A big thank you to Katariina Järvinen of Light Trick Photography for this wonderfully useful guest post. I really don’t enjoy having my photo taken and will definitely be following Katariina’s expert advice.

If you feel the same way as me, you NEED to read on.

Before I became a portrait photographer I was terrible at being in photos. If someone pointed a camera at me I froze and didn’t know what to do. I ended up looking awkward either with a strange, forced smile, or just scared – or even worse – scary. I couldn’t believe how I always managed to look the worst version of myself, while others looked just marvelous.

All this changed when I honed my skills at directing other people’s poses for portraits! Now I know exactly what to do and I don’t feel so embarrassed anymore when I see myself in photos.

So many women tell me that they have the same problem as I did with being in photos, so I thought I’d put my best posing tips into a e-book and share it with anyone who’d like some help! I have included all the basic advice like having a good posture and pushing your chin forward, and how to make your neck look longer and hips smaller… or bigger, if that’s the effect you are after. Here are the first three tips. If you enjoy them and would like to see the rest, click here to receive your complimentary full version which covers how to avoid those big arm shots and how to flatter your figure in any photo. I hope you enjoy it.

1. Good posture

This is where it all starts: to look confident and engaging in a photo, you need to have good posture. Tiny changes make a huge difference in portraits, so if you slouch even just a little bit, you’ll look like you’re tired or shy or uninterested, or all the above.

If you are having your portrait taken – whether it is for business or online dating or anything in-between – you want to look like you are interested in the person who is looking at your photo; you want to look confident and engaging.

Stand (or sit) tall as if you were lifted upwards from the top of your head, and you’ll immediately feel and look more confident and alert.

2. Shoulders down

Again, one of those things that makes a big difference in how you look. People often feel nervous when someone points a camera at them and when you’re nervous your shoulders tend to tense up – which, apart from anything else, makes your neck look shorter than it is. What we want is the exact opposite. Don’t forget to relax your shoulders when they are in the right position.

3. Chin forward and down

Women who are conscious of their chin area often tend to lift their chin up when someone points a camera at them, thinking that is the best way to avoid having a double-chin. That is in fact almost the worst thing to do (apart from tucking your chin right in). If you lift your chin up it means that you create a large nondescript area facing the camera and you move your eyes further away from the camera, which makes the chin look bigger and eyes look smaller. Instead do this: while lifting yourself up with a long neck, push your chin forward and down. This will create a nice chin line. Practise in front of the mirror.

The full version of the “Posing Guide for Women” is 15 pages long with illustrative photos and gives you all the tips you need to look confident, natural and beautiful in photos.

You can download your free copy here: blog.lighttrick.co.uk/posing-guide-for-women