Content

• Steps
• Method 1 of 4: Composition
• Method 2 of 4: Poses
• Method 3 of 4: Setting
• Method 4 of 4: Editing
• Tips

Why do people photograph themselves? For fun, to capture a special moment or share with others what is happening here and now. It’s a shame when you don’t like yourself in any photo. Don't worry, though! Here are some simple steps to help you look your best in your photo.

Steps

Method 1 of 4: Composition

1. 1 Shoot from above. Shooting from above will give you a more attractive angle. The focus will be on the eyes, and the face and neck will appear smaller.
   • When shooting from below, you can enhance the impression of a person's power and strength, but such an angle will accentuate the chin and nose, and this hardly paints anyone.
   • It is best not to raise the camera too high so that the picture does not come out distorted.
   • Raise the camera just above eye level and shoot.
2. 2 Find the shaded side of your face. Take a look in the mirror or take a test photo and see which side of the face is farther from the light source and therefore looks darker. Take photos from this side for an artistic effect and appear slimmer. This technique may not work in bright sunlight.
3. 3 Shoot creatively. Instead of a traditional full-face self-portrait, try taking an artistic photo with a completely different composition. Here are some ideas:
   • take a photo in profile, that is, from the side;
   • photograph only half of the face - left or right;
   • take a close-up photo of the eyes, lips, or cheek.
4. 4 Do not place your face in the exact center of the frame. The best photos are usually built according to the rule of thirds. This means that the eyes (the compositional center of the portrait) should be at a distance of one third vertically from the top border of the picture and to the right or left of its middle. The photo will turn out to be more interesting, and the angle will probably be better.
5. 5 Keep the camera away from your face. The lens distorts objects too close. Selfies are usually taken with the camera or phone at arm's length, which is a very close distance and often makes the nose look larger than it actually is - definitely not the effect you would like to achieve.
   • If you want to take a close-up photo, it is better to use the optical zoom and shoot from a greater distance. You can also take a waist-length or full-length photo, and then crop it.
   • If your camera has a timer, lean it against a stable support, turn on the timer, and step away. A photo like this is likely to be more successful than a handheld selfie.
6. 6 Use the main camera of your phone. It is more convenient to take pictures of yourself on the front camera of a smartphone, but the main one allows you to take much better pictures.
7. 7 Place a mirror behind the camera. Taking pictures is easier when you can see yourself, so a mirror located behind your camera or smartphone can help you achieve a better pose or facial expression. Make sure your smile is natural!
8. 8 Ask someone to take a picture of you. This is not always possible, but it is preferable to have someone else take a picture of you. You can focus on posing without having to think about holding the camera and pressing a button at the same time.
   • Ask a friend to take a photo of you. He may tease you a little, or he may ask you to take a photo of him too.
   • If this happens at a party or other event, ask someone present to take a photo of you (and your friends, if you are with a company). Better to let it be someone you know, or at least seemingly trustworthy, so that your phone or camera won't be stolen.

