Following a few simple rules will dramatically help your poses, whether you're taking the picture or in it.
Step 1
Place one foot behind the other and turn it at an angle to the camera, preferably 90 degrees. This has a slimming effect and looks more natural.
Step 2
Place your weight on your back foot. This creates a relaxed look. Placing the weight on the front foot creates an edgy look, while equally distributing the weight looks stiff.
Step 3
Tilt your head slightly at an angle to one side or another. It's common to want to "stand up straight" but tilting the head will make you appear more relaxed.
Step 4
If the camera is at eye level or lower, lower your chin very slightly. If you're worried about a "second chin" raise the camera above eye level and look up slightly. This works well seated.
Step 5
Place your hands correctly. Hands are often the second most prominent feature in a picture after the eyes, but we often don't know what to do with them. When hands are below the waist, the wrist should curly down or be neutral. When hands are above the waist, the wrists should curl up. Also, don't make them overly prominent. Keep thumbs and fingers in and try to avoid the hands being prominent in the composition or too near the camera compared to the rest of the body. Again, breaking the rules can create an edgy look.
Step 6
Smile. Often people don't feel comfortable smiling on demand. Obviously it's better to make it spontaneous, but not always possible. Remember that a really big all out smile rarely looks fake like the half smiles that people sometimes try. When a smile looks "fake" it is because the muscles around the eyes aren't involved. When you need to smile on command, think of first creating the smile with your eyes and your lips will follow. Also, people often try to go for the serious or thoughtful look to avoid smiling, but end up looking like they're serial killers or half asleep. If you want to go for the thoughtful look, it's especially important to remember the other steps. Look relaxed and tilt the head while looking towards the camera with the eyes.
Step 7
Learn about what poses work for whom.
Tips
- Remember that even though silly faces are fun, having a photo of yourself with crossed eyes and a screwed up face a high school yearbook may be regrettable.
- Wearing black can make you think this is awesome!!! :)
