Jazz Legs: The Photogenic Pose That's Going Viral

We love finding new ways to snap photos, especially when it’s as easy as standing in a new way to take a super-flattering mirror selfie. In recent years, we’ve seen Barbie feet and the baby-giraffe pose go viral, but if you take a scroll through Instagram now, you’ll discover that celebs, models, and fashion people have a new trick for pulling off outfit photos. Let me introduce you to jazz legs, everyone—a term we coined because of the bent, Fosse-like leg that looks like it belongs in a dance routine.

To master the pose, simply lean on your back leg and bend it, keeping your front leg forward and straight with your toes pointed. It instantly lengthens the body and gives the illusion of longer legs, so it’s easy to see why it’s become the new go-to stance for selfies right now. Ahead, see the jazz-legs pose in action, including how I test-drove it myself.

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(Image credit: @kristenmarienichols)

After seeing many photos of the pose on my Instagram feed, I tried it out for myself. Like I mentioned, it's very easy to pull off—just lean on your back leg and bend it.

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(Image credit: @rosiehw)

Rosie Huntington-Whiteley is the person who really put jazz legs on the map for me. I noticed that she does this pose on repeat during her regular series of outfit roundups on Instagram.

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(Image credit: @rosiehw)

More proof that Huntington-Whiteley is a big fan of the jazz-legs pose.

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(Image credit: @camillecharriere)

French fashion girl Camille Charrière shows that she's also behind the photogenic pose. Plus, a great outfit idea, pairing a puff-sleeve top with slit leggings.

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(Image credit: @niki_wujie)

A leg-baring look like this minidress and white ankle boots is the perfect outfit for the pose.

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(Image credit: @smythsisters)

How photogenic is this pose?

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Next, 25 Cool Fashion Finds I'm Obsessing Over Right Now

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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.