Photos are a powerful way to express your feminine self.
Whether you take selfies or get professional photos, beautiful pictures can be a major confidence booster for any crossdresser or transgender woman.
The best part is, you don’t need to be a supermodel to look fabulous in photos! It’s all about skill – and avoiding a few common mistakes.
In this blog post, I’ll walk you through 5 common photo posing mistakes and how to fix them!
1. Shooting Shoulders Straight On
If you’re worried about having broad shoulders or a larger upper body, there’s a simple trick to help you achieve a slimmer appearance.
Simply angle your shoulders away from the camera to create a more flattering look. By doing so, you can minimize their width and create more feminine-looking body proportions.
2. Holding Your Body Too Straight
We all know the struggle of looking stiff and awkward in photos. The secret to capturing flattering and feminine shots is to embrace softness and curves in your body positioning.
Get playful and try bending your arms and legs slightly, tilting your head, pushing a hip out, and letting your fingers relax.
These simple adjustments can make a world of difference in creating attractive photos.
3. Shooting in Unflattering Light
Lighting makes all the difference in the world in photos. The #1 rule is to avoid strong overhead or side lighting since this creates ugly shadows on the face. Here are some tips to keep in mind:
- If at all possible, take photos in natural daylight. Try shooting in front of a window where there is soft natural light.
- If you are shooting indoors and don’t have enough natural light, use a ring light or try placing a couple lamps with soft lighting around you.
- If you’re outdoors, avoid shooting in strong midday sunlight. The best time of day is to shoot at dusk or dawn when the sun has a soft, diffused glow.
4. Placing the Camera Below Eye Level
If you want to avoid that dreaded double chin in your photos, never pose with the camera below eye level.
For a more flattering look, position the lens at or above eye level. This simple adjustment not only helps diminish a double chin and downplay a prominent jawline, but it also makes your eyes appear bigger and more captivating.
5. Not Engaging Your Mind
Looking great in photos is as much about mindset as it is about your appearance. Trust me, if you’re not feeling fabulous, it’ll definitely reflect in your pictures.
Now, let’s talk about boosting your confidence during those photo sessions. An easy trick is to imagine that you’re portraying a character, be it a real or imagined persona.
Think Megan Fox, Cleopatra, or Sophia Loren. By “modeling” yourself after someone else, you can tap into their energy and charisma, infusing your photos with that captivating aura.
Let’s see your best shot!
Taking great photos is only the first step. Sharing them with the world is where the real magic happens!
On that note, I’d love to see the photos you’re most proud of. Please share your femme photos in the comments below!
Love,
Lucille
P.S. If you enjoyed this article, you’ll love my Stepping Out Secrets Program! This training program covers the 6 “alluring arts” that must be mastered to create a stunning feminine image. It even includes a bonus module on photo posing!
I definitely have to learn a lot… thanks for your tips, Lucille! I have little or zero “art” talent and photography is an art in itself… and so is modelling. So on top of wearing appropriate clothing, finally getting the hang of doing some makeup, walking comfortably on heels… now it looks like I have to acquire the skill of model posing and model photography on top of everything! Hehe… life’s hard for us T-girls!
So every little tip helps. Thanks a lot for this article 🙂 Maybe you should write (and sell) another book on How to be a Transgender Model or 500 Tips for DYI Model Photography or something like that. I’m sure there would be quite a lot to learn!
Dear Lucille: I have’nt had a photo taken in years, and since Ive moved around a lot I can’t find the ones I had. But as usual, your suggestions about posing are right on. I think our sisters have two main problems: how to convincingly smile, and what to do with our hands. I,ve seen too many otherwise pretty sisters with very grim, unsmiling faces, and with a very awkward, clumsy display of hands. Please give us your suggestions. Thankyou and love, Melanie.
thanks for the info ! somehow my pics are not on my laptop so thankfully they r on my memory stick! I shall reload them and send in a pic as well.
this is the last pic I took of me the shirt says to all the hatters thanks for the love and the other pic is one of my favorites of my I took last year.
Hi Christy,I have had a crush on you for years…You look happy and Pretty,I’m glade your doing well…Hugs Laura
Thanks for the tips , but sometimes we just cannot comply . Is this photo so bad ?
Hi Lucille, I really just love the advice you give it is so helpful. I have a friend from college, who has a cousin whom is a professional photographer.I am going to make an appointment with her for a professional portfolio done. cheers thank-you so much Vicky
Those are all good tips. Some of the best photos are candid photos where one is relaxed or involved in doing something active such as dancing or a sport and unaware (or mostly unaware) of the presence of the photographer.
Patience on the part of the photographer is also a key to a great photo. Use of proper focal length of the lens by the photographer can work magic. For example, beautiful portraits may be taken with a 90mm lens with a true 35mm camera.
A digital camera that has specific settings for things such as backlighting, sports, active children, portraits, beauty shots and the like can obviate the need for manipulating a photograph with PhotoShop or similar software.
My headshot is a cropped photo of me dancing at the Seattle Red Dress Party. The camera used was a Samsung TL500 camera using the dual vibration elimination setting, using the Beauty Shot setting. I have been an amateur photograph for nearly 50 years. The better the camera lens, almost always the better the photograph.
Hello Lucille, also remember to check for unwanted reflections and light sources behind you! Some of these can be photoshopped out afterward, but get in the habit of checking for glass or metal that may reflect the camera flash, such as picture frames or windows. I like to set up a mirror just behind the camera, so that I can check my pose and smile just as the shutter clicks–be your own director when taking your own pics! xoxoBarbara.
Hi, Barbara! Lucille has given me permission to include her blog posts as articles in an onlime magazine I write for called Pretty T-girls Magazine. Your comment was so great that I added it as an addendum to her article (crediting you by first name, of course). Thanks for such a nifty thought; you’ve just greatly improved my picture taking!
Hugz!
Mellissalynn