Photography Poses - A Posing Guide Just For You
Ranked #332 in Arts & Design, #3,953 overall
Photography Poses Can Be Hard To Recall On The Spot - Unless You Have Them Written Down
There are posing guides out there for sell, but I decided long ago to come up with my own posing guide that has all of the photography poses and notes I find interesting and useful. A guide made especially for me, by me. This lens will show you how I created such an invaluable notebook and exactly what you need to do to create one for yourself. Once you get yours made, I guarantee that you will feel naked on photo shoots without it.
Photo by Scarleth White / flickr.
Basic Setup of My Posing Guide
Contents, Photography Poses and Ideas
1-The first thing I did was to buy me a pocket-sized Moleskine notebook. Any notebook is acceptable, but I chose this brand because I wanted something durable.2-I then decided how I wanted to divide up the notebook.
Section 1-Contents (3 pages).
I made up a few categories that was important to me and whenever a photography pose fit into that category I put its number in it. The categories were photography poses for men, women and both. The image to the right shows you what I'm talking about; the only difference is that each category had their own page. You can even highlight your favorite poses. The next step was to number the pages (starting after the contents). I numbered each page, as I wanted one page to have only one pose on it (front page-1, back of that page-2 and so on).
Section 2-The photography poses and notes (150 pages / bulk of content).
Section 3-Ideas section (30 or 40 pages).
These pages are set aside for interesting ideas that may come to you on your shoot you may want to try at some point in the future.
Image by YellowHammer.
Stuff That I Use
Photography Poses On YouTube
Don't Want Your Photography Poses To Look So Stiff?
Then consider hiring a professional model.
One huge benefit of using professional models during a photo shoot is that they are used to being in front of a camera. I like to take pictures that don't look posed. People who aren't used to getting photos taken of them will often look stiff. The only drawback to using a modeling agency is that you usually have to pay them.
There are some websites such as Model Mayhem, One Model Place or Models.com in which you can sometimes trade time for prints, but not always. I am beginning to realize that hiring a model pays off in the long run, just be sure to know what you want to shoot as most charge by the hour.
Example Interior Pages of Posing Guide
Photography poses and notes.
First let me start off by saying I made the writing a little too big; most people's writing won't be this big unless they're using a Sharpie pen. The image that you see above is what is in the majority of my notebook. I number each photography pose, draw the figure and then add a few notes. If your the type of person who takes a lot of notes you could always use one side for the sketch and the other for notes in which case you would only have room in you notebook for half as many photography poses.
What you put in your notes will depend on what you like and what type of photographer you are. I like to put whether the image would be better for a male or female (or both), lighting preferences, mood, emotional state of model and clothing ideas. Keep in mind that you don't have to fill the page; a bare minimum of how you feel when you see the image is all that is really necessary in the beginning. I promise that you'll add more as you use the poses on shoots.
Sketches by YellowHammer.
Sketch Photography Poses
The perfect thing to use in a posing guide.
Although you could use photography poses cut out from a magazine (fastened by tape or glue), I like to sketch stick figures in mine. I found that when I used actual pictures I often sub-consciously copied the style and sometimes even the clothes. With bare-bones sketches you can truly create your own unique image.
Sketches by YellowHammer.
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11 Great Photography Poses
Great Photos That You Can Actually Own
Lucinda in London, 1959 (12 x 12 in. Art Print)
Photo by Georges Dambier
Buy for $9.99
Man Balancing in a Dance, Yoga Pose (16 x 16 in. Photographic Print)
Photo by Monsoon Images
Buy for $19.99
Fashion Model Wearing Amazing Hat (22 x 28 in. Art Print)
By John French
Buy for $19.99
Mountain Biker on Cliffs, Turnagain Arm, Alaska, USA
16 x 12 in. Photographic Print
Photo by Paul Souders
Buy for $24.99
Little Ballerina (9 x 12 in. Art Print)
By David Handley
Buy for $9.99
Cowgirl in Heaven (20 x 16 in. Art Print)
Photo by David R. Stoecklein
Buy for $19.99
Woman Floating In Water / Weeki Wachee Spring, Florida
16 x 16 in. Photographic Print
By Toni Frissell
Buy for $19.99
How to Make You Love Me by Elizabeth May
16 x 16 in. Photographic Print
Buy for $19.99
Cowboy and Cowgirl Silhouetted on a Ridge in the Big Horn Mountains, Wyoming, USA
12 x 9 in. Photographic Print
By Joe Restuccia III
Buy for $19.99
Marilyn Monroe - 24 x 36 in. Poster
Buy for $7.99
Clint Eastwood - 14 x 11 in. Photo
Buy for $14.99
Knowledge - 18 x 24 in. Art Print
Buy for $11.99
Books On Photography Poses
For those that still want reference material from professionals.
Tell Me What You Think Of The Lens
Or any thoughts on posing people in general.
