If you’re a photographer, you’ve got to understand body language. Many of the most talented photographers don’t realize it, but body language can completely change the way you do business. Although a photograph cannot record body movement over time, as does video, it excels in portraying the essence of a person disclosed through body language at a particular moment in time. It can capture a physical expression that might last only a second, that otherwise might go unnoticed in the stream of a person’s movement.
Why is body language important in photography?
People say a picture is worth a thousand words. And they’re right. The lighting, the setting, the make-up–that’s what most photographers think about. But what about the nonverbal messages people send in photos?
Photographers who like to photograph people might benefit from familiarizing themselves with the basic body language patterns that portray particular emotions and mental states. A cluster of physical signals make up a pattern, which more reliably expresses a person’s mental state than a single aspect of body posture.
Photographers might use this knowledge to recognize a revealing moment to capture, or to direct models into a psychologically intriguing pose. Although these categories overlap, it’s helpful at first to think of them as relatively distinct states of mind.
The body is never mute. Even when people come together and don’t speak to each other, they communicate through their body language. Interlocked arms are as much a message as changing the position of the legs, but also the color of the blouse or a subtle perfume is a way of communication.
Facial expressions, gestures, posture and clothing are important instruments of nonverbal communication, which is the oldest form of interpersonal communication. Unknowingly we send out powerful messages with our bodies, which reveal our real feelings.
As a photographer, you can make good use of this power by making sure that your model’s posture matches the emotion you want to capture. To achieve this, it is important that you are aware of the different ways in which this power works.
That’s why it’s so important that the portrait photographer pay close attention to the body language of a subject during a session, especially if that portrait is intended for professional purposes.
for every mood or effect that needs to be created for a picture, the pose of a model can make a big difference. For this it is important that you know for yourself what you want to see. So for your next shoot, invest a few extra minutes to find out which poses are best for your shoot and make a plan or mood board to take with you.
Obviously the face, but also the hands, play a critical role in expressing emotion and mental states. These areas of the body are rich in nerve endings, and disproportionately large areas of the brain are devoted to processing information about what’s happening there, which attests to how important Mother Nature considers them in people perception.
Body language in a photograph never occurs in a vacuum. Other elements of the image influence how we interpret the physical appearance and posture of the subject. Consider the role of body language in the overall composition of the shot.
Consider also your own body language during the shoot. Portrait photographers often discuss how interacting with subjects influences their poses.
If body language has a subtle, unconscious effect on people, then why not use it effectively? For example, to help a subject relax, avoid your own anxious body language and assume a calm, receptive posture.
Psychotherapists have discovered that if you mimic or reflect back someone’s body language, even in a subtle manner, that person will feel understood, which would certainly encourage a subject to allow a revealing portrait.
Experimenting with body language possibilities in a playful way with your subjects might help everyone relax as well as open doors to interesting poses.
Tyra Banks tells her models to push a posture or facial expression to its extreme limits, then pull it back. If possible, why not model that for the model? Activating body language activates emotions, and that’s what a good photo is all about. Posture can be used to impress or mislead, to focus or distract. The body is one of our most potent tools for expressing ideas, feelings, and creating a sense of self. When it comes to fashion photography, the body has for so long been a tool used to create concepts around items of clothing.
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