The two default shapes
Almost every posing problem comes back to one thing: straight lines look stiff. Give the body something to bend. The difference between men and women is mostly which shapes you emphasise — curves for women, angles for men.
Women — soften and curve
- Body angle: turn the subject away from the camera. No part of the body should read as a straight line.
- Arms and hands: relaxed and away from the body — a gap of light between arm and torso. Don't extend hands towards the camera; they enlarge.
- Neck: stretch up, head slightly forward, chin down a touch. Kills the squashed skin and shadow under the jaw.
- Legs: weight on one leg, the other bent and relaxed; crossed legs make a pleasant line.
- Sitting: back slightly bent, one leg fully bent.
- Lying down: intimate; run the body away from the camera for a slimming line.
- Hands framing the face: one or both hands resting on or near the face — works in close crops.
- Over the shoulder: look in several directions for a natural, enigmatic frame.
Men — square and angular
- Emphasise lines: jaw, back, arms — sharp angles rather than curves.
- Shoulders: stand tall, shoulders squared and pushed up slightly, leaning towards the camera; core tight, breathing slow.
- Jaw: chin pushed out and angled down slightly. Never pulled back — that builds a double chin.
- Legs: weight on one leg, the other bent — same rule as above.
- Hands: whole hand in the pocket, or thumbs out. Watch for "stiff hands".
- Leaning: relaxes the subject and creates strong leading lines.
- Sitting: one arm extended and resting on a leg, other arm relaxed, lean towards the camera — stretches the body and shows clothing well.
- One leg up: standing or sitting; rest the bent leg against a wall.
Expression prompts
Cycle through a set rather than asking for "a smile": neutral · animated · heroic · pensive · candid · engaged · formal. Give an action or a feeling to follow rather than a description of a face — don't tell, show.
Check before you fire
- Neck — any squished skin? Chin slightly up and forward.
- Shoulders — slumping in the half-body crop?
- Hands and legs — tense or locked straight in the full-length crop?
- Focus on the eye nearest the camera; recompose after locking.
Consolidated from references: Photzy Photographing Women, Photographing Men (Advanced People Photography); Portraiture poses shot-type & expression grid.