Best Maternity Posing Tips | Long Island Maternity Photographer

Although I am a family photographer, I also photograph many couples. The couples maternity session is a popular session booked. While maternity sessions with a big sibling are structured much like a family session…first time pregnant couples are a lot different! I am here to share some posing tips from my years of being a Long Island maternity photographer.

Simple Couples Pregnancy Photographer Pose 1: Walk together

Posing a pregnant couple without a toddler to lighten the mood can feel intimidating at first. Let’s start with an easy pose. Hold hands and walk together. Mama, put your other hand around your bump. Look at each other, look out at the distance, look at your belly. I also like to shoot this pose with the variation of walking single file. This simple and classic pose helps relax your couple and eases them in to more intimate poses as the session continues.

Maternity Photographer Pose 2: The Hair Wash

Although this is a couples session, I always make sure to capture plenty of solo portraits of the expecting mother. I do so though both traditional poses and others that are more relaxed, such as the hair wash pose. This prompt may seem silly at first, but the goal of it is to capture movement and emotion. Have mama place one hand on her bump and the other in her hair. Haver her look up to the sky and wash her hair. This prompt will often elicit a natural and relaxed smile.

MATERNITY POSE IDEA #3: LOOK AT YOUR SHOULDER

A very flattering pose for a pregnant mother is to have her wrap her hands around her belly and look towards her shoulder. You can capture this from the front and from the side! Make sure to snag one close up and a pull-back! make sure that she never crunches her chin down and instead uses her eye gaze to look down.

Maternity Posing Tip #4: POP A LEG!

One of the best things you can do for your client is to have them pop the leg closest to the camera. This makes a beautiful line and accentuates their belly in the best way possible. Make sure you don’t have them popping the leg furthest from you, that has the opposite effect!

Couples Maternity Posing Tip: Encourage Playful Moments

Many times I wil give silly prompts to encourage playfulness between my couples. These prompts serve as icebreakers and will help loosen my clients up. They also encourage really candid and natural imagery. Don’t get me wrong..I love those dramatic and soulful images, but the candid and relaxed photos are equally important.

Some ideas that work: Twirl your partner and bring her in for a bear hug, sashay in your dress, whisper or blow in your partner’s ear, tell your partner a dirty joke…really anything that encourages movement and laughter. The more at ease and relaxed you are, the more comfortable your couple will be.

Couples Maternity Photography Posing Tip: Snuggle in from the side

Pose mom first, bring partner in from the side, like they are giving mama a side hug. Have mama snuggle back into partner’s chest. From here, prompt them:

Both of you close your eyes and relax into each other, look out at the horizon together, look at each other, look at your belly. See if you can make each other laugh!

Challenge yourself to get this shot from different angles. Change the hand positions for more intimate images. There is a lot you can capture from this one pose using very slight variations.

Posing Idea: Belly Close ups

Close up shots of mama’s belly can be done in many ways. From above looking down, from the side when they are nose to nose, or from the front when partner is hugging from behind. Incorporating some nature from the season is a great way to highlight a bump shot here. I also like to get a pull back shot of this moment and capture Mama facing the camera.

Couples Maternity Posing Tip: Seat your Couple

When we have dry ground, I love doing some seated poses if Mama is comfortable enough to get down to the ground. I start with partner sitting on the ground spreading his legs open. I tell Mama to get right in there and use partner as a chair! I also like to shift this position and capture the couple seated side by side with mama leaning into her partner. After a few shots, remove the partner and get mama alone. While she is on the ground, I also like to transition into kneeling poses, which show the lines of the pregnant body beautifully.

Couples Pregnancy Posing Tip: Capture Intimate Moments

I suggest capturing these images towards the end of the session when your clients are relaxed and comfortable. I love capturing romance and intimate moments during a couples maternity session. Have your couple snuggle in close. The partner can kiss Mama’s shoulder, play with her hair, whisper in her ear…anything that elicits emotion, romance and connection.

Maternity Photographer Posing Tip: Capture Artistic and Unique Heirloom Images

At the end of the session after you have finished capturing all of the posed images, it is time to experiment with some artistic captures. The first artistic image I love to capture is the silhouette image, you need a little elevation so that you can get your camera really low to the ground and shoot up towards the sky.

I also love to capture some images in which I am pushing the clients way up into the sky to get those gorgeous clouds. To do so, I will usually get down really low and shoot up.

Are you ready to cozy up with your partner for a maternity session? Contact me today for more info.