Three Ways I Make You Comfortable In Front of The Lens An Arizona Engagement Session

We are almost all terrified, to a small degree, to be in front of the camera. It’s just how it is.

I might be the scarest of all. lol. Most of my couples & families show up nervous and uncomfortable. I mean it is seriously awkward to be in front of a camera. Especially if you don’t know if the photographer will capture you in a flattering way. I mean seriously, some photographers just don’t know how! It takes a lot of practice + a healthy dose of natural talent to know how to pose & arrange people to flatter them & bring out their best & most beautiful. I live for this guys! I am in love with it.

Want to know just three ways I make my clients comfortable in front of the camera.

1.) I’m not a portrait photographer, I am a lifestyle photographer.

Meaning I don’t want you to stand there and just smile. I want to get to know you, I want your personality & life to shine out from my images. Let’s laugh, and talk, and walk, and play. Now this takes time. Expect your session to be several hours long for engagements. For families at least keep an hour open for me. I know you think your kids will only last 30 min but the first 30 are just the awkward moments. lol. Wait until everyone is really comfortable with me & themselves. So let your life shine through!

2.) I’m seriously weird.

I’m not kidding. When I was a kid I thought my weirdness was a flaw, however now I am 36-years old and I’m in love with my random quirky self. It puts people at ease! I’m silly and really into what I do. So you don’t have to feel insecure because I’m so in love with taking your photos.  I am focused on getting to know your best you, angle, and essence, that you can get lost in just being there & loving those you are with. If it’s a self-portrait/ I call these creative sessions you can just relax knowing that I care so much about capturing your spirit & less about your fake smiles. lol. You can trust me to work every angle &  I get to be weird & take all the tension off. Let you laugh and relax.

3.) I see your beauty.  I am thoughtful about every image.

Literally, I see it! We are all so lovely. I’m always moving, always looking for different elements & angles. I can’t stand it when someone just “takes” my photo. It’s rarely a good flattering angle. It’s always some random quick shot without much thought to my face, my arms, my double chin. haha. No matter how skinny you are, everyone has a double chin if the photos are taken at a random thoughtless angle. If you are vulnerable enough to share with me things you love about yourself and things you don’t love as much I can focus on those. I’m pretty good at naturally knowing the most flattering angles. And I care about them. I want you to LOVE your photos, feel empowered, cast self-love on yourself, and be proud of who you are. It’s my ultimate goal! I am lucky enough that I have spent 15 years now getting to know photography so I’m never worried about my settings, they are second nature to me. I focus on being thoughtful about angles & spacial awareness.

That being said it’s always better to invest more time into your session. This is why I don’t really love mini shoots, I understand not everyone can invest $500+ into a session so I offer mini’s. But with a short session, I don’t get enough time to really dive into this last aspect. I feel rushed to just capture some moments.

That’s it friends! Three Ways I Make You Comfortable In Front of The Lens

Now it’s time to meet our lovely clients-Monique and Anthony.

These two are getting married next year at the Desert Botanical Garden. They found me because I’m on the preferred vendor list there and after our consultation, we knew we were the perfect fit for each other. I can’t wait for the wedding. It’s just so peaceful and beautiful at the botanical garden.

For the engagement session, Monique and Anthony wanted something wilder than the botanical and the idea of a lake sounded lovely. I do a lot of shoots out at Tonto simply because it’s the closest area to my home filled with gorgeous backdrops and beautiful landscapes and often wild horses. Sadly they are doing some construction out there so my fav spot was blocked off.  Alas, we made the best of it!

When we arrived there were horses everywhere!

They ended up moving on pretty quickly because there were a lot of people out but we snagged a few great shots with them in the background.

I think Anthony & Monique would agree that they felt comfortable within just 20 minutes of me being explaining the lifestyle posing/style, being weird enough, and showing them some back of the lens as I got to know them.

Enjoy this adorable lake session!

Three Ways I Make You Comfortable In Front of The Lens An Arizona Engagement Session

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