The Professional Family Photography Academy

Private Coaching to Family Photography

Posing and Lighting

Shoot Like Christina


Master Christina’s Signature  Lighting and Posing for Beautifully Connected Family Portraits


Christina’s Signature Style

Christina's connected, candid family portraits were created through intentional posing, natural prompts, and beautiful light. In this private coaching, she'll share the techniques and client experience she has refined over more than 10 years as a family photographer.


Check out more of Christina's work at www.christina-photo.com.




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Without Thoughtful Posing and Beautiful Light, Even a Great Moment Can Fall Flat.



Do Any of These Feel Familiar?

  • You try to endlessly screenshot and memorize the poses on Pinterest but still feel the poses don't look right.


  • You feel anxious during a session because you aren't sure how to direct strangers.


  • You freak out when the kids aren't cooperating, and the time is running out.


  • You run out of posing ideas and feel mentally fatigue to keep generating new poses.


  • You struggle to get that "Light & Airy" look in your images, and not sure when and how to use a flash.


  • You panic when the lighting doesn't work, but you don't want the clients to see your anxiety?


  • You spend enormous amount of time in post-processing trying to fix an issue that could have been done instantly and correctly during the session?

  •  You always work with demanding clients who don't pay you for what you deserve.


Your Transformation

  • Look at the back of your camera and feel like shouting, “I’m the best!”—because the posing feels natural, every hand falls beautifully, your clients’ smiles are genuine, and the light is flattering.


  • Have an overwhelming sense of fulfillment in running a successful photography business, where you can also bless countless families.

  • The thrill of attracting quality clients who appreciate your expertise and pay you at a higher rate.

  • The relief of anxiety-free sessions, where you confidently direct your clients, knowing every pose will shine. 

  • Finally saying goodbye to endless editing demands and post-processing woes.

Mastering posing and lighting is the only way of attracting quality clients.

Meet Christina

Hey there! I'm Christina, and I'm so excited to meet you!


With over a decade of experience capturing beautiful moments as a kids and family photographer, I've discovered my true passion: photography & teaching. I thrive on breaking down complex photography concepts into easy-to-understand steps, making learning a breeze for my students.


I'm known for my cheerful attitude and the natural gift of empowering others. As the founder of Photosprouts in San Francisco, the city's top-rated photography education company, I'm dedicated to helping photographers unlock their creative potential.


When I'm not behind the camera or in the classroom, you can find me cuddling up with my furry friends (I'm a dog lover!), exploring new culinary delights, or sipping coffee in a cozy café while soaking up the sun.

With Christina's coaching,


you'll craft captivating images using efficient posing and lighting techniques, minimizing your time spent behind the computer screen AND

attracting your ideal clients who value your time and talents (which means they pay you well).


Through in-person 1-on-1 sessions and weekly Zoom meetings, you'll receive the guidance and support you need. 


You’ll also need to put in the time and effort to practice, let's work together to elevate both your skills and confidence to the next level.



Students' Transformation

Lessons Include

SEGMENT 1

THE POSING SYSTEM

  • 1. The Five Principles of Posing

    The poses have to make sense. 


    The 5 principles guide you to:

    • make everyone sharp and in-focus

    • make sure everyone has good and natural posture

    • convey the sense of togetherness in the family

  • 2. The Basic Posing Goals for Men and Women

    Learn the fundamentals of posing:


    • Female standing up and sitting down poses

    • Male standing up and sitting down poses

  • 3. The 4 Parents' Base Poses

    Learn  the 4 Parents' Base Poses and start with them:


    • Never run out of posing ideas when using this system.

    • Knowing exactly what pose to use when working with families with kids of different height levels and age differences.

    • Knowing what the problem is and how to fix it.

    • Teach daddy how to hold the toddler/ baby properly to enhance the overall posing of the family and flatter mom's body.

  • 4. Posing Kids and Siblings

    There are many ways to pose kids of different age and heights based on the 4 Base Poses you learned in the previous chapter.

    • Learn how I work with kids to build the trust and capture their authentic emotions in front of the camera.

