Bing! A text comes in from my friend and colleague, Cathy Broderick. “Hey, Nanc, wanna photograph my crazy family of 19 people on the beach in the middle of busy season near a holiday weekend?” Followed by a bunch of laughing emoji. My response. “Sure, why not, I love shooting myself in the foot, too!” “Well, since it’s YOU, alright. But you all better behave!” And that’s how it all began.
I’ve been photographing families (which I LOVE to do) for over 40 years. The bigger they are, the more challenging they are and the more I love it! BUT, photographing an extended family on the beach, in the middle of vacation season, near a holiday weekend puts the difficulty to another level. Oh, and did I mention it was forecast to rain? Yup, and it did. I find we work our best when under the most challenging times. We stay focused and our creative minds start to produce magic from deep within.
I used a VERY helpful assistant (photographer, Susan Asaro) and very simple equipment. Nikon D800 with a 24-70mm Nikon lens at 44mm set at ISO 250, f 7.1 at 1/200s. For the supplemental light, I used a ProFoto B10 (I now use the B10 plus) with a silver 36in umbrella. The light was soft at the beach since it was overcast and about to rain. The supplemental light should equal the existing light and match the softness of the environment giving just enough light to reduce shadows and give a little boost in the eyes.
Posing a family this size takes time and it helps to pre-design the group before you arrive. Get all the individual family details like how many in each family unit and the ages of the children. Are there any special details I must be aware of like wheelchairs, walkers, light sensitivity? I love to use “Ed Pedi Rocks” in my posing as they are so natural looking, and the sizes are perfect to work with. I also like to work with very rustic folding wooden chairs turned away from the camera as they give the person a place to rest an arm and to have another lean up against.
I start my posing with the “Originals” (my word for the parent(s)). I place them in the middle either standing or sitting as it’s needed for the individual. I then place the individual family units on either side of them depending on how many in that unit. Adults first then I add their children. Largest children are placed first and the smaller children (I call them the fillers) are placed to fill gaps and are usually strategically placed to hide waistlines of some.
I’m so grateful to Cathy for getting her family to wear the perfect color combination. It’s amazing they all listened to her. With all the elements coming together as well as they did, we created a fantastic family portrait which was recognized in Professional Photographers Association of Massachusetts as Best Family Portrait and received Image Excellence in PPA.
