When it comes to building a presence on Instagram whether it’s for your own personal brand or your business, you NEED to have photos of YOU on there. When I stumble across an account now and I can’t see any photos of you, I’m going to skip right past you! Why? Because I can’t feel a connection with you. If your feed it purely stock photos with your face no where to be found, you’re doing your business a disservice.
So, I want you to plan a photoshoot! Whether that means you go and hire a photographer, or you try and bribe your insta boyfriend or husband or friend to take the photos for you. Make sure you plan out your shoot down to the exact outfits you’re going to wear and the location you’ll be shooting in.
Working with other female entrepreneurs on their brand photoshoots, a lot of them feel a bit awkward to begin with. I constantly hear the line “I don’t know what to do with my hands!”, and you know what? That’s totally understandable! The thing is, a lot of poses also feel awkward to do but look GREAT on camera. So, here are 15 poses you can try out at your next photoshoot.
Pose #1 – Using Levels and Creating Lines
See in this photo, I’m creating lines with my leg and head by leaning a little forward? My back is straight, I’m resting my chin on my arm and my front leg is forward as opposed to the back leg. Allowing that line to show nicely in the image.
Also note, the camera shot this photo eye level with me. Not above.
Pose #2
Here, my gorgeous client Zoe is free standing, no props, to support her pose. She’s casually grabbed a small chunk of hair with her other hand on her hip, looking down with a subtle smile.
I’ve taken this image from a slightly below eye-level angle.
Pose #3
Kristine is propped up on a stool with the shot taken from a low angle to make her look taller.
She’s gone one leg raised and leaning on the bar of the stool, supporting her right hand, as her left hand supports her body weight by being placed at the back.
Here, Kristine has created a gorgeous line with her legs but raising the right leg, and slightly raising her left heel off the ground.
Pose #4
I’m highlighting this pose because of something VERY subtle! With this free standing pose, my client Zoe is grabbing a tiny little bit of fabric on her pants to keep a hand busy. This will help you reduce the awkward “what do I do with my hands” problem while in front of the camera!
Pose #5
The point I want to get across with this pose is the situation of the maxi dress. If I had the maxi dress down to my ankles, this shot probably wouldn’t look as good.
However, I’ve lifted the dress to reveal part of my leg and show some skin, allowing you to see the lines I’m creating with my legs by propping one up on the bench, and raising my heel just off the floor on my other leg.
Pose #6
A perfect stair pose! We need to be careful with these kinds of poses that we don’t slouch our backs and that we create gorgeous lines with our body.
Here, Kristine is slightly leaning forward, keeping her back very straight, and has raised her heels slightly off the ground to allow her hands to be rested on her lap.
Pose #7
The thing I want to point out here with my client Zoe, is what she’s doing with her right arm. Again, one of the most common things I hear with my clients on set, is “what do I do with my hands?!”.
A very simple solution is to play with your fashion. Here, Zoe is grabbing the edge of her jacket and smiling away from the camera, looking very natural in her element. She’s also put a bit of weight onto her right leg, with her left knee bent slightly.
Pose #8
I absolutely adore this photo because it’s such a relaxed (yet forced in nature) pose.
Here, Kristine is using her environment and leaning on the ledge to keep her arms busy. She’y slightly twisted her body to face the camera, but you’ll notice she’s posing on an angle to create curves.
She’s relaxed her right leg by bending the knee a little and popping her left hip out. The hat also makes for the perfect prop addition to this photo.
Pose #9
For this photo, I was actually modelling for a shoe brand. Again, as you can see I’ve pulled my maxi dress up off my legs and just above my knees so you can see the lines I’m creating with my legs (as well as being able to see the shoes).
I’m lighting resting my head on my right arm which is resting on my lap. By using the different levels of the stairs, it helps to separate the limbs and allow you to create a longer line.
Pose #10
I LOVE a good walking shot! Walking shots should be taken from a slightly low angle to make your model look taller. Here, we decided to shoot in an alley way which gives some gorgeous symmetry to the photo.
As Kristine is walking, she’s got her hand in her pocket and has a nice relaxed walk going on. Make sure when you’re doing walking shots to not walk too fast, and don’t forget to smile!
Your Next Move!
Learning how to pose is a HUGE game changer when it comes to the results of your photos. I noticed a huge difference in my clients from those who turn up and expect me to 100% direct and have not practiced, to those who HAVE practiced their posing and aren’t afraid to move their bodies.
When it comes to a brand photoshoot, it’s also up to YOU to be confident in your own head, and move your body freely to allow that confidence to show on camera.
Chat soon,
Amanda xx
