For many, speaking in front of the camera is unnatural. While some literally freeze, others lose their ideas and cannot express themselves clearly. If this is your case, in this article you will discover tips to help you find naturalness in front of the camera. It’s not that easy to be comfortable in front of a camera: we all have a bit of nervousness and we feel a bit stupid.
Several situations may lead you to have to express yourself in front of the camera, such as making a promotional video to present your products or services, making a training capsule for your website or doing an interview on television.
Since they are aimed at a large audience, all of these situations have the potential to propel your business to a level that could far exceed your expectations! But they also have the potential to discredit you in the eyes of your target audience if you fail to communicate your message convincingly.
Read below the tips and ways of how to look natural in front of the camera and learn how to be more comfortable in front of the camera.
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Tips of how to look natural in front of the camera
Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest: we live in a world of images and looking good in photos seems a matter of life or death. Whether for professional purposes or simply to share on social media with a cute caption, photography is more important than ever in communicating the image we want to give. So here are secrets to look good in photos.
Show your best side
Laying on the left side seems to be best for everyone. We do not know why, but statistically speaking, it seems that the left side of our face is always the most beautiful. Try and experiment on yourself to see if it is true, otherwise choose the other side this “rule” does not necessarily apply to you.
When you laugh, put your tongue on the roof of the mouth
Nothing seems harder to do when laying down than smiling. You don’t like your teeth, some wrinkles come out on your face, your eyes tend to squint and so on. Try this trick: instead of leaving your tongue free and down, when you laugh, push it towards the palate or against the upper teeth, the smile will appear more natural and nothing is more seductive than a joyful expression.
Count down and open your eyes
It often happens that the light of the flash causes the eyes to close, some very sensitive people tend to do it almost in full synchronicity with the flash of the flash, and this is a problem.
To avoid blinking or squinting when shooting, synchronize with yourself and not with the flash. Start with your eyes closed then, aloud, start a countdown together with the photographer: 3,2,1 and open them, your gaze will appear more beautiful and your eyes brighter.
Keep your arms away from your body
The arms, as well as the hands, are always difficult to control when posing, you never know where to put them and things can get worse if the photographer gives you the suggestions because you risk losing the naturalness of the movements.
What you absolutely must avoid is to hold them flat or push them against your body at your sides.
This posture tends to deform the arms making them appear larger and out of proportion to the rest of the body.
Remove them so you will avoid having big arms and in any case not proportionate and, if you know that this is your problem, avoid using “sleeveless” clothes as you can hide them better
Push your chin forward and lengthen your neck
A portrait of a person without a neck makes a certain impression. The neck plays a very important role in photogenicity, the more the neck is stretched upwards, the longer it is and the more beautiful the portrait will be. It is not difficult to achieve this by avoiding, among other things, the annoying “double chin”, just train a little.
If you are posing for a portrait, push your chin forward without bending your head back, take your chin off your neck and lift your head up as if there were a thread pulling you up from the nape of your neck.
You should feel your whole head rise towards the ceiling as your face and especially your chin search for the camera. With that tip your photos will be like the photos of Angelina Jolie, Megan Fox or Zendaya.
Push your shoulders inward
The shoulders that open outwards are not beautiful and in addition they make the subject appear distant, non-participatory. Photographs of people should almost always be “welcoming”.
When you pose, make your shoulders stretch slightly towards the inside of the body, towards the chest, avoid opening them to the outside by pushing the head back, the sensation you would give is to appear detached. This position will make you appear more confident in the room.
If you don’t know where to put your hands, play with your clothes
Open hands are not beautiful, nor are those with highly visible veins.
If you have a dress with pockets, use them to hide your hands as much as you can, try to slip them inside, perhaps not completely, or play with the dress, with the collar of the shirt, with your hair, do not leave them motionless and above all do not show them flat towards the room.
Be careful not to let them stay upright for a long time, this posture would highlight the veins that are always unsightly especially for a woman.
Move them, do not keep them still, you will avoid that annoying yellowish or reddish color due to circulatory stasis. Do it even more if you feel cold!
If you are taking a group photo, move away from the camera
Whether you are posing for leisure or for work, it may happen that you do it together with other people, perhaps a group of friends and / or colleagues.
If you find yourself in this situation, avoid getting too close to the camera, perhaps as before the line. Being too close to the camera will satisfy your mania for protagonism but the risk you run is that it makes you appear bigger than you are.
If seeing yourself big in photographs isn’t your problem, go for it, but if you see yourself getting heavier than you are in reality, avoid this situation. Try to stay in the middle maybe squeezed between 2 people who are next to you, you will certainly appear leaner and more slender.
Choose a good photographer because a lot depends on him
How important is the photographer in all this? A lot, if not all! Getting the best out of you is his job and this checklist should serve you right to give you a hand to speed up times, make less effort and collaborate effectively with those who portray you.
If despite your efforts you find yourself posing in front of a photographer who is not up to par, this checklist will be of little use.
