when you can sit him there sitting beside them there too close okay hey e here what? Sometimes like like anything I'm shooting I stop and just keep talking to people and they just come into alignment it's quite amazing you be made when you could've been no, I am a tender and look at it, theo. Hey, poppin the middle, put him in the middle, just keep putting him back in the middle, let him climb out. This, put him in name. We can close that come place in amy pretty well, that's like that, given that it's, right, just trying todo mi no, just keep putting him back in until he cries it. You play any more, set up telling appear in your notes on your elbows, that's a do it again, miami with the boys, when I went with the boys, this's, just priceless, because kids, being kids like you can't make them do anything, you just got a photograph, them doing their thing. Look at them, fly. I'm loading all the images for federer shop off syria to show you that. Now, that is a family portrait.

Class Materials

bonus material with purchase

Keynote Slides Day 1
Baby Book Templates
Birth Announcements
Keynote Slides Day 2
Keynote Slides Day 3
Online Proofing Cards
Session Reminders
Baby Scrapbook JPEGS
Marketing Book
Scrapbook PSD Files
Font Guide for PSD Layers
Family Posing Guide
Maternity Posing Guide
9 Months In The Making
Photographing Motherhood Part 1.mp4
Photographing Motherhood Part 2.mp4
Photographing 5 Week Twins.mp4

Ratings and Reviews

Candice Tizzard
 

I love kelly, LOVE LOVE LOVE her. She is a wonderful photographer, so calm and patient. That is the style that I have when photographing. I liked Sue's portion, however, I did skip over most of it, because I found that she kept talking about the same things. Sue has a great personality bubbly and funny, she just over talked the some topics.

a Creativelive Student
 

i LOVE this workshop!Sue Bryce is AWESOME!! I'm enjoying learning how to pose the mum to make her look beautiful. and I want to specialise in maternity and newborns... Thank you soooo much! I'm learning so much.... Kylie, NSW Australia

tur.tatiana
 

I LOVE this workshop, it is absolutely amazing material and I enjoying watching it again and again! Every time I learn something new from it. And you can't imaging how thankful I am!! Sue and Kelly - your are the best in maternity and newborns!! Love you both so much!!!

Student Work

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