    • Motivating your young clients

    • Posing siblings 

    • Individual portraits of kids


  • 5. Capturing Candid Shots

    • Candid shots do not happen naturally, the photographer needs to direct and guide the clients.

    • Use the 5 Seconds Rule to come up with many different variations and groupings and upsell your work.

  • 6. The Groupings

    Why do you need to have different groupings and how do they increase your sales?


    • The must-have shots and the optional ones. 

    • Manage your time wisely and maximize clients experience.

    • Poses for mom & kid(s)

    • Poses for dad & kid(s)

    • Couples

  • 7. The Workflow

    Have a Session Plan Sheet (and also takinga mental note of the flow) is extremely important not only because you don't want to miss out any shots, but also guide you through the session in case some unexpected incidents happened that took away the time.


    • My workflow: learn how I maximized my clients' experience in a 30-minutes Mini Family Session.

     

    • The Common Mistakes and how to avoid them


  • 8. The Behind The Scenes of Family Photo Sessions


SEGMENT 2

LIGHTING

  • 1. Four Types of Image Styles

    Lighting determines the look and vibe of the photos.


    While there are 4 main portrait styles, the first two are more suitable for Kids & Family Photography.


    In this course, you'll learn all the 4 styles but put more weight on #1 and #2.


    You should also choose either Style #1 and #2 and be consistent in your portfolio.



    1) Classical 

    -Dark background + Bright Subjects



    2) Light & Airy

    -Bright overall image + little shadows


    3) Dramatic


    4) Harsh Light


  • 2. How to Capture Classical Portraits?

    How to capture classical portraits?



    • When to shoot classical portraits?

    • How does the time of the day affect this style?

    • The location goals 

    • What time of the day to shoot?

    • Using natural light

    • Using natural + a flash

  • 3. How to Capture Light & Airy Portraits?

    • How to capture light & airy (L&A) portraits?


    • When to shoot L&A portraits?

    • How does the time of the day affect this style?

    • The location goals 

    • What time of the day to shoot?

    • Using natural light

    • Is a flash needed?

  • 4. Define Your Styles

    It is important to nail ONE STYLE and be consistent with it.


    • How do you find out which style is suitable for your photography?

    • What type clients will be attracted to me? 

    • What is the investment in the gears if I go for a certain style?

    • What other house-keeping stuff and pratical concerns for both type of styles?

  • 5. Maintaining consistency

    It is important to nail ONE STYLE and be consistent with it.


    • Why does consistency have to do with your brand image and revenue?

    • How to achieve consistency in your portfolio?


  • 6. How To Use An Off Camera Flash?

    Using an off-camera flash is easier than you think! In this chapter I'm going to walk you through all the techniques in using an off-camera flash.

  • 7. Knowing what is good, what is bad

    The problem for a lot of portrait photographers is, they can't tell what photo is bad vs good. For example, some tend to overexpose the sky, thinking that the image is "light and airy".


    This chapter will fully help the student develop artistic sense and avoid running into bad lighting situations.



  • 8. Location Scouting Examples


  • 9. Editing

    Editing workflow:


    • How not to spend too much time on editing?

    • Lightroom editing steps necessary to enhance your photography style

    • Face swapping in Photoshot

SEGMENT 3  

CLIENT EXPERIENCE MANAGEMENT

  • 1. Why do you need to send your clients a Style Guide?

    • Why do you need to send your clients a Style Guide?

    • Images of client who didn't wear what you wanted can't go to your portfolio. 

    • You are wasting your time doing numeous free or cheap photoshoots that won't elevate your portfolio with clients who have no idea how to dress up.


  • 2. How to create a Style Guide in just 30 minutes?

    The secret is to use my template!

  • 3. Build or refine your website

    Build a website that


    • will increase your SEO

    • is easy for your clients to contact and book you

    • is well organized

    • allows you to make changes easily

    • Session reminder email

    • Sending the gallery 

    • Upselling additional photos without a sales pitch


  • 4. Getting reviews

    • Don't do Yelp

    • Get your reviews on Google

  • 5. Portfolio Building

    We are going to decide together which image(s) should go to your website portfolio and which don't.



