25 Relaxed Poses That Look Natural

Top 25 Relaxed Poses for Photography

There are two-three things in natural posing that are incredibly important. They are to form a connection between people, create the basis for movement, and give people freedom to do what they want.

1. Try Tickling

This idea is ideal for a family photo session. The interaction between family members looks natural and funny. Ask your clients to sit next to each other.

When everyone is comfortable, parents can gently tickle their children. While tickling, grownups look at their kids. Make sure that the faces of adults are not hidden behind the children’s heads.

Find out more couple poses.

2. Breathing In

Family hugs look very cute. Suggest your clients embrace and get as close to each other as possible. Then ask them to breathe each other in. This pose is suitable for both children and adults.

The child can look at the parents or his/her gaze can be directed to the lens. This relaxed pose can be a great connecting point for further interaction.

3. Make Them Move

Young children get tired and bored very quickly, and you need to mind this while preparing natural poses for photography. Bring a fun element to the entire shooting process! Ask parents to stay near kids and hold their hands or hug.

At the same time, I ask the children to start moving. I offer them various activities. For example, they can play ring around some objects, try to catch each other or hold hands and head towards me. These poses will help you take interesting and creative portraits.

4. Photograph the Whole Family

Classic poses seem a little annoying and unattractive. So I'm trying to test different creative approaches to put the whole family in the frame.

Start by using the most advantageous lighting. Tell your clients to shorten the distance between them to have everyone in the frame. They can choose a natural standing pose on their own.

When everyone is ready, ask them to interact. Keep your camera at hand to capture the best moments.

5. Don’t Look Into the Lens

Ask your clients to look anywhere but the lens. Facing each other is a nice way out. Thus, you will be able to capture a natural interaction between the members. People can sit close and then turn faces to each other. If you have to take pictures of children, I recommend adding a bit of humor to make them look at their parents.

Check out more male poses.

6. Kid Holding the Parent’s Hand and Going Forward

I often use this natural pose when photographing a family with a child taking his/her first steps. The kid should go a little ahead of the parents. You must be careful and take care of safety, as a child may run unexpectedly. Besides, the youngsters get tired pretty quickly.

7. Capture Embracing Kids

If there are several children in the family, ask them to lie down near each other. This is one of the most touching relaxed poses for children photoshoot. Make sure the children are comfortable and warm. Lay the blanket on the ground and scatter leaves on it for a decorative effect.

8. Photograph a Parent Reading a Book

This pose will help you demonstrate how caring a parent is. I use this idea for both home and outdoor shootings. Ask a parent to sit down by the crib or a child’s bed (any comfortable place will do) with a book. Capture the moment when he/she is reading the story to show a special connection between an adult and a kid.

9. Family on the Sofa

The family sitting on the couch looks very natural and relaxed. Place the biggest family member in the middle and ask to hug others.

10. Warm Hugs

This natural pose is great for group photos of friends or family. It is very simple so you won’t face any difficulties.

11. With Backs to Camera

I always take several full-length shots. Ask a model to bend his/her knee so that the weight is shifted slightly away from the camera. Hands may be on hips or any other body part (experiment a little). Remember that the model should be well lit.

12. Moving Towards the Camera

Capture a model approaching you. Ask a model to walk confidently with the eyes looking away or at the lens. When photographing on the beach, ask your client to start at the shallow water and, while moving in your direction, create small waves with the foot.

Do not stand in one place and take photos from different angles to get the most impressive pictures.

Find more female poses.

13. Going Away from the Camera

Suggest a girl move away from the camera. She can lower her head down or look over her shoulder. Make the shot more interesting by playing with the hair or a dress.

14. Capture a Sitting Model

Ask a model to sit down. Now you can try some relaxed poses that will help you highlight the shyness and modesty of the girl. You can use some props, for example, jewelry or a flower.

This pose is suitable for various types of shots including macro images and full-body photographs. You can ask a lady to change the position of the arms and legs to get more diverse shots. Keep an eye on how her hands look in a frame.

Learn more model poses.

15. Hair

Don’t miss the opportunity to bring model’s beautiful hair into focus. Ask her to run her hand along the hair or shake it. To get a controlled flow of hair, you can turn on the fan. Ask a woman to change facial expressions and you will probably end up with some cool photos.

Get more info on headshot poses.

16. Lifting the Baby

This natural pose is familiar to all parents because they frequently play with their children in this way. Mind the safety rules. I recommend taking pictures from below as well as holding the camera at an eye level.

17. Son and Father Shaking Hands

This pose is a great idea to demonstrate the close connection between generations. The image of a father and son shaking hands on an important day will look touching in a family album.

18. Family Walking Together

Just ask the family to walk holding hands. I recommend using burst mode to get more stunning shots. After shooting, you can choose the images where the legs in motion look the best. Take care of the focus as people are getting closer to you.

19. Group Sequence

This photoshoot pose is great for group photos. You must arrange the sequence so that each participant is standing behind the other, peering over his shoulder. Place the first person in the center of the frame and arrange the rest of the group. Check that everyone is looking at the camera.

20. Have Fun Jumping

Suggest your clients a little run and then ask them to jump up together. You will surely get an interesting and funny picture.

21. Laying

Take a picture of the model lying on the soft green grass. Photograph from the ground level to get the best shot.

