Click Magazine (September/October 2017)

The popularity of natural lifestyle portrait photography is stronger now than ever, yet the means by which a photographer is expected to capture that authenticity seems up for debate.

Does creating honest portraiture require an artist to adhere to a photojournalist’s unvarnished impartiality? Our answer is a big no.

Yes, your clients depend on you to capture who they really are and what they mean to one another. But in many cases, they want you to deliver the highlight reel: those color-coordinated, joyful days that happen in beautiful light. The reality, of course, is kids will still be (shy, cranky, or free-spirited) kids, the sun doesn’t always cooperate, and your clients may be neither professional models nor stylists.

So this issue we present “The New Natural” — the essential tools photographers employ to capture a family (with a toddler, a tween, an expectant mother, a couple) at their very best, on the day they’re scheduled, no matter the clouds — all with genuine connection and natural ease. We’ve curated insider tips from 18 of the most accomplished photographers, stylists and music pros who’ve come together to share people skills, session choreography, posing prompts, artificial lighting tips, musical cues, hair, makeup and styling advice, and more.

A photographer has to be able to control, guide, cajole, flirt, jolly, distract, enchant, seduce, bolster, manage and adore the person who has stepped in front of her lens. She must transport even the most self-conscious subjects to that warm, safe space where their real, best selves can emerge. You can unearth the organic moments and natural radiance waiting to be captured — these are your beautiful stories to tell of real people and real families.