As a posing expert, I’ve worked with thousands of people over the past eight years. My job is to make sure they look and feel their best when taking photos.
When you’re interacting with someone in your everyday life, body language allows for much more nuance: It’s perceived in three dimensions. Photography is a 2D medium, so we have to create movement and depth by positioning the body in very particular ways. These techniques can sometimes feel unnatural.
Whether it’s a professional headshot, a snapshot for a dating app, or in a group photo with friends, here are some rules to feel more comfortable, confident, and powerful in every photo you take.
When you feel self-conscious, it’s natural to want to shrink yourself by rolling your shoulders forward and pulling your arms and legs in close.
But this can cause your limbs to blend together and making you appear bulkier than you really are. Negative space is what gives your pose breathing room, and you want that in a photo. It’s the space between your limbs that keeps your body from blending together and helps define your shape to the viewer’s eye.
