How to Pose Hands in Portraits
Sometimes the smallest things in a photo can impact the overall feel of the image.
I learned this important lesson the first time I photographed a wedding.
The grooms hands gave it all away.
On the day itself I thought the bride and groom were very relaxed an enjoying the day, but on getting the photos back I was immediately drawn to the hands of the groom. In virtually every shot they were clenched or grasping at the sleeves of his suit coat.
In showing the photos to others I found that quite a few of them noticed the same thing while others thought he looked stressed but couldn’t quite put their finger (no pun intended) on why.
I later found out that the groom was having second thoughts about what he was doing all day long. His hands told the story.
The hands and fingers are often giveaways to how the rest of the body is feeling.
How to Photograph Hands
1. When posing a subject pay particular attention to their hands and encourage your model to keep them relaxed and their fingers separated.
2. If your subject can’t seem to relax their hands – consider composing shots that don’t include the hands (head shots and upper body shots).
3. Sometimes the best thing to do with hands is to give them something to hold or do. Consider using a prop (as long as it adds to and is relevant the shot and isn’t distracting) or have them rest upon some other element in the shot (a leg, a chair etc).
4. Lastly – hands tend to look best when shot from the side. Front on shots of hands can often look quite blob like.
Do you pay attention to hands in your shots? How do you pose them? Share your tips.
16 Responses to “How to Pose Hands in Portraits” - Add Yours
January 3rd, 2007 at 7:05 am
first of all: algo – that is one extremely cool yet oh so creepy shot of hands up there. It’s like a lesson in topography.
second: great tip. I gotta tell you I get nervous when the portrait photographer doesn’t seem to care about the details of the shot (like the hands of the subject, for example). Like all things, you have to be careful not to overload the subject with some details, though. I had a photographer make me so twitchy about licking my lips (he kept insisting we do it on every shot) that I couldn’t relax and get natural for the shot. It’s a series of trade-offs, I suppose, and the people who practice their skills get the right mixture.
January 4th, 2007 at 3:19 am
The traditional method that I always use if I am about to be photographed is “hands loosely clasped in front”. Seems to stop me looking like too much of a goof ball.
January 5th, 2007 at 1:23 am
THe first tip I ever got about hands in photographs wasn’t directed to me as a photographer but as one in the pictures. The Rabbi at a friend’s wedding directed me and the other grommsmen “not to fig-leaf” refering to Adam and Eve. (ie. grasping one and with the other and holding below the belt) His reasoning was that no one except the Secret Service and uptight or nervous people in weddings do that. It looks unnatural. Instead he told us to do the most uncomfortable thing in the world – place them by our sides. Oddly enough, the photos looked more relaxed and natural. Now, as a photographer, I can relate that back to my subjects. I’m glad the Rabbi was there to direct us.
January 5th, 2007 at 10:54 am
When assisting a school photographer I was told always to get people seated in a formal group/class/team photo to have their hands closed in a fist and on their knees. This look so much better than having fingers pointing forward. Also I think standing people often look more natural with their hands behind their back rather than the “fig leaf” position refrred to by Chris.
January 5th, 2007 at 8:30 pm
For me the hands are important from the point of view of leter cropping pictures.
If you want to produce a head to waist pic from a person standing for instance, you get a truncated unsatisfactory picture if the hands are below half way down.
There are ways of keeping tne hands in the top half – arms around one another or a single person simply clasping their hands or holding something.
The main thing is to get the subject to do something that looks and feels comfortable
January 9th, 2007 at 1:50 am
As a photojournalist, the hands play an important role in makeing a picture. For some unknown reason, people male and female, have a tendency to strike the “fig leaf” pose, like they are expecting to get kicked. Have them put a hand in pocket, give them something to hold and tell them why. In head shots of speakers, hands are necessary to add some power to the photo. Most of all, keep it simple and know when to shoot the frames to get the best shot. Just remember, people can all by themselves look very stupid in pictures – it’s your job to keep them from that!
January 9th, 2007 at 5:56 am
Yes, yes, yes, but what happened to the marriage…?
January 12th, 2007 at 5:41 am
I work with a pre-school photography company and was always told to have fingers together and not spread, it looks abnormal to me…..what is the right way?
May 31st, 2008 at 3:34 am
If the person looks nervous and doesn’t know what to do with their hands, I ask them to tell me a joke, or ask them for details on what they do. Most people express with their hands and will loosen up, especially if you laugh at their jokes and show interest in what they are saying.
November 22nd, 2008 at 1:40 am
Great insights on how to take hand photos… and a fantastic shot at the top of the article. I find hands fascinating, as an object of art. For all the reasons you name. Particularly with old people.
This reminds me of another great series of portraits showing people over 100 years old. We all fear getting old and wrinkled, but when it’s a highlight of the portrait it really stands out in a powerful way.
Anyway, you’ve inspired me. One of the things I think I’m going to start doing with my brand spankin’ new Canon 40D is get out there and take some pictures of hands, exclusively. Maybe enough of a collection for a book.
Amazing stuff on this website. Many thanks. JF
December 1st, 2008 at 4:51 am
Wtih Groom / best man etc .. we always ask them to (a) open the buttons of their jackets and (b) put one hand in their pocket … it (a) makes them look relaxed ..(b) makes them stand in a more relaxed way (ie they don’t look as though they are in front af a firing squad)
January 8th, 2009 at 6:50 pm
At our wedding the photographer made a lot of the fact that blokes hands always look massive on pictures so got me to partially clench my hands. As a result the look on a lot of the photos is that I look really stressed out, which I was but primarily because I was worried about my hands!
He wasn’t a great photographer actually, the pics are okay but it was a cold day and he took so long getting the shots together that my wife looks a little blue on quite a few of them. He was a lesson in how to relax people by being friendly before telling them what to do.
May 1st, 2009 at 6:23 am
Shooting hands — that is one thing. But, what to do with hands for a portrait is another. Great comments.
July 26th, 2009 at 3:30 pm
anything for preteen pose.is there a limit for them.
September 13th, 2009 at 9:48 pm
GREAT!!! Love the photo too … absolutely captivating. You can tell a lot from a persons hands and mannerisms. I love the “Fig Leaf” reference, spot on Chris. When I am photographing a wedding {or my Husband – a perpetual fig-leafer} I usually have the subject do something, typically silly because the second the finish my silly task they are usually laughing and relaxed and I am happily snapping away. Once I photographed a groom who was a marine and every photo was so stiff and ridged and the bride really wanted a photo of him relaxed and happy {a guess a persona he didn’t publicly cop to} so I had him twirl for a few seconds and then had him stop and look at the camera … it was one of the best groom photos I have taken. His hands were natural and relaxed, his stance was engaging, he had a huge genuine smile plastered on his face and the photo just felt dynamic. Also one of the best photos of my Husband on our wedding day was taken by his little brother … he was walking to the church and totally immersed in thought but he looks so dashing and debonair – on a mission to be married.
November 16th, 2009 at 3:15 pm
One valuable thing I’ve learned recently is that you should avoid having the palm of the hand showing or too much in emphasis if you’re photographing a mature woman who wants to look young. It’s one of those things that can’t hide the age of your subject for having so much texture.
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