Last Updated: January 3, 2024
No one was born a natural on how to pose for Instagram photos but there are many tricks that can help you level up your Instagram game. I was always camera shy but I learned through the years which Instagram poses work best for me and that gave me a lot of confidence.
The secret to the best Instagram poses is about finding your right angle, making triangles with your body but most important…loosening up and having fun! Otherwise, If you’re stressed, it will reflect on your body posture and on your facial expressions.
Thankfully, we’ve done the work for you and we’re excited to share our easy tips for cute Instagram poses so you never have to feel awkward again in front of a camera.
Here are 11 Easy Tips for Instagram Poses that will elevate your Instagram game!
11 EASY TIPS FOR INSTAGRAM POSES
1. INSTAGRAM POSES – THE SITTING POSE
The sitting pose is one of the easiest Instagram poses to do and what I love most about this cool pose is how relaxed the whole photo looks. You can turn your back to the camera and turn your gaze towards the view.
I think this is a fantastic Instagram pose for two reasons:
- You’re guiding the audience towards the view and that way, they don’t focus on you (super handy when you don’t exactly feel camera ready).
- By turning your back to the camera, you don’t have to worry much about how you look or your facial expressions.
As always, be sure to keep your back straight. We can’t stress this enough!
Another variation to this pose, is by sitting slightly on your side and using your hand to rest your head. The ideal way to do this is, is by making use of an item to rest your elbow so the pose looks very natural. For this purpose you can use the back of the chair you’re sitting on, a table, or a rail; as seen in the photos below. Lastly, don’t forget to slightly extend your legs in a way that they look longer. The best way to do that is by crossing your legs and arching your feet (like a balerina).
2. INSTAGRAM POSES – RAISE YOUR HAND
This is an easy pose to do and one of my go-to Instagram poses when I’m utterly happy. I find myself raising one hand unconsciously (and sometimes twirling around). You can either face the camera or turn your back to it, then slightly bend one knee and raise one hand to the air. Same as with any pose where you’re using your hands, you want to be sure that your fingers stay elongated. Avoid folding your fingers or making a fist as it’ll ruin the aesthetic of the pose.
BONUS TIP: If you want to look taller in this Instagram pose, we’re gonna let you in on a secret. Ask your photographer to angle the camera from below (at an upward angle), then try to stand on your toes. This is the best way to look taller on your photos.
3. THE “BLOCK THE SUN” POSE
I’m sure there have been many occasions when you wanted to take a photo and the sun made it hard to open your eyes. Next time this happens, simply shade your eyes with your hand, turn your head just a few inches to the side, and smile! This is one of the best Instagram poses if you don’t feel very comfortable having your picture taken as you don’t have to look directly at the camera. A rather bolder variation to this Instagram pose is by looking directly at the camera. Just be sure to tilt your head slighly downwards and lower your chin so you don’t look too intimidating.
4. INSTAGRAM POSES – LOOKING OVER YOUR SHOULDER
Another simple Instagram pose to do is turn your back to the camera and pretend you’re looking over your shoulder.
To make it more interesting, you can either raise one hand to your head or place both hands on your lower back. A great way to elevate this pose is by creating a motion with your hair (you got this, hair flip queen!). This is easily one of the best insta poses.
5. INSTAGRAM POSES – THE LITTLE MERMAID
This is one of my favorite Instagram poses when I’m at the beach. For this pose, you have to sit on the beach, on your side. Then, slightly bend the bottom leg while keeping the top leg straight on top of it. Balance your upper body on one hand and place the other hand in front of your belly. You can either face the camera or turn your head towards the view. An alternative to this pose, is by laying on your side, extend your hand and lay your head on your arm.
READ ALSO: BEST TRAVEL APPS THAT WILL MAKE YOUR LIFE EASIER
6. THE WALKING POSE
I have to admit that I’m using this pose more often than I thought. I hadn’t even realized I used this Instagram pose so often until now; as I was choosing my photos for this blog post. It is one of the simplest Instagram photo poses to adopt and you can never go wrong with it. All you have to do is simply walk, either towards the camera or away from it.
