Give me your prom-related photography tips
April 1, 2015 7:41 AM Subscribe
This weekend I'll be the photographer at a small high school prom dance, but I've never shot photos in this setting. What tips do you have for the technical aspect, and the social side of getting kids to pose and liven up for better photos?
My wife is a teacher at a small high school, and she's one of the class advisers for the junior class, who are in charge of setting up their prom. The kids delayed in making decisions, and overspent on their budget, so my wife asked if I would be the photographer. I agreed, but last time I went with her to photograph her students at a dance, I felt awkward and had a terrible time of getting the kids to smile and relax. I'm terrible at small talk in general, so I'll be asking my wife to cajole them into loosening up and smiling for a moment, but she also has to chaperone and may be off supervising her students.
I'll be bringing my Nikon D3100 with its stock 18-55mm lens, but I'm mostly an idiot about cameras and keep it in P&S mode. I also have two manual lenses, a 28-80mm and a 70-300mm, but I'm not great at getting the focus perfect with those, and I have a folding reflector and a decent tripod, but nothing beyond the stock in-body flash, and I don't know what the lighting will be like there.
I've been reading up on my camera, and I'll be doing some test shots these next days, but I appreciate any ideas and tips from folks who have dealt with similar situations, both technical and social.
My wife is a teacher at a small high school, and she's one of the class advisers for the junior class, who are in charge of setting up their prom. The kids delayed in making decisions, and overspent on their budget, so my wife asked if I would be the photographer. I agreed, but last time I went with her to photograph her students at a dance, I felt awkward and had a terrible time of getting the kids to smile and relax. I'm terrible at small talk in general, so I'll be asking my wife to cajole them into loosening up and smiling for a moment, but she also has to chaperone and may be off supervising her students.
I'll be bringing my Nikon D3100 with its stock 18-55mm lens, but I'm mostly an idiot about cameras and keep it in P&S mode. I also have two manual lenses, a 28-80mm and a 70-300mm, but I'm not great at getting the focus perfect with those, and I have a folding reflector and a decent tripod, but nothing beyond the stock in-body flash, and I don't know what the lighting will be like there.
I've been reading up on my camera, and I'll be doing some test shots these next days, but I appreciate any ideas and tips from folks who have dealt with similar situations, both technical and social.
Response by poster: I hadn't thought about photographing the dance, to be honest. I believe the plan was for me to be the portrait photographer, but I appreciate your comments on photographing the dancing, as I could do that, too. There aren't so many kids that I need to be taking portraits the whole time.
posted by filthy light thief at 8:33 AM on April 1, 2015
posted by filthy light thief at 8:33 AM on April 1, 2015
In that case, I suggest you ask an experienced photographer in your circle to do you a big favor.
If that's not an option, 75% of this is preparation. You'll be more confident in your approach with the kids if you're confident in expectations. You've said you've photographed them before--ask yourself if you/they were pretty happy with your photos or if you're intending to kick it up a notch. Are the kids getting prints of these photos as mementos?
What would make life easier is if you have a background and lights set up in one area and the kids come to you. It allows you to control your environment. Make sure you know if that's that they're expecting. They shouldn't be but it's good to know.
If not, it would be helpful to go to the venue a few days prior around the time of the event to scout out locations where you can set up and get an idea of the lighting.
I know it may be a lot to think about but shooting formal evening events at dark venues is a pretty tough job. It's hard to give specific advice without knowing some of the details. Either way, though, I suggest you visit the venue itself. You'll know what to expect, which will relax you, which will show when you're taking photos.
posted by girlmightlive at 9:26 AM on April 1, 2015 [1 favorite]
If that's not an option, 75% of this is preparation. You'll be more confident in your approach with the kids if you're confident in expectations. You've said you've photographed them before--ask yourself if you/they were pretty happy with your photos or if you're intending to kick it up a notch. Are the kids getting prints of these photos as mementos?
What would make life easier is if you have a background and lights set up in one area and the kids come to you. It allows you to control your environment. Make sure you know if that's that they're expecting. They shouldn't be but it's good to know.
If not, it would be helpful to go to the venue a few days prior around the time of the event to scout out locations where you can set up and get an idea of the lighting.
