the art of the self portrait – part 1

how many times have you held your camera in your outstretched arm, pointed it at yourself, snapped the shot and ended up looking like jabba the hut?!

(okay, so that example was a little far fetched, but you know exactly what i’m talking about!)

my friends marvel at my ability to take a good-looking photo of myself, but i am here to tell you that with a little trial and error and a few tips…

YOU CAN GET THAT AWESOME SHOT OF YOURSELF TOO!!

TIP #1: if you are taking the photo hand held (hands-free will be in part 2), use one hand. try it in each hand to see which one works best for you (and which one you can stretch further). for my canon point and shoot, i usually have to hold the camera upside down to hold it comfortably (you can easily rotate the image in post-production).

TIP #2: raise the camera above your head. not so high that you have to wrinkle your forehead or strain your neck, but high enough so that you are not shooting directly at your neck line (that’s where the 100 double-chins you don’t normally have hide).

TIP #3: make sure the zoom is set as wide as possible (or else you won’t be able to fit your entire face in the shot).

TIP #4: sit or stand up straight. great posture can make a huge difference and drops 10lbs from your look.

TIP #5: instead of straight-on, take a shot from a 3/4 angle. play with both sides of your face (most of us do have a “good side”).

TIP #6: bring some sparkle in your eyes. tyra calls is “smiling with your eyes” or “smyzing”.

Try out these few tips and there will be more to come in part 2…

I will be holding a “best self-portrait” contest, so get snapping!