We get asked quite often “who takes your photos?”. A large misconception is that we hire a professional photographer that travels with us and takes all of our photos. As glamorous and as handy as that would be, that is simply not the case! We dream up concepts and take all of our pictures ourselves. Everything we know, we have learned through trial and error and we wish we had a guide like this when we first decided to take couple photos! Here is our top 5 tips for taking the perfect couple photos!
1. Invest In a Tripod
This is the most important step in our opinion. Our tripod is our third wheel and our mystery “photographer” that follows us around to take our photos. A tripod allows us to take photos with the two of us in the frame at the same time rather than just taking individual photos.
Your tripod will be your best friend so invest in one that is good quality but relatively cheap as it will likely need to be replaced every so often. When we are trying to get “the shot” we have to place our tripod in places it shouldn’t be like in the ocean, a lake or in mud.
We have linked the tripod we use Here!
2. Use An Intervalometer
What the heck is an intervalometer!? This little device plugs into our camera and allows us to take photos continuously, ie: a time-lapse. Once the device is turned on, we can set how many photos we want it to take in a certain period of time. This device is perfect for situations when we need to place our camera further away and the 10 second timer won’t suffice! This also allows us to be more relaxed and not have to worry about one of us running into the frame or holding a remote! Using an intervalometer also lets us try a variety of poses and get some candid shots as it is continuously taking photos.
You can also use the “Time-Lapse” setting on your camera if you have that option. Our camera has some issues with that function so we purchased the intervalometer and it works as an excellent substitute!
We have linked the intervalometer we use below!
Curious about our entire gear list? Check this out!
- What’s In Our Camera Bag
Our most frequently asked question is what is in our camera bag. This guide will provide you with a list of all the gear we use to take our photos!
3. Coordinate Outfits
This may sound silly but hear us out! When we are dreaming up a concept for a photo, we think of all the details: what location it will be in, our poses, and our outfits to ensure that we capture the exact concept that we had in our imagination. Coordinating our outfits makes for a more visually appealing photo. This means coordinating with each other, and also with your location.
Coordinating with each other is very easy. We always wear colors that compliment each other and do not clash. We typically like to choose neutrals like beige, white, grey, blue and black. Sometimes we will add a pop of color (Like the photo below). This also helps when we are packing for a backpacking trip and have limited space. Choosing neutrals allows us to build a variety of different outfits and coordinate the majority of the time.
We also like to keep in mind the location of our photo. As we do not want to blend in with the background or landscape!
4. Set Up the Perfect Shot
When we arrive at a location to shoot a photo, we typically have our poses and positioning of the camera in mind. This means that we have already decided how we want to frame our photo. A lot of factors go into making this decision.
We like our photos to be bright, fun and adventure oriented, so we choose locations that we feel fits this niche. We also need the two of us to be perfectly placed in the frame so that we are in focus. This involves setting up our tripod and camera in just the right spot and adjusting our camera settings accordingly. We like to typically shoot early in the morning before any harsh sunlight comes into play. It gives us the freedom to move our camera around more without having to worry so much about shadows and lighting.
There is also an advantage to shooting as a couple! Jake typically sends me out in the frame, adjusts the camera settings, asks me to move around until he feels we are in the right spot and then will set the up intervalometer and come into the frame!
5. Edit in Lightroom
Once we have taken our photos, we upload them and edit them with Lightroom before posting them to Instagram or our blog! This can be done on a desktop computer or on your phone. We typically edit with our desktop computer however the App on the phone works just as well! When we first began using Lightroom we purchased presets and exclusively used those. However, now that we have become more comfortable with the editing process and have developed our own editing style we created our own presets within Lightroom to allow for faster editing!
Final Thoughts
We by no means market ourselves as professional photographers, but just two people who feel in love and picked up a camera. We love to travel and to take photos. It just felt natural when we began taking couple photos as it allows us to hold onto some incredible memories! When we first began our journey, we did a lot of research and learning and we hope that you found this blog helpful so you can do the same. We can’t wait to see what you guys come up with!
Happy Travels 🙂
Jake + Kaylee
Before you go…
Make sure to pin this blog post so you can have a read again later! 🙂
