I love working with couples who are just bouncing off each other with humour and laughter. But when your clients feel a bit awkward, or aren’t sure how to pose, or just haven’t relaxed into the shoot yet, these comedic prompts will help break the ice and loosen everyone up.
Get comedic: prompts for couples to keep everyone laughing
These prompts are great for capturing connection, physically and emotionally, and candid smiles. Plus, it helps everyone relax and have a good time. As Maya Angelou said: “People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”
How to use this photo pose prompt
The goal here is to get the couple laughing, ideally at each other. Have them snuggle up: you want constant connection with bodies and hands touching (e.g. holding hands facing each other, side by side, arms wrapped around each other, one leaning against the other). Change positions as you work: don’t put the couple in a single pose and rattle off all the prompts. Use the prompts one at a time (e.g. at different locations).
Prompt: Get comedic
- Ask one to tell an embarrassing story about their partner, and vice versa.
- Tell one: in your sexiest voice, whisper into your partner’s ear as many animal names as you can think of. Use breakfast cereals, household chores, etc.
- Have them stare into each other’s eyes and guess the body part the other is picturing.
- Have one deliver their best pickup line to the other, then swap and deliver their worst pickup line.
- Ask one to close their eyes. Have the other use their nose to draw something on their cheek. Then guess what they drew.
- Ask them to think of an animal and get the other to guess what you are… but you can only move your eyes and mouth, no sounds or hand gestures.
- Quickly describe a ludicrous scenario that you want them to act out: the bride’s an alien who’s just invaded Earth, and the groom’s been sent to make first contact and convince her not to destroy Earth. Shout “Ok, go! Go! Go!” at the end, and shoot as they panic and laugh.
- Ask the couple to give huge, exaggerated, totally fake laughs (demonstrate for them and really ham it up). Inevitably, they will collapse into real laughter and smiles after the fake laugh.
Creative extension
- Adapt the ideas to make them G-rated for kids: have a parent think of an animal and see if the child can stare into their eyes to guess what the parent is thinking, or have the child draw a picture with their nose on the parent’s cheek.
Tag @promptographerguide and use the hashtag #promptographerguide to share your favorite photos captured with this prompt.
Want this prompt in your Field Cards set?
All the info in this prompt post is summarized onto a single card in the Promptographer Guide Field Cards, with the details given in the accompanying Guidebook. All the ideas are given on the one card so you have a rich, comprehensive tool for sparking ideas. I’ve designed it this way so you only need five to ten cards to build a whole photoshoot.
If you want this prompt in your set, make sure you include Set 4: Energy Moments in your Field Cards.
