Perfectly Posed | Eye on Business

Welcome SSG followers! I’m Jodee Ball, the perfectly posed shutter clicker over at JP Ball Photography. Most of that statement is true, at least.Today, I’m focusing on posing senior girls. This post could actually go on for days and even become it’s own workshop, but I’m going to keep it brief. Like cliff notes or a cheat sheet... remember those days?  Kids, there was a time that Google didn’t exist. Can you imagine the hard times we lived through?Disclaimer: I’m not an expert on posing. Actually, don’t tell my husband or children, but I’m not an “expert” on much of anything. Instead, I’m a lifelong learner in every area of life. I think the point we believe we know everything about a topic and can’t learn from others is the point we stop growing and moving forward.But... I have picked up a few tricks over the years by way of others and my own mistakes and experience. And below are some things to watch for while posing girls. The teacher in me couldn’t resist making up an acronym to help you remember these tips.  Your client will being doing JUMPS for joy when she sees her gallery of images!J - Joints - People have them for a reason! If it bends, bend it.  Stiff arms and legs make your senior girl look stiff and uncomfortable. HOT TIP: When you have your senior seated and propping herself up on her arm, have her lean on her elbow instead of her hand. You’ll avoid the bowing of the arm at the elbow. And although we all know the girls always follow your wardrobe advice, if she happens to wear sleeveless or cap sleeves, you’ll avoid that extra bulge of arm just below the shoulder. Doesn’t matter how tiny the girl is, that area of the arm will appear awkward in the image.U - Uneven planes - Eyes, shoulders, hands, knees, etc. Two by two...make sure they are not on the same plane. HOT TIP: When you pose a senior girl standing with her arms crossed, turn her slightly away from the camera and drop her shoulder closest to you slightly down. Then have her drop her chin ever so slightly toward the dropped shoulder. Now the eyes and shoulders are on uneven planes and the image is immediately more inviting.M - Modesty - Sexy is subjective. And every girl is different. There is a difference between beautiful and even sultry and all out  “I’m too Sexy for my Shirt.” I think much of this can be addressed in wardrobe but we should pose girls in ways that show we respect them and we want others to respect them. Be someone in their world who shows them they are beautiful and don’t have to present themselves in a provocative manner. I don’t have a hot tip for this one. I completely infused my opinion and made this tip more of an editorial. So...take it for what it’s worth.P - Posture - Our goal is to make our senior girls feel beautiful and adored. We shower them with our attention for their day. We can incorporate all of the posing tricks we know, but nothing shows off a girl’s beauty more effectively than her confidence. And slouching does not represent confidence. HOT TIP: If you are working with a sloucher, show a few images you have taken to your senior girl and then ask her to stand or sit tall with shoulders back. Show her the image immediately and she will see the difference herself.S - Sillies, Smiles and Seriousness - I love the serious look. Getting a non-ticked off serious look is easier near the end of the session because they girls are worn out. But, getting a natural smile at any point in the session might be a challenge. And, trust me, moms KNOW the difference between a natural and forced smile on their child. Forced smiles do not sell. HOT TIP: Ask your senior to start laughing. A silly, forced laughter. She’ll feel incredibly dorky and then settle into her real smile. So, there you have it...if you are working on posing girls, I hope you find this week’s blog helpful! I’m off to try and find a different song to occupy my mind now... “I’m so sexy, yeah...”