#selfie

Don't shoot me now. I would just like to share my selfie pic when I first cut my hair super short.

Tadaaa!

Here’s some trivia about me - I don't like taking pictures of myself. I rarely do Selfies on my FB page, actually. I like it more if I post my kids' pictures instead.

With the onslaught of all the selfies roaming around the Internet, I beg to differ from them. It’s not that I don’t like seeing their faces… I actually do! In fact, I think I may have "LIKED" all those selfie pics that my friends have posted on their Facebooks. And I am not complaining.

Let me repeat, I don't hate selfies. Trust me, I love seeing pictures of my friends and relatives feeling good about themselves. Because, think about it. Taking and posting selfies mean that you are confident with your own skin and you would like to share some of that confidence to the world wide web. It means that in your own little way, you can tell the world that you are beautiful.

I only wonder if that is why most people post their selfies. One thing I know, here are the events that usually garner a selfie shot:

- when she / he / they have their new outfits or the well-known hashtag #OOTD ( Outfit Of The Day, in case you're wondering).

- others post their newly shorn or newly cut hair, maybe a result of a recent break up or weather condition or something... (uhmmm.. I am actually guilty with this one, teehee :D )

- when he /she/they get the latest gadget or make-up to show-off to their colleagues.

- when waking up in the morning or even right before going to bed.

- even when going to the bathroom (ugh.. please spare me ...)

However, did you know that SELFIE is not really a trend that has been going on lately? In fact, there had been reports (and I am glad I have uprooted these info) that selfies or taking a picture of oneself, had started roughly in the early 1900?

Oh, yes sir! Take a look at this photo of an "unidentified woman taking her own photograph using a mirror and a box camera" in the 1900's era. Notice the black and white scene, the big camera box that the woman was holding in the mirror and the long-sleeved dress. Classic isn't it?

photo taken from wikipedia

And here's another one. According to wikipedia.org, there was once a Russian Grand Duchess named Anastasia Nikolaevna,  who at the age of 13 was one of the first teenagers to take her own picture using a mirror to send to a friend in 1914. 
,

In the letter that accompanied the photograph, she wrote, "I took this picture of myself looking at the mirror. It was very hard as my hands were trembling."

So, selfies aren't new in our time. Indeed, this has been a very popular activity among the young people nowadays. Of course, the adults or the "young once" are also into it. So I don't blame those who love taking pictures of themselves and posting them constantly on their Facebook/Instagram pages.

However, if you really can’t help taking pictures of your self,  here are some suggestions you can follow if you want your photo to look a little artistic and not too cutesy, to the point that you'd look like an "attention-seeker" (which other people find quite annoying).

• Try posing at different angles – side view perhaps?
• Try doing the Look-Up version like the one popularized by Ryzza Mae Dizon; look up instead of looking straight into the camera 
• Try not to smile so hard, a simple lift of your lips will do
• Try to look relaxed, animated but not too cute. Sometimes, doing those two fingers - peace sign makes you look a little "trying hard", just look your best and act normal.  Don't give the super "batting the eyelash" look. 
• Lastly, don't post selfies when you are doing something in the restroom/bathroom/comfort room. A little privacy won't hurt.

So next time you have your camera on your hands, think, "Will my viewers like my pic? Or will they just get annoyed?"

Happy posting!