When my Cinematographer and I prepare to shoot a scene, we tend to prepare a diagram, which is a top-down view to plan where the camera is going to be. Then we plan every shot by making a picture of what it's going to look like. We use ourselves as models. This is what it looks like:

When we have everything planned, then when we are with the actors on location, we can focus on capturing the performances. We don't have to talk much since we already have the plan to execute.