A lot of posing guides and tips for posing women suggests positioning women in the S-Curve for lean, flattering body lines.
So, what is the S-Curve?
It’s easier to show you than tell you…
The gentle curve created by looking for the S body position when you pose women makes them look feminine and sexy. All the proof is above.
ps – Want to meet my model? Check out her blog!
What are your favorite tips for posing portraits?
i love these shots.
Loved the photo shoot of Ruthanne!
Ok – 3 questions
1 – I always thought that if you did the back leg bent, it pushed out the hip towards the camera and added weight?
2 – I thought elbows anywhere near proximity to the camera were a no no?
3 – will you ever make these available in a book so I can go back and refer to them? I mentioned a few thousand times that I have loved your October series right? this oct and last
p.s I adore Eclectic Whatnot and have her camera strap – it is the bomb!
1 – yes, that can happen easily, if you don’t instruct your subject how to distribute the weight. what you don’t want is for them to push the hip out toward the camera. instead, tell your subject to bend slightly at the hip, straight back, and push their back hip away from the camera. since she was on an incline, the legs looked more natural this way. but yes, i usually prefer it like the top photo, since they will typically keep all their weight on the back leg. We made this pose work b/c there was a fence behind her, and not a way for me to get on the other side. Because she’s pushing back and bent at the hip, the line is long and lean.
2 – you don’t want hips and elbows out to the camera. in this case, she’s pointing 45 degrees toward camera right. the elbow is actually pointing to camera left. this angle provided the most flattering angle for her arms. Of course, she’s been pumping iron. If you had a model that didn’t, asking her to bring her left shoulder toward the camera would immediately re-angle both arms. then you’d need to make sure the hips or shoulders didn’t turn too broadly and square off to the camera.
with each model, you’ll want to tweak body positions for HER best angle. start with a formula for a pose, but then tweak it to best show off that subject’s best angles. not all poses work for all body types… and sometimes you get an itty bitty subject that could do jumping jacks on camera and still look flattering. with any posing advice, start with an idea and keep tweaking it until you know your subject looks amazing!
1. Ruthanne is beautiful!
2. I notice she’s rocking those wild peach shoes of hers.
3. I love the second pose.
4. I’m not fond of the first pose. It looks unnatural to me.
5. I’m loving your series again this year.
yes!
yes!
it’s a natural one
that one is super fun for the “come hither” look.
thank you!
that first one is my man’s favorite. he says it looks like i’m saying, “heeeeey, there. you know you want me. come and get me.” :: snort out loud :: i’m so not joking.
This is a very interesting post about posing =D. Thanks so much Darcy for all your time an effort! I have to say I love the first pose! Totally model status!!! Second pose I avoid cause too me is so overrated, but I see now- it’s part of the S curve which I did not know about lol. But anyways I’m glad I’m learning something new on each post.
Would you recommend any books on posing? Thanks!
ooooh! Good to know. I hadn’t really ever thought about it, but I see what you’re talking about.
Thank you for the advice, really, this is great! I just got here…I’m going to go back and cheack out some more tips. Thanks again.
Lightbulb! I remember my mentor telling her bride numerous times to put her weight on the back leg, and NOW I know why! Thanks Darcy, loooooooooving these subtle tips, I sure need them!