Note: Photographers’ Friday is a weekly blog series directed toward professional photographers, and in some instances, serious amateur photographers. All Photographers’ Friday blog posts will assume that readers have a basic working knowledge of digital SLR cameras, but if you’re left with questions or don’t understand any of the information, don’t hesitate to ask. We love e-mails!

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It doesn’t really feel like going out on a limb to say that family formals are probably most wedding photographers’ least favorite part of the wedding day. The subjects are always understandably distracted and often want to hurry up and get to cocktail hour. Portraits frequently feel rushed. There’s little room for creativity. But these are photos that — while not often fun for the photographer or necessarily high on the couple’s list of priorities on the day of the wedding — will tell this family’s story.

These are the photos that will hang on their walls and stand on bedside tables. These are the photos that will be passed down, treasured, from one generation to the next. As fun as a spiffy pair of shoes is to shoot, they’ll be forgotten while the family portraits still prominently grace the mantle.

These photographs are important. They have lasting value. And they can be fun.
Make the formal portraits a more relaxed, fun experience for everyone involved, and you’ll end up with portraits that look more relaxed and fun.

Of course we still shoot traditional family portraits at weddings, with everyone standing at the front of the church or near the ceremony site and smiling into the camera, because that is what people want and expect and what will never go out of style. Our goal, regardless of pose, is to make sure we get family photographs where everyone looks as happy as they should feel at such a joyful event. For some families, this happens spontaneously. Others need a bit more of a nudge. But we want the same results: Big, genuine smiles, body language that says everyone feels comfortable, and maybe some deep belly laughs or happy tears along the way.So what do we do to make sure this happens?

For traditional portraits, first we go over a shots list of basic family groupings with our couples. We ask them to let us know of any other groupings they’d like to add to the formal portraits, and remind them that any non-essential groupings are best saved for cocktail hour or reception grabs. Once we have the list, we arrange it strategically — we start with the smallest grouping on the bride’s side and keep adding people on until we have a photograph with all the family members, then we start removing people until we end up with the smallest grouping on the groom’s side of the family.

We keep things moving quickly so no one has time to get bored. To that end, I arrange and pose the families, quickly step aside, and Danny shoots. I make my directions as clear and definite as possible — for example, “Aunt Grace, could you scoot six inches to your right?” instead of “Ma’am — ma’am in the second row. Yes, you. Scoot over please. The other direction. A little more. Wait, not that much” That’s an exaggeration, but I think you get my point: Be clear and specific and you’ll keep your subjects cheerful instead of frustrating them. As we work, we constantly compliment our subjects, letting them know they’re doing wonderfully. It’s our job to make them look exactly the way we want, since they can’t read our minds, after all. But by staying upbeat, friendly, and working efficiently, it’s possible to wind up with clear, beautiful, happy portraits (with every smiling face clearly visible) of even very large extended families.And for some not-so-formal portraits?

Those types of shots are far more likely to happen among families that are very affectionate or like to goof around together — unless we orchestrate the moment. Sometimes we do, such as in the second photo, of Amanda and Shane’s family laughing together. We had asked them to all wrap their arms around each other and look around at each other, and some laughter erupted, especially from the giddy bride. Other times, we don’t do anything and an entirely unformal, spontaneous photograph unfolds, such as in this picture of Jordan and her brothers. In that situation, our job is to remove ourselves from the moment as much as possible and just keep holding down the shutter!If I could only give three tips for making family formals more fun, though, this is what I would say:

1. Remember that your words, tone, demeanor, and body language all directly influence the way the photographs turn out.
2. Encourage interaction after you’ve captured the standard looking into the camera “must-have” shots.
3. Tell your subjects how great they look and how well they’re doing, because confidence produces much more relaxed facial expressions and body language.

Oh, and one more tip that I just have to add:

4. Keep a smile on your own face — it’s contagious, and you’ll probably find you’re having fun yourself!

~ Laura