Posing subjects’ hands can be the biggest challenge for photographers. The problem is in the fact that photographers shouldn’t be “posing subjects’ hands.” When we pose subjects’ hands, we often fall into the trap of making those hands look unnatural. I inevitably think of this video from Taladega  Nights. 

The challenge is that it is our subconscious that poses our hands all day. We don’t think about it. If we were to think about it, we suddenly have no idea and we can look awkward really quick. The same thing happens if we concentrate on walking - we inevitably end up walking unnaturally. 

So our job as photographers is to keep them in their natural state. We DON’T do this by giving them detailed posing instructions, including what to do with their hands. If we can give a little coaching like “look tough” or “sit here like you’re just relaxing,” we have a better chance of keeping the subject in a normal state where they aren’t thinking about the specifics of how to pose different body parts. 

But, if we are in a position where our subject needs help with what to do with his or her hands, we should follow these four rules:

1. Don't exert energy in the wrong thing. For example, if you are exerting energy in resting your hand on something, it won't look right.
2. Mirroring usually looks posey. Be aware when the hands of your subject are mirrored. Often, when hands are mirrored, they will look posed.
3. Don't do anything unnatural. Just in general, if it looks unnatural to you, try something else. You have, built in, an ability to recognize when someone's body language isn't natural. I promise, if I walked into a room with my hand slightly unnatural, you'd immediately wonder what was wrong with my hand...
4. The back of the hand is generally unattractive for women. For whatever reason, this is true. Usually, with women, I will turn their hand so that the SIDES of the hand are what is visible to the camera.