Arms | Arm Movement Camera-wise | Upper Arm | Forearm | Coordinating Upper and Forearm | The Hand | Hand Positions Bold and Tapered | Hand-stops | Arms in Pictures | Building the Pose: Director | Building the Pos

ARMS

can do one of two things: they can add to or detract from a picture! Legs may carry the weight of the model, but the arms carry the responsibility for balance, artistry and supporting expression.

Arms require more attention in model posing because arms attract more attention in the finished picture.

Posing arms requires care for they can wander in many directions, while the camera limits them to relatively few usable model positions.

Model posing, it's sound difficult? Tricky, yes, but not as involved as it may seem if you can begin to think of arms in three segments: upper arm, forearm and hand.

In your mind's eye, flatten the shape of the upper arm and forearm so that they appear to be cut out of cardboard and can be joined by cotter pins at the elbow and shoulder joints.

Can you visualize how each of these two sections of model can revolve in a circle, like the blades of a windmill, around its cotter-pin-axis ... without rising from our model posing page?

If arms actually moved in such a manner, they would never be a problem either to you or the camera.

MODEL POSING: SANDWICH  FACES CAMERA

AT ALL TIMES (MODEL MAY ROTATE WITHIN SANDWICH)

ARM MOVEMENT CAMERA-WISE

cannot precisely duplicate the flat, flat con­ception of our schematic cardboard and cotter-pin figure, but the essential move­ment is correctly represented by its wind­mill-like motion sidewise, rather than to­ward or away from the camera.

The camera's viewpoint must be considered whenever the model's arms are moved. If an arm moves toward the camera, a part may be foreshortened or enlarged. If directed too far away, a part may lose its identity or be grotesquely dwarfed. The closer the camera approaches the subject the more bizarre the distortion becomes.

The one-eyed cyclops establishes laws, restricts movement ...all must conform!

Although modern model posing pictures are allowed more creative leeway with distortion and perspective than formerly, smart directors and models start compressing the model into boundaries before it reaches the lens.

Model boundaries take the form of two large panes of glass, parallel to each other and perpendicular to an imaginary line extending from the direct center of the lens (lens axis).

These two pieces of glass sandwich the model and restrict the movement of her arms in model posing. Even so, her arms can swing freely to either side, meet overhead, or cross her body in the narrow zone between it and the glass.

Thus we begin to see that these restrictions are not absolute in model posing. Each arm actually has great freedom within its limitations. Even though the movement of the fore­arm or upper arm is limited so far as depth is concerned, we discover many interesting positions still available to each arm.

UPPER ARM   MOVEMENT
FOREARM MOVEMENT

UPPER ARM

positions in model posing can be noted or directed by lo­cating the elbow. When the body faces front, the elbow may move, within its re­stricted area, out (away from the model body), up, in (toward the center of the model's body), and down again.

This circuit establishes four basic stops or positions for the elbow with many in­termediate positions.

In its normal position the upper arm hangs down from the shoulder and there­fore the most used sector for the upper arm is out and down

NOTE: This circle must remain facing the camera even when the model turns to '\ and side views. Therefore such directions to the model as in and out can be changed to front (model's front) and back (model's back) when the body turns.

FOREARM

positions are established by noting the po­sition of the wrist in relation to the elbow.

Since the elbow is the pivot point, the model posing position of the forearm is determined after the upper arm is set.

In its normal position the forearm also hangs down and its four basic positions are designated by the same terms as the upper arm; out, up, in or down or by indicating intermediate positions as in and down, up and out, in and up and out and down.

This circle must also face the camera regardless of the direction the body turns while model posing.

NOTE: In this schematic model posing diagram the forearm describes a complete model posing circle with one side remaining up. In practice the inner forearm sweeps half of this model posing circle, then twists to let the outer forearm com­plete the circle.

COORDINATING UPPER AND FOREARM MOVEMENT

centers in the placement of their common meeting point - the elbow. Its location not only fixes the axial point from which the model forearm takes action but it starts the line of the arm flowing from the shoulder in a specific direction. The placement of the wrist can continue this line or it can op­pose it. When both elbow and wrist are in the same quarter of the circle, obtuse angles are formed and the arm is at its longest. When they are in opposite quar­ters, acute angles are formed and the arm is at its shortest. If the two segments of the arm are in adjoining quarters many dif­ferent effects can be achieved.

