High School Senior Photography Posing Prompts

There are so many prompts you can use when photographing a graduate. However, if you stick to a couple to use throughout the session the senior will feel more confident when you give them more movement prompts. The following 5 prompts are some of my basic go-to poses in between movement prompts.

1. Folding arms across the chest

2. Twirl or walk and look at the camera

3. Sitting

4. Up close and personal

5. Leaning

These are just a few of the many poses you could use with your seniors, especially when you first start the session. After I've thrown them a few of my famous jokes the seniors usually end up having a blast and feeling way more confident in front of the camera.

1. Folding arms across the chest

This pose is one of those poses that give them something to do with their hands. There are various ways to direct this pose. For the boys having them cross their arms over their chess and roll their shoulders back makes them look confident and professional. With the girls, I like to tell them to imagine they are holding a tiny little purse or to loosely hold their hands.

2. Twirl or walk and look at the camera

This is a great pose to start them getting used to moving around and not being worried about smiling perfectly or how their hair looks. Most of the time they feel very unnatural and my favorite way to make them feel less awkward is by making myself look even more ridiculous by exaggerating how I want them to work through the prompt. Have them walk through twirling around and walking away and looking in various directions and at the camera, there's bound to be one or two perfect shots.

3. Sitting

Now I always ask if they want to do any sitting poses, especially if it's a slightly dirty area or well the dirt. If they don't want to I respect their wishes and move on to the next thing, but if they are all for it you can work them into a few different positions. My favorite is angeling them, propping one knee up and the other extended a bit then drooping your arms over the knee. You can even swing the arm furthest from you behind their back and have them lean on that arm slightly.

4. Up close and personal

I always include a headshot in my galleries. Try having them angle slightly away and look over their shoulder at you. While they are sitting down snap a picture of them slightly above or even have them lightly touch their face making an E with three of their fingers.

5. Leaning

Leaning is a great pose if there's a building nearby or anything to lean against. this angles them slightly and they feel slightly relaxed. Tell them to look in various directions and throw out a random prompt like " tell me about your favorite sandwich" so you can get those genuine smiles out of them.

If you need some new fits for your upcoming senior session check out some cool local spots in Des Moines, Iowa.

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Every senior session with me is a unique experience, just like the seniors themselves!

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