How to Pose for the Camera

As a style blogger, I’ve documented my outfits for the past two years, and although I’m pretty used to having pictures of me taken, posing for pictures is still something that I’m continually learning about. It’s all about what looks best in front of the camera. One thing that does help is that being a wedding and portrait photographer, the majority of my clients look to me for help in how to look their best on camera, so I’ve figured out a few tips for my clients that I also apply to myself whenever I am getting my picture taken, whether it is for my blog or not.

Arms and hands — Don’t let your arms just flop to the side — do something with them! Putting your hand on your hip is the easiest thing to do, and it not only makes your pose a little more interesting, but it also helps your arms look skinnier than if they were laying flat by your side. Another easy tip is to either play with your hair, brush your hair back, run your fingers through your hair, etc. For a headshot or an upper body shot, if you are wearing a necklace, put a hand casually on the necklace to give the photo a little more dimension, so it’s not just concentrating on your face.

Eyes — Looking directly at the camera is not a crime! There’s been a trend of “I’m not looking at the camera” pictures, which is fine, but I think people forget that looking at the camera makes a great picture, as well. People want to see your eyes! For those shots of not looking at the camera, don’t turn your head to make look like you’re looking at something to the side. The best thing to do is to keep your face facing the camera, but with your eyes, look over the shoulder of your photographer (if you are using a tripod, then just imagine that the tripod had a shoulder), or tilt your head slightly down and look at the ground at one of your feet (meaning don’t just look down at both your feet, look down but tilt your head toward your right foot).

Legs — Standing straight up and down is fine, but it’s not the most interesting pose. I always tend to bend one knee just slightly to create an angle on my legs (see how in my picture I’ve always got one of my legs slightly bent). You can also cross one of your legs in front of the other. (I hear that this is a Hollywood red carpet tip because it makes you look slimmer.)

Last few tips — Don’t stand straight to the camera. Always angle your body just slightly, and turn your shoulders so that one is closer to the camera than the other. And the same with your head; tip it to the side or turn your face. Do all these just very slightly so that it looks natural. In a lot of my photos, it can look like I’m completely turned straight to the camera, but most of the time, I’m just slightly angled so you can’t tell. The reason you do this is because standing square to the camera can make you look wider than you actually are. And the best tip of all? Smile! If, when you get in front of the camera, you feel like you always end up with a “fake smile,” then the best tip for a natural grin is to smile, but let the your tongue touch the roof of your mouth. Try it out! I swear it works.

What about you other fabulous photo experts out there? Any tips?