Here's a test.  Think really hard.  Do you know a woman who likes her upper arms?  I go to the gym and I can't tell you the number of times I've heard women there complain about their arms.  Women think their arms are too flabby, too saggy, too bulky, and so on. 

One woman I know said her arms are never going to look "lithe, like the soap opera stars".  (Yes, she actually said lithe.)  And she has gorgeous, muscular arms so I really don't know what she was complaining about.  But you get the picture.

In portraits, you do not want to accentuate flaws.  If you are a woman and are not happy with your upper arms, consider wearing a 3/4 length or long-sleeved shirt when being photographed.

Anytime a shirt stops at the largest part of the arm, it makes the arm look even larger (and also shorter). When a shirt stops at the wrist or forearm, a smaller part of the body, it makes the arm look thinner and longer.  Plus, a longer sleeve will hide the problem areas.

If you are photographing a woman, never have the width of her upper arm be the closest thing to the camera.  Even if she has nice biceps, she probably doesn't want her arms to look any larger than they already look.

Remember, what is closest to the camera will look the largest.  You can always change the camera position or re-position the subject to lean forward or back to get a more flattering angle.

I hope this helps!  Lots to consider when dressing for portraits. More to come in later issues.  Thanks so much for reading.

Dawn