I know it may be a lot to think about but shooting formal evening events at dark venues is a pretty tough job. It's hard to give specific advice without knowing some of the details. Either way, though, I suggest you visit the venue itself. You'll know what to expect, which will relax you, which will show when you're taking photos.
posted by girlmightlive at 9:26 AM on April 1, 2015 [1 favorite]
Ask your wife to set you up in a separate room so that you can control the lighting and the distractions. Go ahead and pick up a few props. Silly mustaches, fedoras, goofy hats, giant lolly pops- kids like props. Allow them to pose themselves for the first shot and then get the formal pose for the second shot.
Teenage girls are either really vain or super insecure, and it can change from minute to minute. If you can get a female teacher to sit in there with you to help with last minute touch ups, that would be incredible. Have a mirror handy so the girls can primp before the shot.
posted by myselfasme at 9:33 AM on April 1, 2015 [1 favorite]
Teenage girls are either really vain or super insecure, and it can change from minute to minute. If you can get a female teacher to sit in there with you to help with last minute touch ups, that would be incredible. Have a mirror handy so the girls can primp before the shot.
posted by myselfasme at 9:33 AM on April 1, 2015 [1 favorite]
I'd worry mostly about lighting and backdrop and such...prom pictures are always awkward!
posted by radioamy at 9:49 AM on April 1, 2015
posted by radioamy at 9:49 AM on April 1, 2015
Don't assume that people with dates are interested in each other romantically. I had several awkward high-school dance portrait sessions with photographers (actually, I think it was the same photographer) who was weirdly clueless about the possibility of mixed-gender platonic relationships.
posted by jaguar at 9:51 AM on April 1, 2015 [3 favorites]
posted by jaguar at 9:51 AM on April 1, 2015 [3 favorites]
Allow for groups when setting up: plenty of kids go as a herd, and may want to all be in one shot. It would be pretty sad if the ragged edges of your two-person backdrop were visible! :7)
You will be nervous, no doubt, but also do a creditable job. Don't worry! You'll be awesome!
posted by wenestvedt at 10:31 AM on April 1, 2015
You will be nervous, no doubt, but also do a creditable job. Don't worry! You'll be awesome!
posted by wenestvedt at 10:31 AM on April 1, 2015
WRT to props or informal shots: let them be funny but don't you be the goofy one, or all you will capture are the whites of their rolling eyes.
posted by wenestvedt at 10:32 AM on April 1, 2015
posted by wenestvedt at 10:32 AM on April 1, 2015
The tips on this page look really useful!
http://www.slrlounge.com/prom-season-tips-for-posing-photographing-teen-couples/
I don't shoot proms but I shoot a lot of people at events, weddings and awards ceremonies and I've learnt that people photography is probably only 20% about photography and 80% about people. Making people comfortable is absolutely key! Be warm and gentle, make lots of encouraging noises. Compliment, dresses, hair, shoes, suits whatever.... I'll do absolutely whatever it takes to get people as relaxed as possible. I sometimes get all ridiculously Austin Powers "Yeah baby! This is HOT!". I'm sometimes very very soft. Sometimes, just very muted and professional. It all depends on the subject and what I feel will get the best out of them.
You really want peoples faces to look really unposed and getting that can be quite a skill. Some people just relax into straight away but for those that don't I'll sometimes ask them to give me a whole range of emotions... "Look as serious as you can", "Look as happy as you can" "Tell me a funny story about your class teacher with your eyes". I might go through loads of these really fast just to get to the point where I'll say "And relax..." and hopefully they'll just look like themselves rather than somebody being posed for a photo. Someone great once said they're looking for the expressions inbetween expressions when they're taking portraits and I think there's a lot of truth in that.
Something I do quite a lot is I'll place the subjects where I want them and then turn my back saying something like "Right! I'm gonna count to ten and when I turn round I want you guys arranged into the best promo photo ever." It actually works really well a lot of the time. You'll probably find that the kids are pretty media savvy! Once you've got your straight shots invite them to do whatever they want; Bond, catalogue poses, super heros, gangsta rap, boyband, metal, blue steel, whatever floats their boat. I'll sometimes say something like "ok those shots were cool but I want us to WIN the prom photo. The last couple were pretty great but I think you guys are better... Give me your best!" It should be lots of fun. Switch your camera to live view and get them to do a selfie where you can arrange make sure that everyone is in shot Make them feel like you and them are a team! Be yourself.
