Their title may mislead you into think this is just another step one, two, three, posing tutorial but lifestyle and wedding photographers Rachel Gulotta and Daniel Inskeep along with Carlton Banks (a.k.a. Mango Street Lab) are quick to point out that it's directing, as opposed to posing, that gets results. If you follow the wisdom provided in these five simple insights you'll find your subjects falling into their own natural rhythms, resulting in more meaningful images with little to no need to tell subject "A" to put their hand here, and subject "B" there.
Comfort
Step 1: Make sure your subjects are as comfortable as possible.
Your photos will mean more to you, and your clients, if they reflect who they are as a couple as opposed to what you think they should look like. We think these moments make photos look timeless and that's why we prefer directing over posing.
Light
Step 2: Find and put them in the best light.
Movement
Directing Tip 1: Movement can get your clients to loosen up and feel more comfortable in front of the camera. Which can help achieve Step 1. Provoke movement by playing music, asking your couple to dance or even run away or towards you.
Emotion
Directing Tip 2: Provoke emotion from your clients by eliciting love or laughter. Some recommendations for doing this is to have your couple tell each other what they love most about each other, by having them do weird things like sniff each other or even have them whispering their favorite vegetables in one another's ear.
Intimacy
Directing Tip 3: Direct your couple to always keep at least one point of contact between them. Encourage them to pull each other closely, and entangling limbs, letting them to fall into their own natural shapes.
Mango Street Lab's YouTube channel keeps turning out clean, straight-to-the-point, educational content on how to improve your photography. Although Rachel and Daniel do share technical knowledge they also share their philosophies on how to produce more impactful and meaningful images. Which I think is far more valuable and sets them apart from a lot of the other content producers out there. And while it may seem like a small thing, I really dig that they don't clutter up their content with self promotions and product plugs but opt for a very tasteful and well deserved mention at the end of their video.
Their Kit:
Canon EOS 5D Mark IV DSLR Camera