If the lights are not suitable for your physical conformation and facial features, as well as your personality, everything has been in vain. If your photographs are blurred, too light or too dark, framed incorrectly and you will not recognize yourself in those shots, you have only lost time and money.
Now you can decide whether to pose alone / or in front of a mirror and take your selfies by yourself or rely on the hands of professionals with proven experience.
Both the one and the other choice will be the right ones, the final decision is up to you but however it goes think about nothing it will be worth training / or to look good in the photo if the final result of the shot is not what you expected.
How to look beautiful and natural in wedding photos?
The secret to being photogenic is mainly to feel at ease, so it is important to establish a strong harmony with the photographer. Marriage is the most important day in a couple’s life, however those who are not used to being photographed as a profession, being in front of the camera for a whole day can be a source of worry.
How to look beautiful and natural in wedding photos and thus enhance the bridal look?
The professional you have chosen for the wedding will be able to give you the right suggestions, but it is always better to take some small precautions and know some tricks to be able to look perfect in the wedding photos.
Spontaneity
One of the main secrets to look good in photos is to be as natural as possible, so no static positions, better to move, hug a relative, joke with the bridesmaids dressed in their wonderful elegant ceremonial dresses, in short, do anything but think of the photographer in front of you! And to relax in front of the lens, stay in your comfort zone by taking poses that make you feel confident and not embarrassed.
Smile
Smiling is the best way to stretch your facial features! But without forced smiles, so as to avoid unnatural and artificial photos. Let’s dispel the myth of “cheese” that makes the smile tight! Let yourself go to a natural smile because when you show your emotions, the expression of happiness is all summed up in a smile! And above all, try to smile with your eyes, after all it’s YOUR DAY!
The perfect make-up
Finally, an aspect not to be underestimated is the make-up! The make-up enhances the features of the features and is able to bring out your strengths and give more light to your face. Depending on the color of the complexion or eyes, opt for a bridal makeup for green eyes rather than one for brown eyes, depending on your needs, and above all always ask your make-up artist for advice for cover images!
7 tricks to be more photogenic
Have you ever wondered how to become photogenic? Yes, because you are born photogenic, but you can also become one. We are used to thinking that being photogenic and looking good in photos is a natural gift, a fortune that belongs only to a few and that does not necessarily correspond to beauty.
Understand what works for you
To understand how to become photogenic, we must start from a basic assumption: not all expressions and poses work for everyone. Everyone has different physiognomy and physique, so it is possible that the sulking you give to your friend is not good for you. And that a hint of a smile fits your features more.
Before you get depressed because you don’t get the desired results, take a look at the photos of the stars for inspiration, like Meghan Markle or Kim Kardashian, but also go and review some of your old photos that you like and train in front of the mirror to reproduce the expressions that suit you more.
Choose a shimmery lipstick
Color in photos always helps (even if you choose a black and white filter), because it creates a play of contrasts that will make you stand out in the image. It doesn’t matter if it’s fiery red, orange, purple or hot pink. Each of you will have the shade that suits her best, but the important thing is that thanks to that lipstick the whole face will light up. It may seem nonsense, but it’s the details like this that make the difference.
Smile with your eyes and you will automatically be more photogenic
Also for this reason a little practice is necessary, in front of the mirror or directly in front of the lens to see the results immediately. Try to smile trying not to move your lips, using only your eyes. In this way the muscles of the face will be stretched making your expression fresh and sly.
Use an editing app
There is nothing wrong with using technology to enhance your photos. Not for photoshopping shapes, features and measurements, but to improve the brightness, shadows and colors of the shot. Download one of the countless apps available for photo editing and choose the one that suits you best.
Pay attention to the arms
To look good in a photo in full (or even half-length) the position of the arms is essential. Take an example from Blake Lively, who had recently given birth, and practice what Americans call the chicken arm pose: hands on hips and elbows slightly back. This way your arms will look thinner and more toned.
Cross your ankles in the full-length photos
Have you ever noticed that on the red carpet the stars often wear their legs slightly crossed just above the ankles? Also in this case it is an old trick to appear more slender in the photos in full, because it creates a vertical line that elongates the silhouette. And if Alexa Chung does it too, who doesn’t particularly need to lengthen the figure, who are we not to follow suit.
The real secret to being photogenic? Knowing how to choose the right light
Julia Roberts always says that the first person to be friends on set is the lighting technician. Not having a staff available to take care of this aspect, you will have to do it yourself: never stand under a light source or on one of those spotlights that illuminate from below, because shadows would be created on the face that would make you appear with dark circles or with wrinkles that you have never even noticed. Yes, however, in frontal light, especially if the natural one. If you want to be a real selfie pro, and look as good as Robert Pattison in photos, get somebody light up or get yourself a smartphone light.
What is photography?
The word “photography” literally means “drawing with light”. The word was invented by the British scientist Sir John Herschel in 1839 from the Greek words phôs meaning light and graphê meaning drawing or writing. The technology that led to the invention of photography combines two distinct sciences: optics, with the convergence of light rays to form an image inside a camera, and chemistry, to allow that image to be captured and recorded on photosensitive media.
