Elsa Hosk Told Me How to Look Photogenic in 3 Easy Steps

Ahead of the 2019 Revolve Awards, I sat down with Elsa Hosk who was nominated for model of the year. As one of the biggest faces in modeling, it’s no surprise that she earned another nomination at Revolve’s third award show.

Hosk regularly travels with Revolve on its trips around the globe. She’s a veteran behind the camera but says that it has been on these getaways that she has really honed her skills crafting photos for Instagram. "I’m traditionally not an influencer,” Hosk explains, "so it's really interesting for me to meet people that do that as a living, and I've learned a lot from everybody. It's such a different vibe than a traditional modeling job where you just go in and you do a shoot and you have creative and then you leave.”

She admits that on the Revolve trips, she is regularly asking influencers to share their tips for how to shoot the Instagram-perfect photo and has and picked up some key tricks along the way. Ahead, discover Hosk’s three easy steps for always looking photogenic.

1. Great lighting is essential.

"You have to find good light,” Hosk explains, emphasizing that lighting is the most important step in taking an amazing photo. Whether it’s natural light or a flash, it’s really what can transform an okay photo into a perfect outfit shot.

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2. Avoid staged poses.

"I try to be kind of in the moment and not think about it so much,” Hosk says. "People like when it's real.” Instead of snapping shots that are too staged, she prefers to take photos that are spontaneous and in the moment since her audience connects with those most.

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3. When in doubt, wear something colorful.

Don’t underestimate the power of bold shades. "I find that my Instagrams do the best when I wear something colorful,” Hosk tells Who What Wear. While she still wears black and neutral shades, it’s the pops of color that really resonate on Instagram.

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Associate Director, Special Projects

Kristen Nichols is the Associate Director, Special Projects at Who What Wear with over a decade of experience in fashion, editorial, and publishing. She oversees luxury content and wedding features, and covers fashion within the luxury market, runway reporting, shopping features, trends, and interviews with leading industry experts. She also contributes to podcast recordings, social media, and branded content initiatives. Kristen has worked with brands including Prada, Chanel, MyTheresa, and Luisa Via Roma, and rising designers such as Refine and Tove, and her style has been featured in publications including Vogue.com, Vogue France, WWD, and the CFDA. Before Who What Wear, Kristen began her career at Rodarte, where she worked on assistant styling, photo shoots, and runway shows, and at Allure, where she moved into print and digital editorial. She graduated from the University of Southern California, where she studied art history and business, and currently lives in New York.