Couple Photography in Keshav Nagar, Pune

It is not a production

Couples assume this is more of an occasion than it is.

The word "shoot" does a lot of damage here. It suggests something elaborate, when what actually happens is an hour of walking about being gently directed.

What you genuinely need: an hour, somewhere reasonably quiet, and clothes you would actually wear.

What you can skip: an occasion to justify it, outfit changes, a scenic location, and any preparation at all.

The most common reason these never get booked is the sense that they require a reason. They do not, and the couples who book them without one tend to be the happiest with the result.

The first few minutes feel odd for everybody. After that people stop performing and the session becomes straightforward.

If either of you is uncomfortable with the idea, say so at the start and it is worked around rather than pushed through.

It is worth asking what you will be doing for the hour, because the vagueness is what makes people nervous.

Walking, standing somewhere, sitting somewhere, and being told small things — move slightly this way, look at each other, stay where you are.

There is nothing to prepare for and nothing that requires performing.

It is also worth knowing that most couples find the first ten minutes strange and then stop noticing.

That is so consistent it is worth planning for rather than worrying about, which is part of why these sessions are an hour rather than twenty minutes.

The good frames tend to come from the second half.