The Selfie Guide

door anna FG

Selfies, your social media feeds get overflowed with them every day. People claim to be bothered by selfies, but actually everyone is guilty of making one every now and then (either you post the pic or not). I myself am also guilty as charged for making shameless selfies. At #FITGIRLCODE HQ people even call me the Selfie Queen. At first it felt bit awkward, making photos of myself like this, but as soon as I got over the awkwardness I went all out.

If you never posted a selfie before (which I highly doubt) or want to improve your selfie skills you should definitely continue reading. Although I appear to take a mean selfie myself, the selfie guide from Wikihow absolutely taught me everything I didn't know yet about making the perfect selfie. You don't just point your camera at your face and take a shot without planning—there's an art to taking attention-grabbing selfies that your friends will love seeing in their feeds. Watch and learn :)

The Selfie Guide

Capture a good angle. Instead of taking the picture head-on, experiment with different angles to show off your features. If you turn your head a few degrees to the right or left, your features will appear less flat. Holding the camera slightly higher than your head so that it's pointing down on you will make your eyes look bigger and help you avoid "pig nose." Here are a few other ideas for finding a good angle:

  • Know your "good side" and take the photo from that side of your face. It's the side of your face that looks the most balanced and symmetrical.
  • Angling the camera slightly above yourself and taking a snapshot of your face and chest will highlight your cleavage. Since this position is fairly unnatural, odds are, you already know what the camera will focus on when you take a selfie like this.

Show off something new. If you decide to take a selfie to show off a new haircut or a new pair of earrings, make sure that you frame the photo in a way that highlights the new feature that has you so excited.

  • A selfie showing off your new hairstyle, for example, should show your hair from the most flattering angle. For the men, a selfie showing off a mustache should show the mustache straight-on, and the same goes for a selfie showing off a new pair of glasses.
  • You could also take a selfie holding a new item you just bought, or even a food item you're about to eat. I went for the apple, didn't eat it though, it was just for the show. The Kinder Bueno? Ah, you guys all know the answer to that question. ;)

Focus on one feature. If you're planning on doing a closeup of your face, consider glamming up one feature while downplaying the others. This works especially well if there is one feature that you are especially pleased with.

  • For instance, if you love your eyes, play them up with mascara and complementary eye shadow while keeping your complexion and lips fairly natural.
  • Likewise, if your smile is your most charming feature, keep your cheeks and eyes looking natural while donning a stunningly beautiful lipstick.

Have an interesting expression. You can't go wrong with smiling! Maybe smiling for the camera—or camera phone, as the case might be—makes you feel a little silly, but taking a random photo of yourself with your phone is a silly enough action in itself. If you're on the serious side, a cool, collected expression could also go over well.

  • You can play around with different smiles, of course. A closed-mouth coy smile can be just as appropriate and just as flattering as a wide, laughing grin. No matter what, a smile is one of the most appreciated and charming expressions you can wear.
  • It can be hard to make sure your expression looks authentic. One way to make it look more real is to try to capture yourself when you're feeling an emotion. Try taking a selfie while you're watching a movie that's making you genuinely laugh, or right after you find out some shocking news.

Take a full-length photo. If you want to show off a great new outfit or a fabulous figure after awesome workouts, you will need to stand in front of a full-length mirror to capture your body from head to toe. In this instance, your face is no longer the focus of the photo.

  • Take full body shots in a clutter-free space. The photo should focus completely on your figure, not on random objects in the background.
  • You can appear more slender by slightly cocking your hip to the same side you are holding your camera in. Your opposite shoulder should come forward a bit, and your free arm should either dangle to your side or your free hand can rest on your hip. The chest should lean forward naturally, and the legs should be crossed at the ankle.

I found this picture the hardest one to make. You have to have good selfie setting for these kind of selfies. Either my space wasn't clutter free, or I didn't have the right light. Next time, I think I'm going to make my mirror selfies at Aranka's place. She has a great mirror for this!

Try a natural look. You can take a picture of yourself as the outside world always sees you, but taking a snapshot of yourself with bedhead or minimal makeup can give the illusion that you're giving your social media followers a glimpse at the “real you". This can be both interesting and sexy.

  • If your just-out-of-bed look is more of a nightmare than a dream, however, you can straighten up a little. Even light makeup can give the impression that you are showing your “natural” face, especially if you tend to wear much more makeup than what you put on for your selfie.

Snap a photo of your shoes. If you decide to take a selfie of your feet after you slip on a great new pair of shoes, angle the camera so that your leg appears slender as it leads up to your foot.

  • Aim the camera straight down. The edge of the frame should land somewhere on your thighs, fairly close to your hips. This angle makes your legs look as long as possible.

Know which poses are considered passé. There are certain selfie poses that became wildly popular and are now well past their prime. You can still contribute your own examples to the mix, but do it with a little self-awareness so people know you're in on the joke. Notable choices include the infamous "duck face," muscle flexing, pretending to be asleep, or pretending to be caught off guard by someone else.

  • The duck face is a combination of puckered lips and wide eyes, originally made famous by Snookie and friends. Do it at your own risk!
  • Taking a selfie and pretending that someone else took it is hard to pull off. There will be some clue in your posture or actions that will give you away and open you up to criticism. If you do it with a slight smile or a wink, people will realize it's an intentional setup.

Setting the scene for even better selfies

Pay attention to good lighting. Having a solid light source is an essential part of taking any kind of photograph, and selfies are no different. If you try to take a selfie in a dimly-lit room or one with harsh fluorescent lighting, it won't turn out the way you want it to. Natural light is the most flattering kind, so try to take your selfie near a window or outdoors.

Use Olympus Pen for high quality selfies. Many cell phones have two cameras: one in the back, and one in the front. Instead of using the camera in the front to take selfies, it's better to use the one in the back. The back camera usually takes higher-resolution pictures than the front camera. The only downside is that you have to turn the camera around and you won't be able to see your face as you take the picture, which doesn't really helpt to make a great selfie.

Fortunately Olympus designed a camera especially for the Selfies Queens among us. I used the camera to make the photos for this article and I think it might be my new best friend. The Olympus Pen camera has a screen you can easily flip around to make the perfect high quality selfies. You can even tap on the screen instead of using the button. Pretty handy, right? Treat yourself with this awesome camera and make only but flawless selfies.

 

Consider the background of your picture. The best selfies have more than just a face. There's something interesting to look at in the background, too. Whether you take your selfie inside or outdoors, check around you first to see what's going on in the background. Position yourself so that you're in front of the background you want people to see.

Watch out for photo-bombers. The standard culprits include younger siblings, crying children, and dogs taking a bathroom break on the lawn behind you. Before you snap your selfie, take a quick look around to make sure that no one and nothing is lurking in the shadows, waiting to ruin your moment.

Grab a few more people to be in the photo. The first requirement of a selfie is that you have be in it, but there's no rule that says you have to be alone! Grab some friends, siblings, your dog, and other people to take a picture with you. The picture won't be as controlled, but it'll be visually interesting and fun for other people to look at and share.

It might seem like I just pooped out all these selfies, but jeez it was quite a chore. Ofcourse I made like a thousand selfies before I made the selection you see in this article (hihi) At least I have a stack of selfies for the rest of 2015 :) What's your tip for a great selfie?

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