Family pictures coming up and you’re wondering how to pose for pictures to look your best? Today I’m sharing my top three tips for how to look great in family photos! While gently guiding my clients into flattering poses and authentic moments is my job, I always like to start out with these three reminders.

Connect with your family: literally!

Give your hands something to do and make your photos look just as connected as you really are as a family by making sure you’re always touching another family member or two. Cuddle in close to your partner. Gently rest your hand on your son’s shoulder, hold your toddler’s hand, pick your kiddo up and snuggle them close, even if (especially if) they’re almost too big for that. The more connection points there are, the more connected your photo will feel.

Push your forehead towards the camera and relax your shoulders down

We tend to let our shoulders shrug up and our chin come in to our neck if we’re running around (say, wrangling children into the car to get to a photo session on time). You look tense, you feel tense…take a minute at the start of the session to take a deep breath and purposefully feel your shoulders relax. Push your forehead out towards the camera, elongating your neck and stretching all that tension away. It looks flattering and you’ll feel more relaxed.

Twist slightly away from the camera and hold your weight on your back leg

Facing the camera straight on can look unnatural and stiff. Instead, step one leg back and hold your weight on that leg. Twist your torso to the side as you do that. If you imagine there’s a clock as you look down, your front toe will be pointed to 12:00 and your back leg and belly button will be pointed towards 2:00. This adds a more dynamic shape and looks more relaxed and natural!

Feeling confident about how to look great in family photos, but you still don’t have a session booked?

Let’s fix that! Head over to my website to get in touch about booking family photos in Portland!