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casquid
Jun 2, 2012 @ 7:41 pm | delete
- Now, if onloy I could remember where my camera was packed. But the lens is well composed and has lots of ideas for those who may really need the info. Thanks!
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TragicMess
May 31, 2012 @ 5:29 pm | delete
- Great lens... It's giving me an excuse to buy a fancy Moleskine notebook!
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Phillyfreeze69
May 23, 2012 @ 7:48 pm | delete
- I like to tell my models to visualize a clock face on the floor and then place her feet at the 3:00 position and the 9:00 clock position which gives her a open stance...places feet at diferent hours on the imaginary clock is a good excercise for fashion and print models.
Thanks or adding the very educational video.
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Li-Li-ThePinkBookworm
May 23, 2012 @ 6:53 pm | delete
- Wow, this is one of those lenses about an idea I would have never thought of. You provide a ton of great information and helpful advice. Well done!
Li Li
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StanCdA
May 9, 2012 @ 4:00 pm | delete
- Even as a professional photographer, I love this guide and learned things from it! I've always swung more toward the candid/photojournalistic side of photography, and even with my film directing experience, I used to just choke up entirely on posing people for portaits. Useful guides to posing get an A+ from me! :)
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tvyps
Apr 16, 2012 @ 5:47 pm | delete
- Very cool idea, like the woman floating in water. Most of the ladies probably enjoy Clint floating in the tub. ha! Squid Angel blessed!
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Deanie
Apr 12, 2012 @ 10:47 am | delete
- This is just what I was looking for. A lot of photography sites explain how to pose someone and take the picture (which you should know), but I was just looking for ideas. I will be making my own posing sketch book based on your suggestions. Thanks!
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photographersinindia
Apr 6, 2012 @ 3:35 am | delete
- Wonderful Lens!. I really like the images. thanks for sharing it. http://www.squidoo.com/photographersinindia-com
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Jake_2525
Apr 1, 2012 @ 6:38 pm | delete
- Great Lens. I have a lens over what's the best camera for you. It goes over point and shoot cameras and dslr cameras. So if your interested make sure and check it out.
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modelmentors
Mar 30, 2012 @ 3:23 am | delete
- This is a FANTASTIC lens and extremely thorough. This will prove useful for models and photographers alike.. looks like a lot of hard work went into this and it shows- great work!
www.modelmentors.com
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Ed
Mar 29, 2012 @ 3:12 pm | delete
- I like the idea of making your own field posing guide book and using stick figures as a base. I find that when I look at a photo, I often find myself trying to match not only the pose, but the mood and clothing as well.
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mikelennonphotography
Mar 29, 2012 @ 1:19 pm | delete
- Great tips! Thanks
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t2rclicks
Mar 29, 2012 @ 7:45 am | delete
- Nice it is really cool to see such post, I have one with same topic Photography I would like to see your comments there, so that i can Improve the same.
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JohnAtker
Mar 28, 2012 @ 4:30 am | delete
- Nice tips for all photographers out there dealing with models. When you are behind the camera you get like a mental block and you can't seem to figure out how to make the model look more natural in a pose and not stiff or uncomfortable :) Nice!
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The Macro Queen
Apr 13, 2012 @ 11:37 am | delete
- I've been in that situation before and it really does no good for your ego. It's amazing how a simple posing sketchbook like this can make you more confident. I've been using one for years.
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DahliaValentine
Mar 22, 2012 @ 1:25 pm | delete
- Your sketches rock! What a cool idea that is.
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shajo
Mar 17, 2012 @ 8:09 am | delete
- Thanks for the tips! I really like the sketches!
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top_10
Mar 9, 2012 @ 2:53 pm | delete
- cool lens. Some beautiful photographs here.
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NikonD5100Reviews
Feb 21, 2012 @ 5:57 pm | delete
- Great ideas... Now if I could only get your lens in my backpack.... :))
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Mattyr195
Feb 21, 2012 @ 3:46 pm | delete
- I love the sketches! What a great way a great way to record ideas and develop new photography poses
. Thanks for sharing.
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davies86
Jan 11, 2012 @ 6:06 am | delete
- nice lens, thanks
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JohnRayner
Dec 22, 2011 @ 7:26 pm | delete
- I love photography, all these tips are helpful, thank you.
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ClassyGals Dec 9, 2011 @ 3:17 pm | delete
- Interesting subject matter. I never really thought about posing in photography. You've offered some great tips! Angel Blessings**
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ajgodinho Dec 9, 2011 @ 10:24 am | delete
- Unique and interesting lens on photography poses. I'd like to explore photography a little in the future. It's a wonderful hobby to have. Thanks for sharing your notes.
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by YellowHammer
Hi everybody! I am a wannabe writer/artist trying to make a living in the field from my home in SmallTown, USA.
A few things I like are movies, mus...
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