6 Posing Tips For Better Portraits

Look online and you will find a plethora of posing guides to help you take better people shots, some of which are quite over-engineered.

Some people aren't that comfortable about being photographed as it is, so the last thing you want is to make them even more self conscious by giving them complicated posing instructions. With this in mind, here are some much more straightforward shots to try today

1) Keep the head straight

This is one of the most fundamental tips, but it's very easy to forget. Often people cock their head to one side, which is fine if you want a quirky character shot, but not so great if you are doing a formal bride and groom portrait.

So just check the alignment before you press the shutter button.

2) Get them to relax the shoulders

Unless you are photographing Zen masters or yoga teachers, there's a good chance your model might need to be reminded to relax their shoulders.

A good tip is to get them to raise and tense their shoulders as they breathe in – in a very exaggerated way – then totally relax them as they breathe out. Then take the image.

3) Eye contact

Some people find it just really hard to keep eye contact, and I've shot people with almost supernaturally flickering irises, which is a whole other challenge.

If you suspect the subjects feels a bit shy maybe suggest they look at the name of the camera make just above the lens (if you are using an SLR) rather than directly at you. Counting down from three is another tip so they know exactly when to look. You can try shooting on burst mode to be sure of at least some eye contact, but the shutter noise might distract them, so single shot mode is usually best.

4) Stray hairs and other distractions

Just as you should be scanning the background for distractions before you take the image, make sure there is nothing distracting from the person's face – stray or untidy hair is a classic example.

If it's a formal bride portrait they should be fine about quickly fixing their hair. In character portraits, where untidy hair is a key part of the person's character (eg Boris Johnson), it's less of an issue.

5) Don't break the 'line' of the face

Wedding photographers try to keep the nose within the line of the subject’s far cheek – in other words, the nose doesn't break the line of the face as it curves around.

While this means you don't get a full side profile, it makes the nose look smaller. When photographing a couple kissing, tradition also states that the woman's nose should be the one that's visible, not the groom's, as it tends to be smaller. This is a bit old fashioned, but if your groom has a very big nose, it's worth thinking about!

6) Use props and keep the hands busy

A big part of portrait posing is putting the subject at ease, so make use of chairs, walls and other props, particularly if you shooting them on location.

Subjects often don't know what to do with their hands and either fidget or hold them awkwardly, so get them to hold something relevant – a particular tool or business document for instance, or a bouquet with a bride, or a toy a pet with a child.

Further Study