The location of the elbow in relation to the shoulder joint is the key to determining the location of the model's upper arm. It is located down, up, in or out 'in toward the body or out away from the body' when the model's body faces either in full-front or full-back views.

In model posing if the model's body is in a 4 position (either front back) or in a side view, the positions to the right and to the left of the camera are designated in terms of the model's front or back, depending upon which way model's body faces.

It is important to remember that both the upper and forearm circles always re­main flat to the camera, regardless of which way the body faces or turns.

When the elbow is placed near the waist­line several factors must be considered. If the elbow comes to rest in the edge of the waistline silhouette the arm often looks like part of the body, especially if the tone of the garment is the same at both elbow and waistline.

If the elbow is moved further away from the model's body on the same line, a lacework or air space develops between the two parts by separating them so that the background can show through. Such an area, surround­ed by parts of the body is usually called a trap and can be very useful in designing a pose.

If the wrist and elbow are both placed on the waistline the forearm comes straight across the model's body and cuts it practically in half. Few pictures of women require such severe geometric treatment.

On the opposite page you will find a chart representing the range of possible views the camera can use of the arms while the model's body is facing the camera at model.

You might direct or try each of the com­binations shown. Pay particular attention to the model posing positions which are natural and easy to use. The impractical ones are marked with a*

For instance, if the upper arm is in an out and down model posing position, the camera can see the:

Inner wrist with the forearm in either of the out positions or up and in.

Outer wrist with the forearm in any posi­tion on the model posing circle; however, up and out is not practical.

Thumb edge of the forearm in any position on circle (up and out is impractical).

Little finger edge of the forearm in any po­sition on the circle.

You might want to try these four model posing com­binations of the upper and forearm while the upper arm is in the out and down posi­tion. You might also like to experiment with the upper arm in each of the other seven positions shown.

COMBINING UPPER AND FOREARM MOVEMENT

PART OF ARM VIEWED BY CAMERA

UPPER ARM         ELBOW JOINT

inner        outer        thumb edge        pinky edge

'DOWN'   'OUT &DOWN'   our   'OUT & UP' UP' UP & IN'   IN'   & DOWN'

inside   inside   inside   inside back* back back   back   back inside*

The forearm has the freedom of each quarter indicated by the light area. *An arm can assume this position only under strain, tension or pressure.

TWISTING THE  WRIST	3/ 4 FRONT VIEW, PINKY LEADING EIGHT VIEWS OF THE HAND MADE POSSIBLE BY TWISTING THE WRIST

THE HAND

is controlled by the wrist camerawise. Since, at this point, becoming involved with a handful of fingers might prove confusing, let's consider the hand as one mass. Imagine it gloved in a flat, pointed box con­forming roughly to the hand's general out­line.

This box, like the hand, has broad surfaces on the front and back. The narrow edges are easily identified as the thumb or pinky (little finger) edge. Many views be­come possible with two movements of the wrist called the twist and the break.

Twisting the wrist does not actually twist the wrist at all! To understand fully this model posing movement, you must think of the forearm and hand as a single, flat, continuous bar; the palm and inner forearm on one side and the back of the hand and outer forearm on the other. As the wrist twists it flips the bar from one side to the other or stops part way to display the edges. Breaking the wrist means breaking the continuous line formed by the hand and the forearm at the wrist junction. The wrist can break in two directions 1) sidewise, or 2) front and back. When the wrist breaks sidewise it can break in (toward the thumb) or break out (away from the thumb.) When it breaks front and back, it breaks forward (the palm toward the inner fore­arm) or it breaks back (the palm of the hand away from the inner forearm). As these movements are used singly or in model posing combination, many views of the hand become possible ... some more acceptable than others.

BREAKING THE WRIST

HAND POSITIONS BOLD AND TAPERED

result from movements of the wrist, the forearm or combinations of the two.

Side views of the hand, that form a long point at the finger tips and all other narrow model posing positions which add length to the forearm are said to taper, while any model posing position that stops the flow of line, foreshortens the hand or shows the hand as square or boxy is called bold and shortens the overall effect.

Tapered model hands . . .

primarily display the long inside or outside contours of the model hands.