First photographic experiences
Around 1800, the Englishman Thomas Wedgwood succeeded in producing a black and white image inside a camera obscura and fixing it on white paper and leather treated with silver nitrate. This chemical has been known since the Middle Ages to darken naturally when exposed to light. However, Wedgwood is not able to permanently retain the image: its lighter parts also end up darkening after several minutes.
The inventor of photography
In 1816, Frenchman Joseph Nicéphore Nièpce succeeded in capturing small images on paper treated with silver chloride, a chemical sensitive to light. However, he fails to preserve his images. He therefore began to experiment with other substances sensitive to light and, in 1822, he invented a process which he called “heliography”. Developing his process between 1822 and 1827, he succeeded in making the first preserved photography, probably dating from 1825 or 1827. It shows a window in Le Gras (Saint-Loup-de-Varennes, Saône-et-Loire), on a support of Judean bitumen spread on a silver plate, after an exposure time of several days.
In 1829, Niépce joined forces with Louis Jacques Mandé Daguerre and in 1832, they developed, from the residue of the distillation of lavender essence, a second process producing images in one day of exposure time.
Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte’s interest
Gustave Le Gray is the first official photographer of a French head of state: Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte, president in 1848 then emperor from 1852. Like other monarchs (Queen Victoria of England, for example), Louis -Napoleon quickly realizes that photography makes it possible to humanize his sovereignty and to get closer to his people. The photographs can be reproduced in large numbers and in various formats, in pocket business cards or in more luxurious prints: what a distribution throughout the Empire!
More tips to be photogenic in every photo
We often complain that our photographs do not correspond at all to what we wanted. In the photos, we tend to look bigger, the arms and legs get bigger, and dark circles appear under the eyes. Due to this lack of photogenicity, we sometimes regret not having used the decorative filters.
So the next time in the evening, when you indulge in the model’s game, posing under the camera eye, try practicing these few things that will make all the difference to appear more photogenic.
Turn your nose to the light
Light is perhaps one of the most important things in photography. It can make a three-dimensional face completely flat or distorted. Or on the contrary, accentuate makeup. To prevent unsightly skin folds and dark circles under the eyes from appearing on your face, you should always turn your nose and chin towards the light source.
Don’t hold your breath
The camera tends to ruthlessly capture any unnaturalness and tension. If a person holds their breath when taking the picture, it is reflected both on their lips, facial skin and on the figure. Result: She looks stiff and the posture is uncomfortable.
Fold everything that can be folded
As strange as it may sound, you have to try to bend all the joints, if not everything that bends in the body: shoulders, elbows, wrists, hips, knees, lower back. It will be quite difficult the first time around, but it can make a big difference. To make the pose natural, you can just move or dance. If a person feels uncomfortable, no charming curve will save the photo.
Do not lean on your hands
The elegant pose, where the young woman leans on one or both hands, only looks beautiful in words. As soon as a person holds out his hands, they immediately become visually larger. A sort of giant paws. If you don’t lean on your hands, but maintain the posture to the detriment of the press and back muscles, the whole body will feel strained. Better to put your hands on his knees calmly.
Don’t rest your cheeks on your hands
When a person supports his face with his fists, not only his hands are visually larger, but at the same time his cheeks protrude, their appearance is distorted. If you are really raising your hands, lightly touch your chin and cheeks with your fingers. In this case, you do not need to bend your fingers, it is better to straighten them.
Don’t put your hands in your hair
This pose is difficult even for professional models. It’s a pretentious game and complicated in execution, and in the photos it often looks ridiculous. In addition, if the shape of the hands is far from ideal, all imperfections will be immediately visible. The easiest way is to place your fingers on your thigh, waist, or wrap them around the forearm of your other hand. It will make the look much more tranquil and elegant.
Don’t hide your hands in your pockets or fold your fingers too much
Ideally, all parts of the body should be visible. That is, you should not hide a hand behind your back, bend your leg, or put your hands completely in your pockets. You can hide only the thumbs, while leaving the rest on your thighs calm and relaxed.
Cover your neck with hair or a scarf if you turn your head
The pose, when a woman peeks over her shoulder, is very feminine and elegant. The only negative point is that treacherous folds appear on the neck. They can be carefully covered with hair or a scarf.
Do not look directly into the camera lens
Do not look directly into the lens. It sounds too deliberate. It is better to find a point to the right of the camera, just Do not look directly into the lens. It sounds too deliberate. It is better to find a point to the right of the camera, just above the photographer’s head, and fix their gaze there.
Behave naturally
Even the most sophisticated and elegant poses always take place against a backdrop of natural demeanor. Laughter and genuine pleasure seem more beneficial and attractive. A photoshoot is, of course, serious business, but sometimes it’s worth a little distraction and some fun. The result will be more spontaneous.