Try to avoid looking directly at the camera. Instead, look slightly down or pick a point to look at that is just right above your eye level. To perfect this Instagram pose, make sure the photographer takes the shot with the camera angled up.
7. THE FAMOUS DRESS FLICK INSTAGRAM POSE
This is most likely one of the most famous poses for Instagram out there. It is super cute and an excellent way to bring life to your photos. Although it’s popular mainly with dresses you can just as easily do this pose with any flowy clothing item.
Here are a few examples:
- Flowy dress or skirt
- Beach cover-up or kimono
- Scarf
To recreate this cute Instagram pose, place one leg in front in order to look as if you’re walking. Then, just flip your dress. This pose is awesome because it gives you something to do with your hands. What’s more, it gives a unique movement to your outfit and your photos look graceful.
8. THE STANDING POSE
Okay, I admit that this is perhaps a “lazy” pose but hear me out before you move on to No.9.
When a view is extraordinary, you want the viewer to focus on that and not you. This applies mainly if you’re a travel blogger and you’re wondering how to pose for Instagram.
For this Instagram pose the most important thing to remember is that you need to find which is your most flattering angle. For example, I know that my best angle is my right side, so I always make sure that my head is slightly turned to the left so there is more exposure on my good angle.
BONUS TIP: Don’t forget to keep your back straight and avoid slouching. The right body posture reflects confidence!
9. USE PROPS FOR THE PERFECT INSTAGRAM POSE
I love props! I truly believe that there is no better way to create cute Instagram poses than using props. What I love most about them, is the fact that you don’t have to worry about what to do with your hands and they also help create a story behind the photo! You can use anything as a prop.
Here are some of my all-time favorite items to use:
- Hat
- Flowers
- Book
- A drink (it can be anything from a coffee cup to a glass of bubbly)
- A map
10. THE SQUAT POSE
If you want to spice things up, one of the best poses for Instagram is the squat pose. For this one, you’ll have to sit on your heels; which is great because you won’t have to touch the ground and dirty your clothes.
You can rest your elbows on your knees and bring your hands together in a “praying” pose (palms together). Another variation to this cute Instagram pose is by putting your weight on one leg and extending the other in front of you keeping your knee slightly bent.
As far as Instagram poses go, this is a favorite mainly amongst fashion influencers.
11. CREATE ANGLES FOR YOUR INSTAGRAM POSES
Photographers swear by this trick and it’s the first advice that they give to anyone who is a newbie and wondering how to pose on Instagram.
This is a very dynamic pose as creating triangles with your body helps the viewer focus mainly on you.
As you can see in the pictures below, I have made sure to position both my hands and my legs in a way that I can create more than one triangle.
There are many variations of Instagram poses that you can try when creating triangles. Here are some of my go-to poses for Instagram:
- Facing the camera, stand straight while keeping your legs slightly apart so you can create a triangle. That’s one triangle
- You can make this pose even more powerful by placing your hands on your waist (if you’re boosting with confidence, then we’re sure that you will master this Instagram pose). That’s two triangles
- You can sit down and bend your knees. Then you can place your hands slightly behind your back. Alternatively, you can rest your elbows on your knees and extend your hands. With any of these Instagram poses you create at least 2 triangles.
CHECK MY LATEST INSTAGRAM PICTURES
11 EASY TIPS FOR INSTAGRAM POSES – CONCLUSION
As you can see, there are many easy ways to look like a pro when posing for Instagram. If you don’t feel confident just yet, you can test a few Instagram poses first at home, in front of your mirror. Even better, you can set up your tripod and take a few photos to practice.
Have you tried any of these Instagram poses? Which is the one that you’d feel most comfortable trying out first?
Let us know in the comments!
