Photography Concentrate

Alrighty! Last time on Stress Free Posing we went through some standing poses for a couple, now let’s take a peek at some easy ways to create natural sitting poses.

The basic idea here is the same: start with one option, then make small changes to the way they’re sitting, looking at each other, and holding each other. Excellent variety + minimal work = maximum fun.

Let’s discuss a couple quick points about sitting before we dive in.

First off, sitting a great equalizer, height wise. It brings both heads to roughly the same level, allowing for more interaction. If you have a really tall guy, and a much shorter gal, sitting poses are going to be your go-to option. 

It can also be very flattering when you shoot your subjects from a slightly elevated position (it lengthens out the neck, gets rid of double chins, and opens the eyes up a bit more). This is super easy to do when your couple is sitting, so take advantage of that. 

Finally, if you’re going to be sitting in a field, or working with a bride, bring something to sit on. A small blanket works well, as you can hid it if you don’t want it to be in the photo. Or, if you use a Shootsac, just pull off the cover with a flourish and let them sit on that—you get awesome points when you do that. 

Now let’s look at some sitting poses! 

First off, nice and simple, sitting side by side on something—a ledge, bench, steps or anything on which you can plant your bum. This is easier to pose than sitting on the ground, since their legs automatically bend and look natural. Tips here are to make sure they have their heads nice and close, and are connected with their hands. Those little details are what make them look like they like each other.

Now we can change it up by adjusting how their bodies are facing. She can turn in towards him. This offers a great angle for them to look at each other.

Or she can turn her back towards him. This lets him snuggle in tight, and get some smooches in. 

In the previous image he is a bit behind her. Have them switch it up, and have her sitting a bit behind him. They don’t even have to get up—just swing their legs around. This lets her snuggle in to him now. 

Here’s a neat thing about sitting poses. You don’t have to show the feet! You can get in tight, from torso upwards, or even just their faces, and get even more variety. Change up your distance. The bonus is that, if they’re sitting, they’re comfy and it’s easy for them to hold the pose. You can walk around, getting tons of variety, while they’re just hanging out.

And you can amp up your variety by changing where they’re looking. At each other, both at the camera, her at him, him at her—you get the picture. 

She can really lean back into him and recline. Just make sure her legs are slightly bent, and looking lovely! 

Now I’m really going to shake things up. They can both sit on a chair (him on the seat and her on the arm is cute) or…wait for it…one can sit and one can stand! BAM! Now you have tons more opportunities, just like that!

And hey, who says it has to be chairs, benches or steps they’re sitting on? Sitting is such a great way to get your couple close and interacting, you should take advantage of anything they can sit on. Like couches…

Fallen trees… 

Gates…

Trucks…

Piles of tires…

Pretty much anything! Sitting changes up your level of posing, and offers extra opportunities for variety in your shoot. Take advantage of it whenever you can. Let’s keep going.

So far people have been sitting on things, and that’s pretty easy to work with. See, one of the big ideas in posing is to “break up joints”. Wherever a person can bend, have them bend. Straight legs are boring lines, whereas bent legs create triangles, which are way more interesting to look at. When people sit on things, their legs automatically bend, and it looks good.

However, things are a bit trickier when people sit on the ground. Their legs automatically go straight out in front of them, and that can look boring. So when you have your couple sitting on the ground, make sure to pose them so their legs bend.

For instance, crossing their legs.  

Or bringing knees up. Note that when she is leaning back into him like this, their bodies themselves are creating a triangle. Sitting side by side on the ground generally doesn’t give as much compositional interest as someone turned into the other.  

Like here, where her body is really turned in towards his. She can bring her arms around him, cross her ankles, and we get tons and tons of great triangles.

When sitting on the ground, you can also have each person slightly behind the other, which allows more opportunities for snuggles. It’s easy for him to get his arms around her like this. 

In the previous pose, his legs are off to the side. You can also have her sit right in between his legs, which really lets them get their heads nice and close, and is a great pose for big hugs, kisses, and both of them looking at the camera. 

She can also sit in his lap, which is super duper cute.  

They can sit back to back.  

And now I’m going to blow it wide open. Each of these poses have the possiblity of TONS of different shots when you take a  walk around them once they’re in position! BAM! Just gave you like a bazillion options for variety right there. 

Once again, posing can be nice and easy when you just get your couple in a comfy position, and then get them interacting. Make small adjustments as you go, change up your distance and angle, and you will have NO problem getting all the variety you want! Because remember, sitting is just one level. You can add in all the standing poses, and now you’re unstoppable!

Tips

• Change up where they look
• Change up where their bodies are facing (towards each other, her back towards him, vice versa)
• Change up who is in front and who is in back
• Change up how they hold each other (hugging, holding hands, arms on shoulder, arm around waist)
• Change your distance and angle
• Keep their heads close together
• Break up joints
• Add in smooches

Do you have any more tips for sitting poses? Share them in the comments below!

Further Reading

• Stress Free Posing: Standing Edition
• Stress Free Posing: Family Edition

About the Author:  Hey friend, I’m Lauren! I’m a professional photographer and head ninja here at Photography Concentrate. I’m downright obsessed with photography, and love sharing it with super cool folks like yourself. When I’m not shooting, or writing, you can find me cooking (and eating!), traveling, and hanging out with wonderful people.