How to Pose for Photos

This post has been a long time coming! I’ve been compiling photos and just my own information on how to pose better in your photos. Now, I wanted to mainly focus on photos that you take of yourself….you know upgraded selfies or self-portraits, but this information can also be applied to photos that people take of you as well. Keep reading if you’re interested in taking even better photos for the gram or blog!

So you already know that you can set your phone camera to front-facing and set a timer and all of those well-known things already. But has anyone noticed that whenever you try to take pictures this way, they come out so awkward you cringe? Yup, I’ve definitely been there and I even avoided taking these “advanced self-portraits”  to save myself the embarrassment.

“The Advanced Selfie”

I personally opt for using my phone because it’s lightweight, easy and can be propped onto just about anything. Also, most smartphones have amazing cameras now! Anyway, I will typically place my camera/phone at or around the same level as my torso. This ensures that I can back away from the camera (if I have space) to get a full-body photo if necessary.

I know the pose is where most of us have issues, so how should you pose? As natural as possible, in my opinion. Relax your muscles especially in your face and maybe tilt your head a little and wait for the timer to countdown. Now the next few photos, add a smile, put your hand in your hair, close your eyes. Pretty much just play around with different yet relaxed poses.

The biggest issue I tend to run into is what I should do with my arms. The “hands-on-hips” pose is so played out and pretty unnatural. If you’re near a surface like a table, gently place your hands on it as if you’re steadying your balance. If you’re not near a surface, place a hand (lightly) on your cheek and one on your chest. Leave a hand by your side and place the other on your shoulder. The best trick is to hold something in my book! Since I’ve been dealing with plants lately, I’ll hold a plant…usually a little one.

Posing for a Shoot

I tend to feel a lot more confident when someone else is behind the camera because they can always lead me in the right direction when it comes to posing. A pose that would look unnatural in a self-portrait looks so much more relaxed. There’s a reason behind this and it has a lot to do with basic photography knowledge that I won’t bore you all with. Let’s just say there’s a difference between the front-facing camera and the back camera on your phone.

You can pretty much pose however you want when someone else is behind the camera, but I would still suggest natural-looking poses and relaxed muscles. A photographer has a lot more mobility when taking photos so your awkward pose can actually be kind of cute. Although, try to avoid doing so on purpose.

I hope this was an informative post for you all and if you would like me to expand on more photo-taking tips then leave a comment. I’ll be writing more about photos and flatlays and all that good stuff. I’ll also try to be more consistent as well because I know that I’ve been away for a minute. Thanks for reading,

ChelsiKay