YOU DON`T NEED TO KNOW HOW TO POSE— Directing people in portrait photography
You don’t have to be a model. You don’t have to know what to do. You just have to be yourself.
One of the sentences I hear most often before a normal portrait shoot is: „I’m not a model.” And usually, it comes with a little nervous laugh. “I don’t know how to pose.” “I’ve never done this before.” “I’ll probably look awkward.” My answer is always the same: „That’s okay. You don’t have to know how to pose, we are not on runway, It’s my job to find the perfect shot not the perfect pose.”
I don’t believe great portraits begin with someone knowing what to do in front of a camera. They begin with someone feeling safe enough to stop worrying about what they’re doing.
01 – You bring yourself. I bring the direction.
When you step in front of my camera, you don’t need to arrive with poses. You bring yourself. I bring the light. And we figure out the rest together. That’s what directing is about. As simple as that! It’s not about putting someone into a perfect position and telling them to hold it.
It’s about watching. Listening. Moving. Giving small impulses. And noticing what happens when the person starts to forget about the camera. Sometimes it’s a movement. Sometimes it’s turning your head slightly.
Sometimes it’s simply: “Look over there.” “Take a breath.” “Stay exactly like that.” Or: „Wow. That’s it. Don’t change anything.”
02 – The first ten minutes are rarely the real photograph
Something interesting usually happens during a portrait session. The beginning can be awkward. The person is thinking about the camera. About their hands. About their face. About whether they’re standing correctly. About what I might be thinking. And then, somewhere along the way, something changes.
Maybe after ten minutes. Maybe after twenty. You can almost feel it. The person becomes quieter. The shoulders drop. The movements become more natural. They start reacting instead of thinking. They laugh. We make jokes.We talk.
And at some point, they forget that there is a camera in front of them. „That’s usually when the real photographs begin.“ Sometimes I’ll even say: “Okay, let’s format the memory card.” Not because I need to. But because by then, I know we’ve finally arrived.
03 – People don’t need more instructions. They need more confidence.
When someone is nervous, giving them even more things to think about usually doesn’t help.
“Put your hand here.” “Turn your shoulder.” “Chin down.” “Look at me.” “Smile.” “Don’t smile.”
It can quickly become a performance. And that’s not what I’m looking for. Instead, I give feedback. A lot of it.
“Wow, that looks amazing.” “Great.” “That’s a really strong shot.” “Super.” “Look how good that is.” “Don’t change anything.” „You’re doing great.”
And sometimes: „You see? I told you. You can do this.”
It might sound simple. But positive feedback changes the way someone moves. They stop asking themselves whether they’re doing it right. They start trusting themselves. And once that happens, the camera becomes less important.
04 – You have to meet people where they are
Every person arrives differently. Some are confident. Some are shy. Some are excited. Some are uncomfortable. Some have spent years avoiding cameras. And you can’t treat all of them the same. For me, directing starts with noticing where someone is emotionally. Not forcing them out of it. But meeting them there.
If someone is nervous, we take our time. If someone is energetic, we use that energy. If someone needs a laugh, we make a joke. If someone needs reassurance, I give it to them.
Because directing people isn’t just about knowing what to do with a body. „It’s about knowing what to do with a person.“
05 – I’m not a model
I remember a studio shoot with a woman who wasn’t a professional model at all. She came because she simply wanted photographs of herself. Photographs where she could see herself as a woman. And from the very beginning she kept saying:
“But I’m not a model.” Again and again. I told her: “That’s completely fine. You don’t have to be.You’re still beautiful.”
And then we simply started working. No complicated posing routine. No expectation that she suddenly had to become somebody else. We worked with what she gave me. I guided her. I encouraged her. I told her what was working. And slowly, she changed. Not physically. Something else changed. She began to see herself differently.
By the end of the shoot, she was genuinely moved by the photographs. She printed them. She put them up at home. And she still loves those images today. Not because we turned her into a model. But because, for a moment, she was able to see herself differently.
„She didn’t need to become someone else. She just needed someone to see her.“
06 – Posing is not the goal
I don’t think posing is bad. There are situations where a pose is exactly what you need. But posing should never become the purpose of a portrait.
The purpose is the person. A pose is simply a tool.Directing is different. Directing gives someone something to do without asking them to perform. It creates movement. It creates interaction. It gives the person something to focus on. And most importantly, it gives them permission to stop worrying about whether they look good. That’s when something real can happen.
07 – The moment they forget about the camera
There is a moment I am always looking for. It’s not a particular pose. It’s not a particular facial expression. It’s the moment when the person stops thinking: „I’m being photographed.” And starts simply being. That moment might last half a second.
A laugh. A look away. A breath. A tiny movement. A completely relaxed expression. And sometimes that’s the photograph.
„Not because it is perfect. But because it feels like You.“
08 – You don’t need to know how to pose
If you’ve ever stood in front of a camera and thought: “I have no idea what I’m supposed to do.”
Good. You don’t have to. You don’t need to know where to put your hands. You don’t need to know what your “good side” is. You don’t need to become a model. You don’t need another face. You don’t need a different body. You don’t even need to know what you’re doing. You just need someone who knows how to look. Someone who knows how to guide. Someone who can see the light. And someone who can remind you: „You’re already enough.“
The rest? We’ll figure it out together. Because a great portrait isn’t created when you learn how to pose. „It’s created when you finally forget that you are posing.“
