!!Not sure if right forum..but questions concerning posing heavyset people..!!

[MReid]

Shoot at long mm.
From above, no shoulders square to the camera.
Sitting laying down should be avoided.
Use short light.
Dark, loose fitting clothes, no bare arms.

This pretty much covers it.
The problem with having them blocking each other is that they can't usually get close to each other without some bending around and leaning so it makes the situation worse.
The person in front will always look bigger than the person in back, so put the smaller person closer to the lens, bigger person farther from the lens....even just a few inches helps, of course if you do this you need to use enough depth of field to get them both in focus.

 

[DiskoJoe]

But I just wanted to know how to pose people...so..........

This is a pic of my friend taken by Robin Arouty

Robin was behind my friend on a ladder angling the camera down at her and making her look up.

With this positioning you lose the double chin and if people can suck in their gut for a second you can easily shave about 30 or 40 lbs off. Maybe more. My friend is rather heavy set too and she looks amazing in this photo.

 

[Granddad]

But I just wanted to know how to pose people...so..........

This is a pic of my friend taken by Robin Arouty

Robin was behind my friend on a ladder angling the camera down at her and making her look up.

With this positioning you lose the double chin and if people can suck in their gut for a second you can easily shave about 30 or 40 lbs off. Maybe more. My friend is rather heavy set too and she looks amazing in this photo.

I clicked the link and it just took me to Robin's Facebook page. ... I'm following this subject, too.

EDIT: AHHHHH!! There are two links, I should have clicked THIS link, not the name. ... Sorted.

 

[Skhigh]

I did the same thing...I clicked on her name..didnt even see "this" lol

THanks for putting that pic on here thou. I like that idea!

 

[DiskoJoe]

I did the same thing...I clicked on her name..didnt even see "this" lol

THanks for putting that pic on here thou. I like that idea!

I did too. She is a really awesome photog. My friend holly designed her site(Robyn Arouty Photography - Portrait Photographer in Houston, TX) for her and the pic was a bonus of sorts. This would go over well with a younger crowd such as my friend, mid-late 20's. Older folks you might go with some of the suggestions Darrel made.

 

[Skhigh]

So I finally had the photo shoot...its on my facebook page under Family Fun...The family loves them but I know I made some mistakes and will do better next time. This was a difficult shoot, the different skin tones among other things like 90 degrees and 80% humidity really made this a challenge. But it was fun and I got some really good experience!

If you happen to visit my FB page and view the album, please msg me any CC you may have...the family can see the comments.

Thanks to everyone who gave me some pointers!

 

[TenaciousTins]

Hi Skhigh,

I think you did well with the skin tone differences...that can be really hard and the colors seem ok. There are so many pictures there and overall I think that you had a great learning experience and gave the family some great pictures. You did well with making the woman in particular look smaller than she is, well done on that.

My CC pertains to the post processing if nothing else. The faux blur that you have in the front of many of the photos is just not desirable at all and it in fact draws my eye away from the subject of the photo to the blur itself. Just about anyone can tell that it's not a natural blur. A couple of examples are in photos 4, 5, 6, and 16. Also, in photo 12, are the bubbles or something by his chin and on his shirt? Shooting people with glasses adds another issue as well...trying to get their eyes and the glasses without the glare. Being that these are such small glasses, you had a hard task on your hands. You did well with some of them and others not as much but these types of things are always hit and miss until you really know what you're doing (which I don't). In photo 13, I'm feeling like there is too much skin softening going on. The skin looks much more real in photo 15. Other than the guy's expression, I really actually like 15 as a fun shot. She made things a bit worse for herself by wearing white but you did well with it regardless. I do find some of the highlights are blown out...sometimes the white is too bright. Again, very hard to balance the tones. 24 is a pretty cliche, normal shot but still a cool one in my book...would have been great if you actually got them in focus. 25-29 are all snap shots...they just don't have anything that grabs my eye. Really like 34. 40 is really nice too.

But my biggest critique is still...watch the fake blur! It's just not attractive. But as for shooting heavier people, I think you did well and I applaud the effort. I'm glad the family is happy with them!

 

[Eveamlizya]

Already been said, but never straight on and avoid profiles. I don't agree with dark loose fitting clothes though...In my experience it only matters that the shape of the clothes properly fit, but your clients will likely wear what they want to wear...

Find good aspects of your clients. Everyone has beauty about them. Emphasize those things to make them feel confident. For me, being slightly overweight myself, I find that focusing on my upper half rather than my bottom half is best. For example, if your client has beautiful eyes, do close-ups with their face angled slightly (chin up and out). Otherwise, just shoot them like you would anyone else.