Photographing Camera Shy Couples for Weddings and Engagements – Portland, OR

At Terra Lange Photography we specialize in wedding and engagement photography, and we also shoot portraits and events. We shoot mainly in Multnomah county, but are happy to travel anywhere in the United States to capture your special event.

I’ve photographed hundreds of people, and I cannot tell you how often I encounter people that don’t like having pictures of themselves taken. This can be due to many reasons. Usually it is because the person hasn’t seen many photos of themselves that they like, or hasn’t had a lot of good photos taken. This causes them to feel awkward and uncomfortable in front of a camera. I find that the best way to deal with this is to assure them that their nerves will go away, and they will only feel funny for the first little bit. For the most part this tends to be true.

It is important to give positive feedback to your subjects. Telling them when a shot looks good gives them confidence and puts them more at ease. Sometimes asking your subjects questions is a good way to calm them and distract them from the fact that they are having their picture taken.

Posing for camera shy people can critical. If you overly pose them it may make them more uncomfortable. Try easy poses that require an action, or something they can do. Having people walk, or sip a beverage can be very effective. When shooting couples, have them interact with each other in ways that are natural and comfortable for them. I usually tell people to embrace and wait to see how they do this before I overly pose them into position. Posing will vary from subject to subject and how comfortable/ agile each person is. I usually try to do as little posing as possible, but some people inevitably will need more direction than others.

I think the most important thing is to have fun with your clients. Talk, laugh, tell jokes and make the photo shoot a fun experience for them.  Below are some photos I’ve taken of people who claimed not to like being in front of a camera.  I think they turned out pretty good. 🙂

To book Terra Lange Photography for your Wedding, Engagement, or other event, please send us a message on our contact page.  Visit our website here.