22. Focus on the Eyes

This is one of the easiest natural poses you can try. Let the model lie on the grass, the ground, the bed, etc. The main thing is to focus on his/her eyes and take pictures from a very low angle.

23. Dancing Couple

Photos featuring a dancing couple look romantic and beautiful. In addition, the dance will help ease tension and make the atmosphere relaxed.

24. Catch a Lifestyle Smile

Make your models laugh by telling them a joke or a funny life story.

25. Rider Pose

This is another idea of how to pose naturally. Take a picture of a girl sitting on a guy’s back. Want to have some fun? Ask them to swap places. Add some movement and energy and you will get great photos!

Relaxed Posing Tips

The worst thing about poses is having to choose between an artistic or a natural one. Luckily, there is such a thing as a relaxed pose and I am very happy to use it.

I wouldn’t say that this type of posing is very traditional, but I love how authentic and real it looks in the photograph.

1. Talk to Your Client

You should never approach a photoshoot like an ordinary business deal where a client simply pays for the services provided. They invite you into their life (albeit for a very short time) and want to share their important moments with you.

So, a great photographer, who is interested in getting the best shots will always try to build rapport with the client. It’s the number one thing if you want to see the relaxed natural pose from the client.

2. Learn Something about Them

Even before you see them in person, you can start learning about your clients. On the Contact page, think about what creative and unusual questions you would like them to answer and tailor them to the person.

For example, if it’s a family photoshoot, ask them about the best memories they have as a family. Ask a child about a dream birthday celebration, and school-leavers planning a high school graduation photoshoot can be asked about how they would spend a week after they graduate if they could go anywhere in the world.

3. Pay Attention to Which Pose Comes Naturally

Knowing the theme of the photoshoot and the client a little better, I may think of a pose or two that I would like them to take.

However, I will often simply observe them while giving ordinary directions, like “Could you go over there and sit on the couch/bench/blanket?” No specific pose, my task will be to notice what they do naturally. After that, I will try and correct the pose in a way that will make it still look natural but a little better.

Quite often, a client will, for example, take a relaxed standing pose that I wouldn’t have thought about. Not only will it be more natural for a person, but it will also suit the subject’s personality more and will be more recognizable in the finished image.

Find out about maternity photo poses.

4. Show How to Pose Naturally Yourself

In case the pose I have in mind is too specific to be explained, I will model it myself. It takes away the stress of trying to understand verbal instructions of how the arms and legs should be placed. In general, everyone feels a little more confident when he/she sees another person demonstrate what he/she needs to recreate.

5. Keep Talking

Having established the rapport, never let the awkward silence fall between you and your model. It is not something that will get the client to strike relaxed poses during the photoshoot if they feel tense.

All you need is to keep talking with your client. You may ask a few questions or tell some stories to get smiles and laughs from the subject. Why not ask them to tell a story or two themselves?

Finally, don’t forget to compliment the person. It can be anything you find prominent, eyes, makeup, hair, etc. However, you need to make sure your compliments will not be perceived as flirting.

6. Don’t Forget About Breathing

This is probably the most obvious thing, but taking a few deep breaths may work wonders. Especially if the person you are photographing feels nervous in front of the camera (and most people do).

Ask them to take a slow deep breath, that will not only help them shake off the tension but will also help relax the upper part of the body.

Do you need ideas for an unusual project? Check out ballet photography tips and poses.

7. Keep Them Busy

By giving the subject some task to do, you take their mind off the photoshoot itself and will get more natural and relaxed poses by encouraging movement.

It can be a simple walk, a jump or moving to music. Couples can be asked to snuggle or hug. If it’s a family photoshoot, how about asking them to pass a secret from one person to the other?

8. Mind the Hands and Feet

A person’s hands may tell if they feel tense. In this case, you will notice that the palm is straight and the fingers are flat. When the person feels comfortable, the fingers are a bit curved. If you notice that the person is nervous, ask them to soften the hand. Remember that hands crossed in front of the person look defensive.

Legs and feet should also be watched closely. The most common pose people tend to strike while in front of the camera is straightening their legs, which makes the subject look tense. To get a natural standing pose, you can ask your client to shift a bit and put the weight of their body on either foot (whichever feels more comfortable and natural).

Explore these hand poses for a stunning photo session.

9. Introduce Touching

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Physical contact, like touch, can work amazingly well in photos of families and couples. It is a way to show how connected they are and will make them look close.

If you are photographing a couple, the more they touch in the photo, the more intimacy will be added to the relaxed standing poses, for instance. There should be at least 2 points of touching to get the effect. For example, holding hands and touching with their foreheads.

Here are 50 family portrait poses.

10. Learn How to Photograph a Group

When taking a picture of a group of people, look at how far from each other they stand. If there is a noticeable distance, in the final image they will look remote and isolated.

Make sure, though, that the couple you are photographing is comfortable showing affection in a photo this way. If they are not, you will hardly get natural poses for photography.

11. Capture the Moment

The last but not the least factor of getting relaxed poses from your clients is trying to capture the moment. This moment may be imperfect and you may feel like tweaking and changing something, but is important to capture it anyway because it will be at its most natural.

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25 Relaxed Poses – How To Pose Naturally