The Best of Wedding Photography.pdf - Free

shaped or inverted triangle composition, both of which are
pleasing to the eye. Don’t simply adjust the height of the
faces so that each is at a different level; turn the shoulders
of those at either end of the group in toward the central
person as a means of looping the group together.
Once you add a third person, you will notice the interplay
of lines and shapes inherent in group design. As an
exercise, mentally plot the implied line that goes through
the shoulders or faces of the three people in the group. If
the line is sharp or jagged, try adjusting the composition
so that the line is more flowing, with gentler edges.
Try different configurations. For example, create a diagonal
line with the faces at different heights and all the
people in the group touching. It’s a simple yet pleasing
design. The graphic power of a well-defined diagonal line
in a composition will compel the viewer to keep looking at
the image. Adjust the group by having those at the ends of
the diagonal tilt their heads slightly in toward the center of
the composition.
Try a bird’s-eye view. Cluster the group together, grab
a stepladder or other high vantage point, and you’ve got a
lovely variation on the three-person group. It’s what photographer
Norman Phillips calls “a
bouquet.” For a simple variation, have
the people turn their backs to each
other, so they are all facing out of the
triangle.
Adding a Fourth and Fifth Person.
This is when things really get interesting.
As you photograph more
group portraits, you will find that even
numbers of people are harder to pose
than odd. Three, five, seven, or nine
people seem much easier to photograph
than similarly sized groups of an
even number. The reason is that the
eye and brain tend to accept the disorder
of odd-numbered objects more
readily than even-numbered objects.
Ken Sklute is a master at large wedding
groups. Here he has used two arm chairs and a
lovely garden to create this elegant group portrait.
Notice that the posing is impeccable—
shoulders turned away from the lens axis,
hands either hidden or well posed, nice expressions,
and great lighting.
As you add more people to a group, remember to do
everything you can to keep the film plane parallel to the
plane of the group’s faces in order to ensure that everyone
in the photograph is sharply focused.
With four people, you can simply add a person to the
existing poses of three described above—with the following
advice in mind. First, be sure to keep the eye height of
the fourth person different from any of the others in the
group. Second, be aware that you are now forming shapes
within your composition. Think in terms of pyramids, extended
triangles, diamonds, and curved lines. Finally, be
aware of lines, shapes, and direction as you build your
groups.
An excellent pose for four people is the sweeping curve
of three people with the fourth person added below and
between the first and second person in the group.
The fourth person can also be positioned slightly outside
the group for accent, without necessarily disrupting
the harmony of the rest of the group.
When Monte Zucker has to pose four people, he sometimes
prefers to play off of the symmetry of the even number
of people. He’ll break the rules and he’ll seat two and
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