Picture Perfect Posing: Practicing the Art of Posing for Photographers and Models

12. Balancing the Subject Ratio

This chapter deals more with posing couples than individuals or groups of people. Even if you don’t pose couples, however, read the chapter carefully because its principles should be on your mind whenever you are holding a camera.

Here’s the theory behind this chapter: When posing couples, the proportion of their torsos visible to the camera should be somewhat similar. The key to remembering this is to ask yourself, “How much of each of their torsos do you see from your particular camera angle?” Is one person blocking 90 percent of the other person’s body? If so, adjust the pose, or change your camera angle to create a more equal ratio. I always try to keep the visibility ratios as similar as possible. When this ...