Photography and Posing
Looking good in the real world is difficult but it's a little easier to look good in online pictures where you can control factors such as the viewing angle, lighting, pose, background, etc. Also, you can take hundreds and thousands of pictures and post only the cream of the crop. I set the timer on my camera for 10 seconds and have it take 5 pictures about 2 seconds apart. It can be amazing how a small change in pose, position, or facial expression can make a huge difference.
I love to try on different outfits and create new looks so I'm constantly dressing at home and looking in the mirror. What I do is set up mu camera about chest-high on a tripod with a large mirror behind it. I find extreme camera angles (shooting up, or down, or very close) usually distort the body in an unflattering way. Either you are looking up at your fat chin, or down on your broad shoulders, or your proportions seem out of whack.
I point the camera toward a part of the room that will not create a distraction in the background. I make sure there are no bright lights or windows behind me. I use the mirror to try different poses for each of the clicks of the camera.
Lighting can make a big difference. I find it best when soft light hits the face from directly in front. I turn the ceiling light fixture off, place a bright lamp behind the camera and make sure I use the flash. This also limits red-eye. Light that strikes from above accentuates the structure and ridges of the face and body that define the differences between male and female. Indoors, some of that can be compensated for with makeup, at least for the purpose of taking pictures, but direct sunlight is unforgiving.
When outside I make sure I am standing in the shade or at least face away from the sun. When the camera is set right so that the brightness is targeted on the face, having the subject backlit by the sun can be quite pretty; especially when the backlight creates a highlight or halo around the edges of the subject. I will often position myself outside where sunlight is reflecting off a building or I'll even place something on the ground to reflect light onto me.
Finally, there is a lot you can do with photo editing software. Adjusting brightness, contrast, and red-eye can be very helpful. Simply cropping a photo to cut off a portion that looks particularly not feminine such as hairy arms or legs can make a world of difference. Frequently, I'll crop a picture of my upper body so that the right and left edges are at the centers of my shoulders. That way I'm disguising my broad shoulders and sometimes muscular looking arms while still making my thin waist visible.
Using various poses that emphasize feminine features and hide masculine ones is important as well.
Posing
When taking pictures you can maximize your feminine presentation with your pose. I’ve written up the things that I focus on most when taking photos.
Smile! The most beautiful thing a girl can put on is a smile. I find a smile that shows teeth is best. Although you might feel good, with a wild, kicking up the heels expression, and open mouth or a very expressive look doesn’t usually translate the way you’d hoped. It’s usually best to face directly or nearly directly at the camera. The larger, more angular features of a male face are more noticeable the closer you get to being in a profile position. Keep your chin down but try to extend your head directly toward the camera (like a turtle) to make sure you don’t have any extra chins.
Keep your fingers together to make your hands look more slender. If you can do it looking natural, don’t let the broad, flat top or bottom of your hand face forward. Tilt it at least 45 degrees so that the side of your hand is forward with each finger partially hidden by the finger in front of it. Extending your fingers wide makes the hands look wider and more manly. Placing one hand on the hip is a natural pose and keeps your arms from hiding the hourglass figure you’ve worked so hard to create. When you do this, remember to angle your wrist so that it kind of dips and your hand is pointing upwards to a degree. A man’s arms naturally hang a little wider and curve back in toward the body (picture a body builder in his puffed up exaggeration of this). Avoid this by putting one hand on a hip and the other holding something, partially behind your body, touching your hair, etc. and smile!
To minimize the look of the broader shoulders and the more bow-leggedness of the male body, stand at an angle to the camera. You can even pose standing with your legs crossed in an X to help this illusion and create more of an inverted tear-drop shape on the bottom half of your body. And don’t forget to smile!
You can hide a knobby knee, love handle or bicep muscle with a well placed manicured hand. Whenever possible point your toes…even when standing. Keep your elbows close to your body. Hold your shoulders down and back. Hold your knees together. And, most of all, you guessed it, smile.
Most of the above applies to sitting poses as well but there are additional leg positions to keep in mind. Again facing directly forward is not the best. When crossing legs, have the leg nearest the camera cross over the other one. If you do it the opposite way, It will exaggerate the calf muscle of the top leg which is usually already bigger than most females’. Dangling the heel of your shoe off your foot a little is a nice touch. Another good sitting pose is with knees together but one foot tucked under or back. Are you smiling?
Try to keep your shoulders back and your stomach in …but in a relaxed way! (there’s a reason models get paid so well.) And don’t forget to smile.
Finally, holding a prop like a wine glass or just about anything can add some interest. Posing as if doing a certain action or task can be tricky but is kind of a fun change of pace.
I often save photos I come across of women in attractive poses and then practice them when I get a chance to see if I can do them.
