URGENT!! Portrait session on Saturday!! HELP!!

[ambidawn]

I am going to be doing an out door portrait session for a friend on Saturday ( I apologise for the short notice). She is wanting a photo to send to family for the holiday season. She is a little heavy set, and I want to ensure that the poses I have her do are flattering. She seemed a bit concerned about this and I want to make sure that she is happy with the images.
Can anyone give me adivice on some good poses?? Also if anyone has some examples that they can post that would help out tremendously!!
Thanks so much!!

-Amber

[LadyShutterBug]

the best idea for heavyset people is to find a way to shoot them from above... for instance, have her sit on a park bench. you stand on the park bench and shoot down toward her face as she looks up at you.

it's a pretty flattering angle.

[brad]

Posture is very important as well... here are a couple I did recently of a rather heavy set actress:



It sometimes helps to crop (in camera) of parts of shoulders and arms.. don't know why it works, but it gives a slightly better appearance. Have her stretch and twist a little bit, too.. it will square the shoulders more and even out the torso... nothing says "I'm fat" in a photo more than slumped shoulders and rolls of tummy because the back is arched forward.

[epoh]

Watch the arms. Don't ever have them just hanging next to the body, or just setting in front. It just makes you look even bigger. Have some amount of space between the elbow and waist if you going to get the lower half in the picture.

[bondarnes]

Standing poses usually are better than sitting. Always turn the body about 45 degrees to the camera with all the weight on the back foot, then point the front foot at the camera and bend the front knee slightly. Solid dark colors make a person appear slimmer. AVOID Bright colors, stripes (especially horizontal), bold patterns, and polka dots. Use props (bushes, stone walls, tree trunks, etc.) to hide part of the body. Having the subject lean forwards slightly then lift the chin eliminates some of the neck, especially if you have them seated. I hope this helps.

[Allison]

nice portraits Brad!

[HotHolly]

I can give you tons of tips - you can PM me if you need to.

Here are the NEVERS:

• NEVER shoot upward on a plus size person
• NEVER use a wide angle lens & then shoot up, or at parts people dont want large
• NEVER just shoot - always pose/ angle according to their shape
• NEVER do poses that you see on size 1 models (most of those poses make certain parts look larger)

This is what I do - for each client (regardless of size/ shape)
I help them pick out clothing that flatters their shape and coloring. They bring a few things to choose from. I almost always lean towards solids, except on babies. Structured clothing ( fitted jean jacket for example) and layers will help your subject look 10 lbs thinner before you even take their photo. So we pick out what works best.

After they have the outfit on, I ask them to turn. Here's what I'm looking for:

What is the WORST possible angle you could shoot this person from? - Then NEVER do it.

2nd, I look for their most curvy angle. This varies based on shape. If they turn 3 times slowly you can find it.

Next, pay attention to shadows. Shadows below the bustline and along the sides shaves off another few lbs. Shadows are the plus size person friend - so pay attention. If you cant tell where the shadows are - hold out your arms and watch how the light is covering your skin. You want her sides in the darkest part.

People that are apple shaped (carry most weight around the middle, in front) tend to look best shot straight on (IF their clothing fits right). Watch the wrinkles in the clothing. It helps.

Then these are general tips - never shoot full length images. You can take some to see wha they look like, but generally speaking, that is not the most flattering pose. If you have to shoot full length, getting 2-3ft higher than they are and shooting down helps. What the S curve (otherwise their butt will look HUGE). If you shoot down with a wide angle, that will also help a little bit if they have super wide hips.

Also - Keep her arms AWAY from her body! Hands on Hips, in pockets, etc makes a natural space b/t her body and her torso. And notice the model Brad shot - he has the top facial planes only - you can't see her chin (or double chins - if she has any). That is important.

I prepped our intern for this kind of stuff before a plus size bridal shoot she did. Here are some of her shots where she got most of the components:



This was taken from about 3ft above the bride.



Notice her shoulders are covered - cover the arms and shoulders with something if they choose to go strapless/ sleeveless.



Notice the seaming on the dress - she shot it right along the seam, which is usually one of the curveyest angles to shoot.



You can shoot a full length if the subject is proprerly weighted.


I thought she did pretty good with this girl.



Here is a shot at the beginning where she didnt know what to do to get the bride to look her best:


Im trying to shrink these images, but maybe bigger will be more helpful...

Shrunk em...

[ambidawn]

Thank you all for your help!! The photo shoot went great today. I appreciate all of the good tips!

[Allison]

I'd love to see the pictures when you're done processing them.

[ambidawn]

I just wanted to thank all of you again. The photo session went great! I will post some of the images once I finish processing them.