Demo presentations of posing and lighting women are so much more fun than a drier slide show approach. The Canon Image Centre is perfect for both. Before we got into the live part of the seminar we covered business, which I won’t recap here. If you are interested in the business side of photography – how to grow, get profitable, have clients flock to you and sell – contact us for that.
For the posing, we had Tammy Lauritsen as our model. As a bonus, we had Christine Murray doing her makeup and hair. If you attended, send the girls a note of thanks.
The great thing about the Canon Image Square location is their studio area has camera wifi connected to the large monitors. I as took each demo image, they displayed up on the LCD screens. Everyone had a great front row seat to see how the lens effect, my vantage point, and the pose all looked.
It does not really matter if your subject is doing nudes, lingerie, or is fully clothed. There are some poses that will always work, always look flattering. There are also several camera angles you can use to make them look longer, curvier, etc. We spent a few hours showing the attendees how to work those poses. Here are a few of the images we did.
This image does several things to enhance our model. The high angle creates a jaw line if she does not have one, and hides any double chins your subject may have, all while increasing the appearance of her chest. The angle also uses her chest to hide any tummy she might have. By tilting the head to a slight angle, we can get the light to cast a Rembrandt lighting pattern, making any issues with her nose vanish and increasing the size of her eyes because she is looking up. I read somewhere that it is an apparent 30% increase, but I have not actually tested that.
By straddling the chair with her heels raised, we give her legs the appearance of length. Any potential thigh problem is hidden by the chair seat flattening them out. The back of the chair hides any tummy concerns. Her arm position gives her a strong body language, even some attitude. By having the light come in from the side, we add drama, making the image more artsy. It defines her bust with more shape and size, while casting shadows on her inner thighs. With the calves stretched out and active, the light emphasizes the muscle and she looks fit.
I love this lens effect. We go for the longest focal length; here it’s the 200mm of my canon zoom lens. Go for a low as possible fstop, f8 or less. Finally, position your light so it gives the breasts shape, being mindful that it falls evenly on the planes of her face. The lens position is always higher, moved in to its closest focus point with her eyes closed. I used a Nik glamour glow filter with the saturation upped on the pink tones to make the bra pop.
By getting up higher (I have several ladders in my studio just for this approach), you can always get a flattering angle for her pose. Always have the leg toward the camera slightly bent; her arms should be out from her body a bit to thin them out. Going high with a wider angle lens that you slightly tilt will lengthen her body. Remind her to do a pelvic tilt to flatten the tummy.
This last image is a bit extreme but always effective. It’s called the super hero pose. Go for a pretty wide angle lens selection, and get down on the floor so you are shooting up. Move in very close with the camera pointed up. She has to be looking up and over. If she looks down, all you will see is double chins. Hands on the hips gives her body that V shape, while adding to the attitude. This pose really adds to her leg length. You have to be careful what is above her, since a messy ceiling will be distracting.
Let us know if you would like to attend our next live seminar or one of our hands-on workshops. This was a lot of fun.