Are your sessions getting boring or feeling stuck? There’s a reason for that! Here is why you should never have set poses for your sessions.

Watch my FREE BTS Posing of an Engagement Session HERE

When posing your clients, you should NEVER just have set poses for your sessions. Sure, it’s always good to have some general prompt ideas up your sleeve for your couples. But when it comes to the actual substance of the session and really diving deeper with your couples, you NEED to have more than just a memorized list of generic prompts that YOU think will be fun. 

I’ve created a unique and strategic posing approach with my couples and I am here to tell you all about it! Here’s why you shouldn’t have set poses with your clients. 

You NEED to Get to Know Your Clients

LIke I said, you shouldn’t just throw prompts at your clients that you think will fit their style. Think about this… Have you ever instructed a couple to do a specific prompt and kind of cringed because you just immediately knew it was uncomfortable for them and you? I know I have! I HAVE BEEN THERE DONE THAT… But that was back when I thought I should be a specific thing or give my clients specific prompts to fit in with the trends. YUCK.

I’ve changed my approach SO much since then, and let me tell ya…. I haven’t looked back and never will. This is about THEM, not you. So while you might have a specific style that they hired you for, it is your job to bring their relationship and personalities to life through their photos! 

Getting to know your couples is all done in the prep work. Make sure your workflow is set up in a strategic and educational way for your clients, that way you can not only form them into your ideal clients, but get to know them on a higher level. This will help you customize their sessions to really fit them and what they are wanting! If your workflow is set up correctly, then you already know what you need to know about your clients to craft their session once you meet them in person!

You Will Hit Burnout WAY Faster

Let’s talk about the burnout of it all.. Because YES if we don’t treat ourselves right, burnout is just inevitable. If you are repeating the same session over and over, you will reach a burnout WAY quicker than if you are truly CREATING every single time you pull your camera out. And if you’ve ever hit burn out toward the end of busy season because you have endless sessions that seem redundant, it’s time to switch it up!

If you are taking the time to CREATE at every single session and customize each session to the couple themselves, I promise you that you will enjoy it WAY more and prevent yourself from burning out. You’re probably thinking, but Rachel, how the heck do I do that?!

It’s all in your honeybook workflow beforehand, before the session, and before you even meet them in person! Your workflow should be a seamless + educational experience for your clients. It should also be helping you get the information you need to best craft their session and experience. 

I love to create a workflow that gets to know my couple on a personal level, while also educating them. So when it’s time to meet in person I know everything I need to know and can craft their session around THEM, not just what I think I should do. This is why every single session I do is completely different! Because I am taking the time to get to know them and craft their posing prompts around THEM. Make this change and you won’t hit burnout so fast!

It’s a Disservice to You and Your Couples

By doing the same old prompts with every couple, it does a disservice to yourself and your clients! First of all, you will get bored! Second of all, every couple is different, so treating them the same, you’re not providing a customized or special client experience. 

Let me just say that it’s TOTALLY okay to have a few of those base poses or prompts that you do with all couples, obviously. But when it comes to getting creative with prompts, you shouldn’t be using the same old ones with every couple.Take it from me, I did this and hit burn out so quick that year! So I made some changes and switched up how I approached posing couples. 

The way I approach my sessions now is that each is completely different and completely customized. This has made me SUPER excited for each session to go and CREATE vs. just showing up and getting brain block when I don’t know what to do. 

Not only will having set poses prevent you from creating a customized experience for your couple. But they might feel uncomfortable with some of the things they’re doing, and it will just run you to the ground with sessions. You don’t want that!

Remember this career is a marathon, not a sprint. PACE yourself… you do not want to hit burn out even faster than normal. It’s totally normal to hit some sort of burnout at times, but don’t let this be the reason why! SERVE your couples and make their experience priority. I have seen the biggest shift in my business when I implemented this strategy and I won’t go back!

Final Thoughts

To sum it all up, have your base posing you like to do! But base the prompts and posing around the couple. This will keep your sessions fun and unique, and bring in more of your ideal clients! Don’t get yourself stuck in a session or hit burnout faster than you need to. Make some changes and customize each session for your clients. 

I have set guides, templates, and questionnaires that I personally send my couples to ensure I am able to do this with every single couple. So take the time to create a successful workflow and this will make it so much easier to craft each session. Skip those set poses and create a unforgettable experience for each and every client!

Check out my Gold Biz Podcast episodes here!

Watch my FREE BTS Posing of an Engagement Session HERE