Basic One Person Photography Posing Ideas

If you have just one person to photograph, then you have the widest range of possible posing options. Select a pose based on by what type of shot cropping you are doing with your viewfinder. Here are some basic examples of shot cropping.

Profile

A profile style shot is done by turning your subject so that one shoulder is facing the camera and only half of the face can be seen in the viewfinder. Your main light source should be shining on the subjects face for the best photo. With a dark background, this pose can be very moody and dramatic. To get rid of shadows, light the subject from the front and the side the camera is on.

Three-Quarter

The next type of shot is the three-quarter shot. This is when you only photograph the subject from the chest up. Even though this may sound uninspired, you can do many poses with a three-quarter shot. Have the person sit on a chair backwards and rest their heads on the back of the chair, for instance. Have your subject play with different facial expression and shoulder movements. 

Full-Body

The most versatile shot for posing is the full-body shot. This shot incorporates the entire body, not just parts of it. Some ideas for good full-body poses are:

• Have the subject lie down and prop his head up with his hands
• Have the subject put her hand on her hip
• Have the subject sit with his legs crossed and to the side
• Have the subject straddle a chair or object

No matter how you crop the shot, remember to incorporate props for the widest range of posing options.

Multiple Subject Poses

When dealing with groups it is more important to be organized than creative. Shooting multiple subjects can be very limiting when you are trying different poses. You have to get all of the subjects into the photo while still being close enough to capture the details of the faces. The more people in the photo, the harder this becomes. Some basic rules of thumb can help any photography posing ideas work properly.

Small Groups

First, remember the basic photography Rule of Triangles. In each group photo, you should incorporate poses that form a triangle effect. Look at the example. Notice how the subjects are positioned so that their heads form a triangle or diamond shape? This can be done with most small groups by either having people sit and others stand or by having the subjects positioned by height.

Large Groups

With large groups, position subjects so that they form an “X” shape. Create this by placing the taller people in the back row, the shorter people in the middle row and having some people sit in the first row. Heads should be positioned so that they are in-between the heads that are in front of them for the best result.