Vietnamese social media users snap up course on posing for perfect photos

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Instructor Pham Kieu Ly (C) demonstrates a pose to participants during a course teaching them how to pose for photographs on their mobile phones at a studio in Hanoi Photo: AFP

In Vietnam, where 70 percent of the population is under 35, the classes are particularly popular with young women.

Instructor Pham Kieu Ly -- who has hundreds of thousands of followers on Instagram and TikTok -- set up the $130 course in Hanoi after women began asking her how to look their best in photos, largely for social media.

The lessons also teach aspiring amateur photographers how to take snaps themselves.

The cource attracts lots of women because everybody wants a perfect photo to post on social networks.

Ly told AFP she saw women in the class who wanted "to learn how to pose and take photos to help their work, while others wanted to build confidence".

Since the first class in September 2020, Ly’s day-and-a-half-long tutorial has amassed a substantial following, attracting around 500 people from a range of professions, including online merchants and estate agents.

"The image I am aiming to create is one of a successful businesswoman," said 29-year-old Nguyen Thi Thanh Loan, who works at an insurance company, and also wants to boost her photography skills during the course.

The posing courses have been very popular in China before

Other participants said they were convinced beautiful photos would help them sell products on Facebook, which has more than 53 million users in Vietnam -- over half the population. The platform has become a crucial marketing tool for local business.

Nguyen Huong Tra, 29, who runs a homewear shop and sells candles and scented oils online, said: "In the past I didnt pay much attention to my images or number of followers on social media, but then I realised they are important to my business."

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