Maternity Posing & Lighting
You do not need to know how to pose
Most people are not comfortable in front of a camera.
They wonder where to put their hands, how to stand and what to do with their face.
That is not something you need to practise before you arrive.
The person in front of the camera is not responsible for making the photograph work.
That is my job.
I will direct you
I will tell you where to stand, where to put your hands and make small adjustments as we work.
But I am not working through a list of maternity poses.
Bodies are different.
Pregnancies are different.
What works beautifully for one woman may not work for another.
I look at the person in front of me and work from there.
The pose serves the person. Not the other way around.
One light is enough
I have photographed people against a black background with a single light for more than two decades.
Light can describe the curve of a pregnant body, reveal a face and allow everything else to fall away.
I do not need to light everything.
Sometimes what disappears is as important as what remains.
You can stop doing the photograph
There comes a point when you stop thinking quite so much about your hands, your face or where the camera is.
That is why I direct you.
The technical decisions belong with me.
You do not need to perform confidence.
You do not need to practise poses.
You do not need to know your best side.
You can simply be photographed.
What matters in the end
You will not choose a portrait because your hand was at the correct angle.
You will choose it because something about it feels like you.
The posing and lighting have done their job when you stop noticing them.
Perhaps the best direction is the direction that eventually disappears.
Read the full maternity photoshoot guide →
Ready when you are
Contact me →
JOHANNESBURG PORTRAIT PHOTOGRAPHER
One Moment. One Portrait. Forever
© 2005–2026 Bridget Corke Photography
Blairgowrie · Johannesburg · South Africa
International Master's in Portrait Photography
One of only two in Africa.