It isn’t aways easy to create natural posing for maternity photos. When I first met Laura and David for their maternity session at the Arnold Arboretum in Jamaica Plain, they both told me that they feel awkward in front of the camera and actually hate getting their photo taken. I told them that I hear this all the time, and that I’d work to make them feel comfortable and natural, even though it can feel a little awkward.
While generally maternity photos with just a couple are definitely less hectic, it can be more difficult to be loose and casual when there aren’t kiddos to chase or snuggle. My goal is to pose couples comfortably to create the most natural posing for maternity photos.
I purposefully direct everyone on where to stand, what to do, and where to look. Whether its walking, moving a dress around, switching weight back and forth, or playing with your hair, movement really helps. People often don’t know what to do with their arms, but of course, there’s always a hand on the belly bump.
I don’t get overly complicated with poses, while it might not be how you normally hang out, if something FEELS awkward, it likely looks awkward. I like to pose myself to show moms what I’m looking for, and that’s an easy way to tell if something is stiff and weird or not. Generally, you can expect to be holding your partners hand or putting your arms around each other. Looking at each other or looking at me. Laughing and thinking about your baby and growing family.
It was hard for me to believe that Laura and David didn’t always feel comfortable in front of a camera, because they just looked amazing! I just love how David looks at Laura and how excited he is to become a father.
This session was part of a First Year Collection, a service that I offer which includes 3 sessions for a discounted session fee. Parents can choose from a maternity, newborn, 6 month or 1 year milestone, or a family session, all within 18 months. My personal favorite is when families do a maternity, newborn, and 1 year milestone to see the progression over time.
One amazing thing about this is it allows the clients to become more and more comfortable with me and in front of the camera with each session. While it might feel slightly awkward at the beginning of a maternity session, 10 minutes in we’re laughing and clients feel more at ease and we’ve really got natural posing for maternity photos down. By their newborn session, we’re friends, and by the 1 year or family session, they’re old pros.
