As wedding photography continues to evolve, less emphasis is being placed on traditional, formal poses and more emphasis is being placed on lifestyle, organic imagery.  Many of today’s couples want to capture their personalities, their interactions, and their playful side in their wedding and engagement photos. As a wedding photographer, it’s important to understand this trend and help your clients create joyful and fun images that will last a lifetime. In this article, we will provide tips for adding humor to your couples photoshoots and explore some fully couple poses.

Understand the Couple’s Personalities

Before the shoot, it’s important to get to know the couple and their personalities. This can help you create poses that are unique to them and that reflect their sense of humor. Take some time to chat with them about their relationship, their likes and dislikes, and any funny or memorable moments they’ve shared.

As you talk with them, observe their body language and expressions. Are they playful, silly, or more reserved? What type of humor do they appreciate? Do they like physical comedy, puns, or witty banter? These cues can help you identify the type of funny poses that will work best for them.

Use their moodboard to understand their vision

For example, if they enjoy physical humor, you might suggest poses that involve lifting or carrying each other in a playful way. If they appreciate puns or wordplay, you could suggest a pose that incorporates a fun prop, like a sign or a chalkboard, with a humorous message written on it.

book Engagement Photo idea

You can also get creative with the couple’s poses by incorporating their hobbies or interests into the shoot. For example, if they are into sports, you could suggest a pose that involves a playful game of catch or a friendly wrestling match. If they are music lovers, you could suggest a pose that involves a fun singalong or a playful dance.

By understanding the couple’s personality, you can create poses that are not only fun and playful but that also reflect who they are as a couple. This will make the images more meaningful to them and will help them remember the joy and humor of their wedding day.

Bring in Props and Other Interactive Elements

Props and Location Location and props can add to the humor and joy in engagement and wedding photography. Select and use props that fit the couple’s personality. Incorporate the location into the pose and story.

Star Wars Engagement Photo idea

kickboxing Engagement Photo idea

Real World Example

Approach the scene with the mindset that you’re there to bring out their vision and personalities in their photos. With these frame shots, we chose to make them more fun and interesting rather than just have them stand there and “pose” through a frame. Sometimes we’ll start this shot with a funny look countdown, where we basically count down from 10-1 and instruct them to give me a different expression every number.

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Another thing to look out for is the in between laughing shots. Every single time we do this count down, the couple will burst out in laughter. You want to make sure you capture these hilarious candid moments.

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Play Dress up with Something Fun

funny couple poses

Playing dress up with something fun is a great way to get funny couples poses. This can involve wearing costumes or dressing up in funny outfits that are relevant to the couple’s interests or hobbies. For example, a couple who loves superheroes could dress up as their favorite characters and strike funny poses that mimic their superpowers. Or, a couple who loves music could dress up as rock stars and pose with guitars or microphones. The key is to have fun and be creative with the outfits and poses. This can lead to natural and spontaneous moments of laughter and playfulness, resulting in fun and memorable photographs.

Use Posing Cues to Bring Out laughter

funny couples poses

Posing cues can be a great way to bring out laughter and joy in your couple poses. By giving your subjects specific instructions or cues, you can encourage them to interact with each other in a more playful and natural way. For example, you could ask the couple to tickle each other, whisper something funny in each other’s ear, or playfully nudge each other. These cues can help the couple feel more relaxed and spontaneous, and can lead to genuine moments of laughter and connection that will make for truly memorable images.

Create Opportunities for Fun

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Getting your subjects in poses that are tastefully outside of their comfort zone can lead to funny couple poses.  This can involve trying poses that are unexpected or unconventional, or that require the couple to take on a different role or persona.

For example, you could suggest a pose where the couple pretends to be models or actors, striking dramatic or silly poses. You could also ask the couple to mimic a famous movie scene or do a silly dance together. These poses are not only fun and playful, but they can also help the couple feel more confident and adventurous.

Of course, it’s important to ensure that any poses you suggest are tasteful and appropriate for the couple and their wedding day. You should also be aware of any physical limitations or discomfort that the couple may have, and be willing to adjust the pose or find an alternative if needed.  By taking a playful and adventurous approach to posing, you can help your clients feel more relaxed, spontaneous, and connected, resulting in images that truly capture their unique personalities and love for each other.

Conclusion

In conclusion, adding humor to couple poses can make for a more lighthearted and memorable wedding and engagement photos. By understanding the couple’s personality, using creative and easy-to-do poses, creating a story, selecting the right props and location, and encouraging natural laughter and playfulness in the couple, wedding photographers can create images that capture the unique essence of each couple. smile for years to come.  For more inspiration, see our Engagement Photo Ideas article.