Posing question

crimbfighter · Sep 13, 2018

I'm wondering if anyone has any suggestions on how to adjust this pose to help minimize the upper arm bulging out. This was from a senior session I shot this week and hadn't tried this pose before. I liked the pose but can't help wonder if there is a way to adjust it somehow to thin out her upper arm. I was thinking maybe having her turn her elbow out so it's not locked, thereby reducing the squeeze of her armpit, but I'm not sure. Any suggestions?

P.S. Before anyone mentions the liquify filter, that would defeat the purpose of my question :345:

SquarePeg · Sep 13, 2018

I am supposed to be shooting a portrait for a friend next week and just was reading up on poses as she is plus size and I wanted to make the photos flattering. I found this on the web

"If a person’s arm looks fat, they will think they look fat. Even slender women can get “fat arms” if they are positioned poorly. If she is leaning her weight back on an arm, it needs to be bent and positioned slightly away from her body. Do not let it protrude out so it looks double jointed, this pushs the arm muscle to bulge in the back of the arm. A bent anything always looks slimmer."

Sorry didn't save the url, was just copying/pasting notes into a single doc to take with me.

tirediron · Sep 13, 2018

Honestly? I would bin that pose. It places her head farthest from the camera (and by extension, makes it less prominent in the image). You could give her something to lean against and shoot waist up, or have her lay down "chaise lounge" style on the top of the wall.

Vtec44 · Sep 13, 2018

It looks like she's actually supporting her weight with that arm, and in addition to pressing it against her body. I would try not having her weight being supported by that arm and point it slightly away from her body, in addition to change either her upper torso angle or your camera angle so the arm is not directly facing the camera.

Derrel · Sep 13, 2018

I would focus more on having the shirt smoothed on the tummy area, than with the arm. A bit more arch to the back would give her a better body positioning, but it would feel awkward in real life. It's interesting that this pose coms up; this very morning on IG I was looking at this same pose as he shot it, he being a fellow I knew a few years ago in Oregon but who has since moved, LifeofHines. He mentioned to his model that she needed to arch her back, and he shot this pose from behind! It worked well because the scenery she was in front of looked fantastic. She mentioned that she "felt awkward" at the shooting time, but that the pose turned out great.

I dunno...does her arm look "big" in this? Not especially so to me, and it's what a normal weight, fairly fit young woman actually looks like. I get that many people want to look like uber-slender fashion model types, and I understand a lot about body image issues, which there are plenty of today. To avoid the bulging, I think you've got to move the arm out, away from the body a bit more, and not have quite so much weight on the arm-lean, and more body support from an arched spine and in conjunction, tightening of the core muscles. As to the pose: I'm not super-fond of this one...I'd prefer other seated poses, or side-lying poses with the head propped up on a hand and arm...as tirediron says, this pose could be binned. Why? I think it looks un-balanced...just not "real"...seated, legs folded is another option that looks different from this...gets rid of all the weight going backwards. I guess I think this pose looks as if the person is going to tip over backwards.

crimbfighter · Sep 13, 2018

SquarePeg said:
I am supposed to be shooting a portrait for a friend next week and just was reading up on poses as she is plus size and I wanted to make the photos flattering. I found this on the web

"If a person’s arm looks fat, they will think they look fat. Even slender women can get “fat arms” if they are positioned poorly. If she is leaning her weight back on an arm, it needs to be bent and positioned slightly away from her body. Do not let it protrude out so it looks double jointed, this pushs the arm muscle to bulge in the back of the arm. A bent anything always looks slimmer."

Sorry didn't save the url, was just copying/pasting notes into a single doc to take with me.

Thanks for the info, it more or less validates my suspicion about not locking the arm at the elbow to allow it to no pinch up top. Good luck with your upcoming portrait shoot!

crimbfighter · Sep 13, 2018

tirediron said:
Honestly? I would bin that pose. It places her head farthest from the camera (and by extension, makes it less prominent in the image). You could give her something to lean against and shoot waist up, or have her lay down "chaise lounge" style on the top of the wall.

