t-shirts, shorts and casual tops, and other everyday outfits will work best.
Usually, the client will be barefoot. If your client wants her daughter in an el-
egant dress or her son in a suit, posing on the ground won’t be the best
choice. When it comes to the background, a park scene or garden is ideal. A
more elegant location with outdoor patios or column-lined walkways isn’t
typically suited for this type of posing.
Please note that, in these guidelines, I am speaking in general terms for
those photographers with a modest amount of experience in posing. There
aresomecases where contrasting formal clothing with a casual pose or back-
ground can be effective. If you have more experience and want to play op-
posing styles against each other, go for it—but make sure you are doing it to
please your client, not just in a desperate attempt to be “edgy.”Disguise Problem Areas.
When using the ground to pose, you have to remember one thing: it is hard.
This hardness causes any fleshy area of the body to spread out, making the
subject look larger. For this reason, you won’t see me sit anyone on the
ground unless something (usually their legs or some foliage) will hide the
mushrooming bottom that the ground has created. Most poses on the
ground have the subject laying on their side, because the bone of the hipPOSING ON THE GROUND 67When the subject is on her side, the weight
of the body is carried by the hip bone, elim-
inating the mushrooming effect.