    If you haven't got a website or a domain, I'll walk you through how to purchase one on Godaddy and manage your website on Duda or Wix.




  • 6. Crafting your emails

    This chapter includes:


    • How to respond to inquiries

    • Following up on an inquiry

    • Sending a contrast and invoice

    • Session info email (detailed)

    • Session reminder email

    • Sending the gallery 

    • Upselling additional photos without a sales pitch



Ready to Become The Most In-Demand Family Photography In Your Area?

Choose Your Program

Hybrid

In-Person Coaching + Online Materials + Zoom Meetings


Recommended for San Francisco Bay Area based photographers, or those who can travel there.


  • One 2 hour, in-person, one-on-one & on-location portfolio building experience with Christina, and photograph a real family:
  • Schedule a family photoshoot with Christina on your preferred date
  • Do a model call
  • Location: San Francisco Bay Area
  • First hour: Posing & lighting instructions
  • Second hour: Photograph the family under the guide of Christina







  • A minimum of 10 45-minutes Zoom sessions over a 6-week to 12-month period, covering both the Learning Phase and the Consolidation Phase.




  • Course Length:
  • The Learning Phase: 6 Weeks (recommended) to 3 months (for busy students)
  • The Consolidation Phase: Another 6 weeks to 12 months period




  • The Learning Phase:
  • is where students build a strong foundation in family photography. During this phase, students learn posing, lighting, and client experience through a combination of video lessons and live Zoom coaching sessions with Christina.
  • These concepts are then brought to life during an in-person photoshoot with Christina, and with a real family.
  • The recommended length is 6-18 weeks.




  • The Consolidation Phase:
  • is where students apply what they’ve learned in real client sessions with Christina's ongoing support.
  • During this phase, students photograph their own clients and review their images and portfolio with Christina in live Zoom sessions, focusing on refining posing, lighting, storytelling, and overall client experience. If needed, additional in-person lessons can be planned to address specific challenges and ensure skills are fully integrated and consistent.
  • This phase typically takes another 6 weeks to 6 months, depending on the student’s business schedule.




  • Covering these topics
  • Posing
  • Lighting
  • Client Experience Management
  • Reviewing your portfolios



  • Rate: $3000



Sign up

Online Mentoring

Live Coaching on Zoom + Online Materials,

Recommended for photographers outside the San Francisco Bay Area.

  • Six 1-hour Zoom Meetings




  • The Learning Phase:
  • is where students build a strong foundation in family photography. During this phase, students learn posing, lighting, and client experience through a combination of video lessons and live Zoom coaching sessions with Christina.
  • The recommended length is 6-18 weeks.




  • The Consolidation Phase:
  • is where students apply what they’ve learned in real client sessions.
  • During this phase, students photograph their own clients and review their images and portfolio with Christina in live Zoom sessions, focusing on refining posing, lighting, storytelling, and overall client experience. If needed, additional in-person lessons can be planned to address specific challenges and ensure skills are fully integrated and consistent.
  • This phase typically takes another 6 weeks to 6 months, depending on the student’s business schedule.



  • Cover these topics
  • Segment 1: Posing
  • Segment 2: Lighting
  • Segment 3: Client Experience Management
  • Reviewing your portfolio






  • Rate: $1500
Sign up

The Self-Paced Online Course

Recommended for international photographers.



Please note that the Online Course does not include Segment 3 Client Experience Management.


Sign up for The Online Course

Additional Information

Understanding the basics of photography:


  • Ability to control the exposure manually

  • Understanding focal lengths

  • Understanding focusing

  • Ability to control the depth of field, field of field

  • Have your own DSLR/ Mirrorless camera & lenses


Equipment needed:


  • A DSLR or mirrorless camera
  • Any lens that covers that standard (50mm-70mm equivalent) and telephoto (70mm-300mm equivalent) focal lengths

Recommended lenses:

  • 85mm F1.2
  • 85mm F1.4
  • 85mm F1.8
  • 70-200mm F2.8
  • 70-200mm F4
  • 24-70mm F2.8
  • 24-70mm F4

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