Posing and Pageantry

Mandolin

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Shores of Lake Erie
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My niece is Miss Teen Ohio and thus representing Ohio in the Miss Teen USA Pageant this weekend. She is such a joy to photograph, not because I'm biased and think she's gorgeous (well, maybe a little), but because she's had model training. I don't have to tell her what to do, she just naturally does it! That being said, I need to learn how to pose people. Does anyone have any suggestions on books/videos/etc that would be helpful? I need help giving comprehensible direction. Sometimes I feel like a Micromanager (from the Lego Movie) :D

I'll leave you with a snap of Emma and her man about to leave for prom. So adorbs! Cut off his hand...and her elbow, but, eh...who needs em with faces like those? :lmao:

IMG_3490 by MandolinPics, on Flickr
 
You've certainly got something to work with there, wow, a VERY attractive young lady! As far as posing resources, one of my favorite ones is Creative Live; you can pick up a wealth of tips just watching whoever the 'pro of the day' is on directing his or her model.
 
I'd think about the background and the framing. Obviously you already know you have enough space above their heads but not enough at the bottom of the photo, it might have worked better to frame it slightly below her waist and if need be have him reposition his hand on her back. She looks lovely but seems to be a little more sharply in focus than him.

The brick and white shutters and foliage could be a nice background but you probably need to think about how it's going to look before you get them out there, take some test shots if that helps. If you'd adjusted your vantage point by taking a step back you might have gotten them framed better, and walking around first you may have seen how it might look best (and move around as needed to change it). The downspout would have looked better not coming up directly behind her head (or not in the picture at all). Looks like you're catching just the edge of another shutter to the left and the edge of the siding on the right side, that doesn't need to be in the picture if it doesn't add to the background.

Seems like you're on the right track, maybe notice everything in the rectangle of your viewfinder or on the viewscreen and make sure everything is in your picture where you want it.
 
Thank you for your input and suggestions! There are tons of things I would have done differently with this photo, but they were home for 5 minutes and late for dinner, so it was a quickie. I told her that after the pageant, she's all mine to practice on! Going to do a fun Senior session with her and her bestie, and the background will be much better...Lake Erie!
 
Don't get your hopes up too high thinking about the lake for a background.

Let's just make a list of bad vs. good:

BAD:
lake with horizon line cutting your subject
railroad
bridge
abandoned warehouse
abandoned house
abandoned weed patch

GOOD:
upscale architecture
upscale landscaping
simple backdrop
simple props such as a swing
subject doing something interesting
 

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