Here is a collections of general posing guideline/rules that I’ve compiled over my years of shooting. Keep in mind that these are just guidelines to help you pose your subject better; be willing to make the judgement to go against this advise if it make for a better image. Model are able to benefit from this as well as this will help them become better Models:
- Vary your facial expression, especially the mouth
Don’t make the same face every time. Mouth movement is a dead give away (along with hand placement and feet movement) to the experience and skill level of Model. An old trick to get the Model to move their mouth is to have them think of works that end in the “oo” sound (e.g. two, blue, zoo, flu, etc.) A slight opening of the mouth is preferable to a closed one. Another trick to brings some life to your subject is to tell them to laugh to themselves or give a chuckle.
- The 3/4 look
I will outstretch my arms to tell my subject to turn their face to either direction. This turns their head enough to change their head position but still allows me to keep both cheeks and pupils of the eye in the frame. This is called a 3/4 (three quarter) look. This is most appropriate for fashion work where subject disassociation is important for the feel of the image. When subject/viewer connection is important (like beauty and glamor work) you want to shy way from doing this technique.
- Head tilting
Tilting your chin down is rarely appropriate. Stick out your chin and stretch/angle your neck just a little bit more than feels reasonable. More dramatic posing tilt the head back or aggressively to the sides.
- If it naturally bends, bend it
Joints that bend should have a natural bend to them. Locking fingers, wrists, elbows, knees, etc. usually don’t produce flattering poses.
- Hands can ruin an image
The back of the hand and the palm create a surface area almost as big as the face. Mostly avoid showing the back of the hand/palm especially near the face. Try to have the sides of the hands toward the camera or turn them so the surface area is minimized. Photographer need to take care to watch for this.
- Feet position and posing are critical.
Try to keep one foot from fully resting on the ground. Point the toe/lift the heel to get one foot off the ground. If you notice that a good dancer hardly ever moves with two feet on the ground, same applies to a Model.
If your feet are bare, POINT YOUR TOES! Even when sitting, point them toes!
- Don’t amputate your body
For example, when leaning against a wall with one foot up, lift the foot closest to the camera so your leg isnt amputated by the rest of your body. Same for parts not visible to the camera; be aware if a pose is creating an unflattering amputation of the body. If you have to crop above a joint do it above the joint not below. With kneeling positions try to get an angle that gets the feet in the shot.
- Don’t point joints toward the camera
Pointing elbows/knees towards the camera, it can also amputate or make the limbs appear awkward.
- Create lines and shapes with your limbs
Limbs can be used to create compositional elements. A good Model and aware Photographer look for opportunities to create these elements. Jake Garn has a great post on his blog about creating triangles with posing (http://www.jakegarn.com/power-of-the-triangle/) definitely check it out.
- Uneven your horizontal lines
Horizontal lines go through your shoulders and hips. Uneven shoulders and hips can create dramatic poses depending on how extreme the bends are to make one hip or shoulder higher or lower than the other.
- Be aware of parallels with limbs
As noted above, limbs create lines and because they do you need to be aware that this can create visual intensity. Symetry=affinity (less visual intensity) and asymmetry=contrast (more visual intensity). So for fashion posing go for asymmetry for dramatic posing, for art, beauty or glamour go for symmetry.
- Move slowly into the next pose
Slow your Model down, if the move too quickly into a new position. Create the ability to capture a pose in between so you can stop and ask your subject to “go back to ‘that thing’ you did a second ago”. Models, be conscious of your movements so that you can reverse back to where the Photographer wants you to go back to. Flow into the pose, don’t just hit it and hold. Think grace and elegance not clumsy and awkward.
by rmickle
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by rmickle
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