Anna Shvets

10 Tips For Taking The Perfect Selfie

Selfies are a great way to express yourself, capture a look forever, and keep in touch with loved ones. Some people are a little camera-shy or have tried taking selfies and don’t like the way that they turn out. First of all, you needn’t be a perfectionist! Second, the following 10 tips will help you to capture a moment that will make you satisfied, excited, and confident enough to share it on social media, to Nanna on email, or to a friend in a text message! Read on, my future selfie-ista! 

1. You don’t have to smile.

If you’re not smiling, it doesn’t mean that you aren’t happy! Some people think that a neutral face is a cool face. This is a face where your lips make a smallish straight line horizontally. There are other connotations for a neutral face like a “game face,” a “thug face,” an “emo face,” among others. A lot of models in magazines have a neutral face. I am happy on the inside when I wear my cool face! 

2. You don’t have to make a traditional face.

Maybe a friend sends you a funny video and you want to show a reaction of yourself laughing. Maybe you tried yogurt as a face mask and want to show a friend how disgusting it is in your facial expression. Maybe you want to take a selfie with your last cell phone juice with a flashlight on your face during a power outage and you have on your sad-but-good-sport face. Every single facial expression throughout human history has been unique! People always say that there’s no need to be a cookie cutter, and this wisdom applies to selfies as well. 

3. Look at yourself neutrally.

When you take a selfie and look at yourself in the frame, people who see the photo afterwards can see your own impression of yourself in the picture. Don’t wince at eyeliner gone slightly astray! Maintain your good self-esteem and don’t light up in narcissism or fall sullen with disappointment with how the picture looks as you are taking it. 

4. You don’t have to focus on your reflection on the screen.

If you’re worried that you can’t maintain a neutral spirit while taking your selfie, unfocus your eyes slightly from the screen or look away. You can look at a point on the phone instead that is away from the camera. 

5. Relax.

It’s a natural appearance, there are no bad faces, and your family and friends love you and will love your selfie! People will be able to see in your photo if you are trying very hard. So don’t! 

6. Have fun.

It’s easy to take a selfie seriously, because potentially so many people will see it. However, people will empathize with you and your feelings in your photo, so they will want to feel joy, cheer, and gladness, not uptight, uneasy, or tense energies. 

7. Make it a picture that makes you personally excited.

You will be able to see yourself as you are taking your photo, so make it a photo that you really want to take in your heart. Wear an outfit that makes you feel exuberant, put on makeup that makes you feel exhilarated, go to a location that makes you feel enraptured! 

8. Just take 1-2 pictures.

The first picture sometimes looks astray, but if you empathize with it, it is the best. If something really goes astray, sometimes it feels necessary to take a second photo. After about three photos, your eyes start to look fatigued from taking selfies. 

9. If it isn’t going well, you don’t have to share it.

Try another picture some other time. You don’t want to force a picture if you’re not feeling it for some reason! 

10. Feel good feelings that people want to empathize with.

As with all picture taking, people can feel your feelings in the photo. So, eat a good breakfast, have a good day on purpose, and take a picture when you don’t feel rushed! Selfies are all about responsibility!