You Don’t Have to Fear the Frame Anymore

With Thanksgiving less than a week away, you may already be dreading the Holiday Family Photo.

For some, the moment someone suggests a group photo can trigger thoughts like "Maybe I better check that turkey" or "I’ll stand behind the Barcalounger – again."

I used to check the stove, too. I used more body-blocking props than a pregnant Lucille Ball. There are whole sections of my life where I checked out of photos until a photographer friend of mine taught me some simple tricks to love photos no matter your weight, or age or fear of the flashbulb.

Wine Country photographer Remy Gervais used to wonder why the phrase ‘the camera adds ten pounds’ always felt so true to her.

“It’s because the camera is attempting to take a two dimensional photo of a three dimensional object. The image tends to flatten out a bit, hence the 'widening' feeling I always saw in photos of myself,” said Gervais who organizes the 500-member strong Sonoma County Photography Group on Meetup.com.

Journalists are encouraged to have a public face, which allows readers to identify with them. Look, she has little crow’s feet just like mine! Yet so many of us use the best photo we’ve taken in the past decade, even if it’s our DMV photo. Do you think Dear Abby really looked like her photo? The one she used for 30 years?

A few years ago I found myself in the photo hot seat at my highest weight and most layered double chins, when the photographer I worked with took pity on me.

He raised his arms so that the camera was slightly above my head.  Click..click..click. We took a look at the photos.

No good.

He stood on a wood block and clicked some more shots.

Still no good.

I wasn’t insulted when he dragged a step stool over and tried shots from all three levels.  He had a ladder. I told him to use it.

I joked that we could rig up a wire system so he could shoot me like Tom Cruise in Mission Impossible, but it didn’t come to that. We found the right stair, we found the right amount of chin tilt and I finally didn’t blink.

“All I had to do is get higher than you, shoot down, while you put your chin down and looked up through your eyelashes,” he said.

“That’s it? That’s the secret to cute photos?” I asked, proving once again that everything is a mystery until someone shows you how.

Remy Gervais has her own tips for any shutter emergency:

1.  Don't pose. Don’t say 'cheese.’ Most staged photos look stiff and unnatural.

2.  Ask taller people take the photos. A taller photographer tends to get shots of your face and the body just kind of flows down from there. NEVER pose directly over a camera or have the photographer lie down and shoot up. You are just asking for trouble.

3.  Take photos before the sun goes down. Natural light is much more flattering than flash. 

4.  Drink. Photos tend to look much better if people are relaxed and having a good time. Nobody will focus on the horizontal stripes you’re wearing, they’ll only see how much fun you’re having.

5.  Wear what you feel good in. Don't wear the snowman sweater just because it’s Christmas. Our favorite clothes just make us look better.

6. Standing slightly sideways, chin down with one shoulder slightly dipped addresses the "camera add 10 pounds" worries. 

I’ll take Remy’s body shot tip a step further. I think another good trick is putting one leg in front of the other with the front knee slightly bent. Then turn your hips slightly to create the illusion of a slimmer frame. If it’s good enough for Miss America, it works for me. And don’t lean into a shot – it makes everything look larger.

Don’t we always think we were too fat or too skinny in photographs? That we dressed sloppy or were overdone? But when we actually look back at old photos of ourselves, usually we’re surprised at how good we looked. How happy we seemed.

Family photos are what we run back into a burning home to save. They are how we tell the story of our lives. So, why duck, now that you know how to shine in them?

Camera up, chin down, look up through your eyelashes.

If you’ve been out of the frame for a while, these photo posing tips should help you jump back in with your biggest smile.