As soon as people are in front of the camera, they become self-conscious and awkward. How can you pose them in an authentic, natural way, without it looking all… posed? In this section, we’ll show you how to use the way people naturally hold themselves to get portraits that – with a little fine-tuning – flatter them but also look true to who they really are.

Posing People Without Posing

Sometimes, you may want to achieve a fashion-style image with a subject in a dramatic, posed position. The rest of the time, you probably just want your subject to look good and be comfortable. This section is all about the latter: flattering people, but keeping it natural and authentic, too.

Working With Men

Traditionally, when posing men most photographers look to emphasise their subject’s masculinity. This can be achieved through a more defined jaw, broader-looking shoulders and a pose (and camera angle) that convey confidence. This section will give you plenty of tips, tricks and techniques for achieving all of these and more.

Close-Up Male Portraits

Two simple, naturally lit portraits of two lovely guys. Read on for three tips for emphasising masculinity in portraits like ... Read More

Working With Women

Traditionally, when posing women most photographers look to emphasise their subject’s femininity. This can be achieved through exaggerating their curves, softening their hand position, guiding them into flattering poses and shooting from optimal camera angles.  This section will give you plenty of tips, tricks and techniques for achieving all of these and more.

Working With Children

Working with children is about much more than making babies smile. First, parents need to feel relaxed, so that their children relax, too. Then you’ll need to overcome the wariness of shy children and calm the energy levels of excitable ones. Lastly, you’ll need to understand their abilities and motivations, so you can connect with children of all ages and capture their latest stage of development.

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Getting Kids To Smile

Asking for smiles from young subjects doesn’t work. Instead, you need to set the right atmosphere, tune into the child’s ... Read More

Searching For Giants

Making your shoots fun for your subjects is key to getting memorable portraits. This image was the final shot of ... Read More

Working With Groups And Families

Just when you’ve mastered posing one person, you’re asked to capture a whole bunch of them. How do you pose multiple people to achieve a visually pleasing composition? How do you avoid the totem pole and police line-up effect of stacking people head on head or side by side? How do you make posing look natural? This section has the answers…

Working With Dogs

As your camera skills develop and your reputation spreads, it won’t be long before you are tasked with capturing a beautiful dog portrait or two. Whether it’s a beloved family mutt, or a beautifully groomed show breed, the tips in this section will guide you through successfully interacting with dogs (and their owners) to capture perfect pet portraits for your clients.