The Importance of Hand Posing

Good Morning!  Yesterday I was visiting with a friend who is a model and photographer and she directed me to a link that I have to share with you!  My last post was about hands and how they tend to go unnoticed. Well, this link goes.. and pardon the pun.. hand in hand with my post! 

http://www.prophotoresource.com/home/item/653-how-to-handle-hands-part-ii.html

This is great for photographers and models alike. It doesn't matter if you are taking a family portrait at a studio or just trying to get a decent one at home, this article is a must read! I also think that the other articles that are listed at the bottom could be quite helpful also.  I haven't read them all, but will be when I am done here. The posing one is fantastic, I did get to read that and the one about the positioning of the eyes. Both of those were very informative as well! 

Have you ever had your picture taken with friends, just goofing around?  Of course you have!  What do you do with your hands?  Bunny ears, flipping the bird or some other hand gesture?  I have been on a shoot with a teenage girl and two of her friends and that is exactly what they did.   However, you put those same girls in with a photographer they don't know, and what will you get? Hands down at the sides, possibly in pockets.  Hands can make or break a photo just as easily as a body part being cropped out of the shot.  Never just hide your hands to avoid the posing problem.  There are at least a hundred things you can do with them to enhance the shot, the mood and your experience. Here are a couple tips.

1. Crossing arms LOOSELY across (under) chest with BOTH hands visible and LIGHTLY resting on arms.  (this is in that article)
2. Holding an object, or "embracing" one with your hands.
3. The photo above, although was listed on google for DRAWING hands, I still feel it can be lent to photography.  If you look at this, you will feel strongly for certain images and therefore could incorporate them into your posing.
4. Women are, (please do not take this in a sexist way, because it isn't meant that way) a "fragile" creature, and I say it this way because we are supposed to appear that way. Appear "dainty".  Therefore, our hands should be posed daintily. 
5. Men, however, are supposed to be masculine, strong and all that jazz. So, we pose their hands with that in mind. Broader poses, showing more knuckles than a woman. 

These are just a couple of points to keep in mind. You can google search HAND POSING and find quite a bit of images and articles on this topic.  I am telling you this, you will NOT look at hands the same way again through the lens of your camera.

What are some poses you have used in the past that accentuate the model's features? Or made the photo pop?
I would love to hear from you! KEEP SNAPPIN'!!