Thanks for the feedback! I hadn't thought about having her lay down, but that could be worth a try in the future. For some reason, and despite its flaws, I still like this image, but maybe it's more because of the light/colors, and her expression. I do also have another image from the same pose, but shot tighter, where it is captured more waist up. Same thing with the arm, though.

crimbfighter · Sep 13, 2018

Vtec44 said:
It looks like she's actually supporting her weight with that arm, and in addition to pressing it against her body. I would try not having her weight being supported by that arm and point it slightly away from her body, in addition to change either her upper torso angle or your camera angle so the arm is not directly facing the camera.

Thanks for the suggestions! With regard to her arm, do you mean to have her move her hand farther away from her body or turn her elbow out? And you were correct, she was supporting her weight with it.

crimbfighter · Sep 13, 2018

Derrel said:
I would focus more on having the shirt smoothed on the tummy area, than with the arm. A bit more arch to the back would give her a better body positioning, but it would feel awkward in real life. It's interesting that this pose coms up; this very morning on IG I was looking at this same pose as he shot it, he being a fellow I knew a few years ago in Oregon but who has since moved, LifeofHines. He mentioned to his model that she needed to arch her back, and he shot this pose from behind! It worked well because the scenery she was in front of looked fantastic. She mentioned that she "felt awkward" at the shooting time, but that the pose turned out great.

I dunno...does her arm look "big" in this? Not especially so to me, and it's what a normal weight, fairly fit young woman actually looks like. I get that many people want to look like uber-slender fashion model types, and I understand a lot about body image issues, which there are plenty of today. To avoid the bulging, I think you've got to move the arm out, away from the body a bit more, and not have quite so much weight on the arm-lean, and more body support from an arched spine and in conjunction, tightening of the core muscles. As to the pose: I'm not super-fond of this one...I'd prefer other seated poses, or side-lying poses with the head propped up on a hand and arm...as tirediron says, this pose could be binned. Why? I think it looks un-balanced...just not "real"...seated, legs folded is another option that looks different from this...gets rid of all the weight going backwards. I guess I think this pose looks as if the person is going to tip over backwards.

Thanks for the reply, Derrel. I do agree about her shirt. That was a constant battle. She wore shirts that seemed to cling and wrinkle and were an ever present issue. I tried to stay on top of it but missed it sometimes. I definitely do not think her arm looks too big, but I'm also cognizant of what I think she will notice and feel. I do have certain boundaries I won't cross when it comes to altering images or poses to create something that is simply unrealistic. I think we have enough issues with body image in this country already... But, if there is something simple and quick I can do to reduce certain minor things, I am willing to try, hence my question! Thanks again for the suggestions!

Vtec44 · Sep 13, 2018

crimbfighter said:
Thanks for the suggestions! With regard to her arm, do you mean to have her move her hand farther away from her body or turn her elbow out? And you were correct, she was supporting her weight with it.

I typically just point the elbow out but try other things to see how they look.

SquarePeg · Sep 13, 2018

I agree that she is not overweight but the arm looks oddly misshapen in the photo. Not sure if it would have jumped out at me quite so much if you hadn’t pointed it out but now that I’ve noticed it, I can’t unnotice it and it’s all I see.

Dean_Gretsch · Sep 14, 2018

I agree with Derrel that her shirt is a bigger issue than the arm. My eyes were drawn there first.

RichieT · Sep 14, 2018

Here's a Sue Bryce video on slimming model poses. She shows how to control the upper arm in poses.

SquarePeg · Sep 14, 2018

I find her super annoying.

Designer · Sep 14, 2018

crimbfighter said:
Any suggestions?

Ignore.

Who is being concerned by the arm? The model? You? Her mother?

I see nothing about the arm that needs to be changed in any way. Natural human arm.

Now a different pose might do what you want (not knowing what that is), but for this pose, which is an informal HS photo of a young woman, it is what it is.