How to pose with tween/teen Girls | Family photo ideas with older girls | Bay Area Family Photographer
Family Photos with Teen/Tween Girls
Photographing teen and tween girls is a great way to boost the self image of young ladies. In these photos, they’ll be surrounded by the people who love them most in the whole world! These crucial “in-between” years between childhood and young adulthood, are a beautiful stage of transition that deserves to be captured.
Photographing teen and tween girls presents a unique dynamic during any family portrait session. Young ladies at a certain age are too big for some of the “silly” games or family arrangements many photographers use; but they still need guidance and support and might even feel awkward in front of the camera.
In this blog post I hope to give families and photographers alike some helpful guidelines for posing with teen and tween young ladies. These photo ideas are helpful for whole family photoshoots or small mother-daughter sessions. All the girls in these photos range from about 10-15 years old.
This is our first arrangement of seated, posed options. These are considered “posed” arrangements because the subjects are smiling and looking directly at the camera. I recommend taking several of these classic, more formal shots. These are timeless and all subjects are familiar with how to nail this type of shot.
Strive to capture as much posing variety as possible. Sometimes the mother and daughter are leaning towards each other; sometimes the daughter is leaning up against her mother, and I even did one photo back-to-back. I try to photograph as many arrangements as possible so my clients have plenty of choices to select from in their final gallery!
These photos embody another classic, styled arrangement while standing up, with all subjects looking directly at the camera. In these groupings, the key is have the ladies bring their heads close together, and touch or embrace in some way. Holding forearms, arms wrapped around each other, and holding hands are a great way to capture connection.
This gallery of standing poses starts to capture a more modern, unposed, authentic vibe. These photos showcase the subject’s personalities and unique relationships. Capturing photos like this is a matter of taking a lot of photos, because there is candid movement happening here, and often people are talking as well. To create these moments, I will give my clients very simple, easy-to-follow cues, like: “okay, give each other a hug! Look at each other and smile :) Give your daughter a kiss on the forehead.” These are easy and simple cues and all families know them well.
These photos are examples of seated, candid moments. In my opinion, these photos can be the hardest to create, simply for the logistical reasoning of figuring out how to arrange everyone in a seated position, such as on a blanket. Don’t over think it; invite everyone to be as comfortable and natural as possible, and then try to get your subjects’ faces as close to each other. I will sometimes simply tell my clients when I’m photographing them, “snuggle up close!” and capture whatever organic interactions unfold from there. If you are being photographed here: try not to be too stiff and don’t be afraid to move or adjust if you feel uncomfortable.
Last but definitely not least, make sure to capture these young ladies on their own! Solo portraits are so important. There are many guides available online to learn how to pose individual subjects, so I have not included too many examples here. These solo portraits can be posed photos, seated or standing, or they can be more candid photos of the subject interacting with nature, playing, dancing, laughing, laying in the grass—be creative!
Want more information about posing subjects for your photos?
The most important thing to consider when researching photography poses is who your subject is and what you hope to communicate with your photography. Whether you’re photographing headshots, branding sessions, seniors, or preteens, there are some helpful fundamental rules it’s important to know! Here are more helpful Photography poses to learn for portrait photography.
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