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any photographers have a difficult time learning how to pose group

portraits. The challenge, of course, is that you must apply all of the

techniques used to pose a single person—but on multiple subjects

and simultaneously. Additionally, you must ensure that the assembled group,

as a whole, looks both cohesive and appealing. A final consideration is that the

portrait must reflect the relationship between the

subjects—whether they are business partners,

members of a family, or school friends.

Determine Who Will Be in the Portrait.

The first question when posing a single person is

the end use for the portrait. The first question to

ask when photographing a group session is who

will be in the portrait. If your session invoice sim-

ply states that there will be two people meeting

you at the park, you don’t have much to go on.

They could be an older couple, folks who might

have a hard time getting into poses on location.

They could be sisters, in which case you would

want to show the closeness between them—but

that would be a different kind of closeness than

you’d want in a portrait of a young couple in

love. It would also be different than if you were

photographing a mother and baby. The individ-

uals in the portrait and their relationship will de-

termine how you pose them and at what height

or position (standing, sitting, or on the ground).

Clothing Selection.

The coordination of color and tone between the

subject and the scene, as well as between the peo-

GROUP PORTRAITS 99

8. Group Portraits.

A couple is the smallest and simplest group
to photograph.