They add length to the arm and grace to the picture as a whole.

Since they are used to express finer emotion and character, their message is relayed in subtle differences of position and care­ful attention to detail is of utmost importance in their use.

Bold model hands at model posing . . .

display the broad flat palm, back of the hand or geometric shapes, such as a clenched fist. They are deliberate attention getters ... masculine and massive. Their abrupt bulk stops the eye. Bulk transmits positive feelings of physical vibrancy, strength, dynamic emotion or authority. Sometimes bold model hands are used to convey negative feelings of clumsiness or violence.

HAND-STOPS are the places where model hands normally stop. You should have used these ten hand-stops thousands of times without thinking of them... but can you remember them at the crucial moment? Knowing a few hand-stops will provide you with a sound basis for interesting, re­laxed, uncomplicated hand positions when you begin to wonder just what to do with a hand. When a hand stops - creative effort should begin. Opportunity for origination presents itself at any given stop. No turn or movement, however slight, is insignifi­cant. Never be afraid to explore all of the subtle differences that can be expressed with the model hand in model posing. Endless variations of actual model posing positions at each of these stops can be originated by: twisting the wrist breaking the wrist varying finger arrangements

Endless ideas for what the hand can do at each stop will stem from thinking about what you have seen and can do. For in­stance, a hand on top of the head might be pushing hair out of the model eyes, scratching the head in puzzlement, holding a hat in the breeze, simply model relaxing there, putting a pin in the hair, etc. If you'll form the habit of watching people do these things you'll soon discover that each of these actions can be done in many different ways ... with the hand remaining on top of the head!

Once the hand stops - start working with it to form bold or tapered model positions which help communicate the idea of the picture accurately yet conform to the limitations of the camera.

MODEL ARMS IN MODEL POSING PICTURES are the despair of countless directors and models. Some even resort to concealing the arms, reasoning that 'no arm movement is better than poor arm movement'. And, to an extent, they are right. You can keep your head above water - but you will never win any races that way! Arms are essential to quality model posing. Arms can be an asset or a liability and the only way to obtain effective results is to use them effectively. If you are apprehensive about the problem - cut it in half. Work with one arm at a time. Remember that the camera is me­thodically collecting space and pressing it into a flat picture surface. You as model cannot ignore model posing rules. The design in which the three segments of the arm reach this flat surface is of practical importance. Because the arm is fasten­ed at one end and telescopes to the other, it seems sometimes to take on properties of direction in its flow of design. At other times it seems to encircle or bound areas - mentioned earlier as traps.

While some directors are sensitive to the excessive light these traps hold, all find them most useful in design.

When the arm makes a trap, its size, shape, location and position can be used to photographic advantage.

If the arm assumes direction and seems to go somewhere ... it does so in a continu­ous line or a broken line.

When you look closely at the arms on these pages you soon see that there are two kinds of continuous lines. One is absolutely straight: upper arm, forearm and model hand in a line. The other is a flowing line composed of these same parts arranged in a curve.

When the line is broken it takes the eyes around right-angled corners, or down and back with acute angles at elbow and wrist.

The direction of the arm, from shoulder to finger tips, moves: toward the model body (up or down) away from the model body (up or down) across the model body (high or low) parallel to the model body (high or low) or, relates itself to the horizontal, diagonal or vertical lines of props or to the pageitself by crossing, becoming parallel to or striking it at an angle. Whether you use dynamic symmetry, a special formula or your inborn sense of balance to arrange them - one thing is sure: there is a myriad of excellent model posing positions to choose from.

Can you

... recognize the general design of each arm in model posing? Does it make a trap, a continuous or a broken line?

... spot and identify any rectangular traps? Many sizes of triangular ones?

... state quickly the general direction of each line? (Up, parallel to the body; out, at a right angle to the support, etc.)

... direct yourself or someone else in the specific position of each upper arm illustrated? (Use basic positions and sec­tors on page 60)

... recognize each model posing forearm position illustrated (page 63)

... recognize each model posing hand position illustrated? (Use pages 66 and 67)

BUILDING THE POSE-DIRECTOR

Arms pose no problems...

if' you remember the following points: [Chapter Incomplete]

Click Here to download the complete PDF ebook (including the rest of this chapter).

Or are you ready to move onto the next lesson? Click Here