Practically you should really check out the location first and pick your spot. Take your wife as a test and do some shots! Shooting outdoors can be way easier than having to shoot indoors and deal with lighting issues. Shade and cloud are your friend! You want to avoid harsh lights on faces. Watch out for distracting backgrounds. If you have to shoot indoors you'll probably want to light it and I appreciate this can be hard. This article explains a really standard 2 light setup. If you can get the school theatre department to provide a couple of lights and stands that could be a lot easier than fighting with remote flash for the first time.... It could be a cool vibe in a bit of a film set way as well. Strobist.com will have some excellent advice as well.
Have lots of batteries and spare cards!
Be sure to manage expectations via your wife. Best of luck!
posted by Mr Ed at 5:58 AM on April 2, 2015
http://www.slrlounge.com/prom-season-tips-for-posing-photographing-teen-couples/
I don't shoot proms but I shoot a lot of people at events, weddings and awards ceremonies and I've learnt that people photography is probably only 20% about photography and 80% about people. Making people comfortable is absolutely key! Be warm and gentle, make lots of encouraging noises. Compliment, dresses, hair, shoes, suits whatever.... I'll do absolutely whatever it takes to get people as relaxed as possible. I sometimes get all ridiculously Austin Powers "Yeah baby! This is HOT!". I'm sometimes very very soft. Sometimes, just very muted and professional. It all depends on the subject and what I feel will get the best out of them.
You really want peoples faces to look really unposed and getting that can be quite a skill. Some people just relax into straight away but for those that don't I'll sometimes ask them to give me a whole range of emotions... "Look as serious as you can", "Look as happy as you can" "Tell me a funny story about your class teacher with your eyes". I might go through loads of these really fast just to get to the point where I'll say "And relax..." and hopefully they'll just look like themselves rather than somebody being posed for a photo. Someone great once said they're looking for the expressions inbetween expressions when they're taking portraits and I think there's a lot of truth in that.
Something I do quite a lot is I'll place the subjects where I want them and then turn my back saying something like "Right! I'm gonna count to ten and when I turn round I want you guys arranged into the best promo photo ever." It actually works really well a lot of the time. You'll probably find that the kids are pretty media savvy! Once you've got your straight shots invite them to do whatever they want; Bond, catalogue poses, super heros, gangsta rap, boyband, metal, blue steel, whatever floats their boat. I'll sometimes say something like "ok those shots were cool but I want us to WIN the prom photo. The last couple were pretty great but I think you guys are better... Give me your best!" It should be lots of fun. Switch your camera to live view and get them to do a selfie where you can arrange make sure that everyone is in shot Make them feel like you and them are a team! Be yourself.
Practically you should really check out the location first and pick your spot. Take your wife as a test and do some shots! Shooting outdoors can be way easier than having to shoot indoors and deal with lighting issues. Shade and cloud are your friend! You want to avoid harsh lights on faces. Watch out for distracting backgrounds. If you have to shoot indoors you'll probably want to light it and I appreciate this can be hard. This article explains a really standard 2 light setup. If you can get the school theatre department to provide a couple of lights and stands that could be a lot easier than fighting with remote flash for the first time.... It could be a cool vibe in a bit of a film set way as well. Strobist.com will have some excellent advice as well.
Have lots of batteries and spare cards!
Be sure to manage expectations via your wife. Best of luck!
posted by Mr Ed at 5:58 AM on April 2, 2015
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If you're photographing the dance, the best photos at these types of things are when the photographer is as unnoticed as possible. Leave the tripod and reflector in the car. Photograph the kids dancing and interacting with each other. You really don't need to spend more than 15 seconds talking to them, don't worry about making small talk. People are used to being photographed these days, if you need posed photos, walk up to a couple, say, "hey, can I get a photo?" take a few frames and you're done.
I hope for your sake this is a prom with dancing, a DJ and lights. That'll make your job much easier. I once photographed a prom with no dancing, no music, just a formal dinner in the world's darkest banquet hall, and it was incredibly difficult. You should find out the venue for this event, and if you're concerned, visit it a couple days before the prom so you're not caught off-guard.
If you're photographing the portraits, that's a whole other kettle of fish.
posted by girlmightlive at 8:09 AM on April 1, 2015 [1 favorite]