The Ultimate Posing Guide
I could write a book on how to pose hands and eyes... it's the photographers job to not just "memorize" poses, but to learn how to "build" a pose for our subjects.
But here a few pointers so you'll know what to do on your photo shoot day.
CLASSIC POSE
Pretend you are holding your bouquet in this pose with your elbow out and creating that space in between your side and your arm for a more flattering look.
Pop your hip and drag your toe closest to the camera backward and look away to look more candid pose.
HOLDING SOMETHING
When you hold something it naturally gives your hands something to do, but also brings attention to that object. Here I had Yulia holding the strap of her lingerie which also is a beautiful way to lead attention and show it off.
I also had asked her to close her eyes so the viewer will pay attention to beauty of her red lingerie.
FRAME THE FACE
Photographers who don't know how to pose the hands and arms often give brides and grooms what is called the “floating head” (what you don't want). It's when you have a close up shot of the face, but no hands and arms in the photo.
You can use hands and fingers to lead attention to where you want with a close up. In this portrait I wanted to lead attention to Adriana's eyes and lips. So I gently directed her hands naturally in this position. As you can see, this portrait does not look forced or rigid even though the hands are in a place that you would not expect. This can enhance a close up portrait in a really beautiful way.
POSING THE EYES
So where should you look?
Where you look can dramatically change the feel of the portrait. As you can see in the first two photos I had the subjects look away, giving an almost candid feel of the portrait. But no matter where you look, you want to avoid only seeing the "white" part of your eye.
In the portrait of Diana, I had her pay very close attention to the movement in the camera...
Why?
When you focus on something very hard, it triggers the Parietal Lobe in the brain. This brings out a VERY captivating look in the eyes.
