Eye Contact and Expression

I decided to use a recently engaged couple to practise this exercise on eye contact and expression. I felt that I could learn a lot from not only their interaction with the camera but also with each other.

The first image is one of the first shots of the session. Deciding to start with looking away from the camera to ease them into the shoot, I asked them to look up towards the trees. I realised straight away that my directing skills would need some tweaking as the shot resulted in Kat looking to the side and Chris looking directly upwards. Errors aside, I like this shot. It amuses me.

A silly shot while we composed ourselves and the couple started to relax. Kat’s direct gaze draws the viewer into the shot; while Chris is also pulling a funny face, he doesn’t draw the viewer in due to the lack of eye contact. As a result, the shot feels unbalanced.

If this practised, that’s because it is. I can take no credit as a director for the shot, this couple have a million selfies and photographs using the same facial expression and slight tilt of the heads. Knowing them well, I thought I’d take advantage of their perfected pose.

Moving onto a new location with the lines of the garage door leading towards the couple, I asked them to look at each other. I felt that this, along with their body language created a romantic image.

A similar pose but looking into the distance gave a dreamy feel. The couple now looking in the same direction, this has the effect of making them appear more united.

In between requested poses, I like to take snaps of people whilst relaxed. This gives a more natural, candid shot, which would be difficult to pull off intentionally.

Another candid moment, the couple noticed someone watching the shoot from a nearby window. Although this image is too much of a snapshot to make it into an engagement album, for the couple, it does capture a memory.

Although the couple are again facing in different directions, I don’t feel that this image seems disjointed. Chris is standing behind Kat and is less well lit which could literally have pushed him into the shadows. The direct eye contact on his part draws the focus back towards him, creating a more balanced image. Their expressions are similarly dreamy which aids the close body language in joining them as a couple.

Although separated physically, the mirrored body language and facial expressions unite the couple.

The leading eye lines from Kat to Chris and then to camera create a lot of fun and movement in this image. It is clear that the couple now feel totally relaxed and this shows in their expressions.

I'm glad that I used a couple for this project; I have learned a lot about portraying relationships using eye contact as well as facial expression. I have also learned different ways to ensure both people have equal weight in an image, which was a welcome and unexpected lesson.