Method 2 of 4: Poses

1. 1 Avoid a double chin. One of the ugliest things you can get from a bad shot is a double chin. This can usually be avoided by stretching your neck and slightly pushing your chin forward, away from your body. It will seem to you that this is strange and inconvenient, but in the photo it will look exactly as it should.
2. 2 Straighten your shoulders. Slouching shoulders and poor posture do not adorn absolutely anyone, so bring your shoulders down and back. This will give you a more vigorous look, visually lengthen your neck and thus improve your photo. You can slightly raise one shoulder or turn it towards the lens, rather than standing in an even, static position.
3. 3 Change your attitude. If you shoot and upload a lot of self-portraits to the network, and look serious at all, without exception, you may seem overly serious and even boring. Try to fool around and take a funny photo. When you allow yourself to relax and have fun, you can suddenly get a surprisingly good shot.
4. 4 Face the camera at an angle. Instead of standing straight in front of the photo, try turning your face or whole body slightly. Experiment to find your better side. Standing half-turned in a full-length photo will make you look slimmer and accentuate the curves of your body.
5. 5 Do not look directly into the lens. Even if your eyes are your most beautiful feature, try looking away from the camera for a more interesting photo.
   • You can still focus on your eyes by opening them wide and looking over or away from the camera.
   • Try not to look away too obviously. Looking slightly away from the lens will give the impression that you do not know that you are being filmed. If you take your eyes at least thirty centimeters away from the camera, it will already look like deliberate posing.
6. 6 Show emotion. Sincere emotions are usually immediately visible on the face. A forced smile usually doesn't make you more attractive. So if you're posing for a photo smiling, think of something really enjoyable or funny.
   • If you want to look happy and joyful, smile not only with your mouth, but also with your eyes. The best way to do this is to really feel happy.
   • You can show other emotions as well. Pose with a gloomy, flirtatious, sad, brooding, surprised, or indifferent expression - just try to be natural.
7. 7 Dress appropriately. If you are shooting a self-portrait with a specific purpose, think about how you should dress.
   • If you need a photo for work or for a page on a professional web, choose clothes in a discreet, business style and a simple neat hairstyle.
   • If you are taking a photo for a dating site, you can wear something flashy or cool, but don't dress too sexy (such a photo will immediately give away your efforts to appear sexier!). The hairstyle doesn't have to be perfect; keep it casual, but show that you pay attention to your appearance.
   • If the photo is for your social media page, think about how people will perceive you. The choice of clothing is very wide, but a dirty T-shirt is still not the best choice for selfies (unless, indeed, you do not show that you have just returned from a twenty kilometer hike).
8. 8 Don't play duckface! The so-called duckface (face with lips "duck") - lips folded in a bow and stretched out as for a kiss - everyone got tired and became a model of bad taste when shooting selfies. There are tons of other, prettier facial expressions.

Method 3 of 4: Setting

1. 1 Shoot in natural light. Natural light is always preferred for photography. However, direct sunlight, especially at noon when the sun is directly overhead, is not good for portraits: you don't need harsh shadows on your face!
   • If you have a choice, it's best to take your photo on a cloudy day.
   • Indoors, try to take pictures by the window, in natural light (but not in direct sunlight).
   • If you are forced to use artificial light indoors, avoid fluorescent lights and overhead lighting. You may be able to achieve more favorable lighting by turning off the ceiling lights and turning on table lamps and sconces.
   • If you have to shoot in direct light from above (no matter whether natural or artificial), use the flash to fill in the shaded areas - then your photo will not have shadows under the nose or eyes.
2. 2 Check the background. By posting a photo on the Internet, you are unlikely to dream of the glory of a person who has captured himself against an absurd or indecent background.
   • Selfies are often taken in a bathroom or a messy bedroom, although this is not the best choice. A photo with a toilet in the background, no one would call beautiful!
   • If you're indoors, look for a neutral background, such as a blank wall or window.
   • Whether you are on the street or on a holiday, capture your surroundings so that the picture is not just you, but a kind of story.
3. 3 Think about visual boundaries. The photo can be more interesting if the composition forms a kind of frame. Here are some ideas for such visual frames:
   • pose in the doorway;
   • hold the camera with two outstretched hands, not one;
   • Stand between two objects - for example, trees or bushes;
   • grasp or support your chin with your hand to create a visual frame underneath.

Method 4 of 4: Editing

1. 1 Zoom in on the desired area. If you want to select a part of the face or body, use a photo editing application to zoom in on it and save the edited version. Most smartphones and computers can be equipped with photo processing software, many of which are very easy to use.
2. 2 Crop the frame to remove any unnecessary elements. Any unnecessary or ugly parts of the picture should be removed by cropping. If you took a photo with one hand, it is best to remove it from the frame, as it will look large and not very attractive. If the hair stands on end, remove at least part of it. You do not have to show anyone the photos the way you took them: edit first, then upload or send.
3. 3 Use a filter. Most photo sharing sites have a built-in filter option. With their help, you can change the shades, contrast and brightness of your photo. Try different filters until you find the one that looks the best for your photo.
4. 4 Retouch the photo. In addition to programs and applications designed for photo editing in general, there are applications specially designed for retouching portraits. These programs can help you get rid of red eyes, remove pimples and blemishes, even out skin tone and more to perfect your photo.
5. 5 Use a blur effect. As a general rule, we all want our photos to be sharp, but selective blur can improve a shot. By keeping part of the frame in focus and blurring the rest, you immediately draw the viewer's eye to what you want to emphasize, and distract them from the background and weak points.

Tips

• Try taking pictures in different rooms to find out which one has the best lighting.
• Use the soft focus effect when retouching your photos to keep details clear and your skin flawless.
• There is nothing more trite in a selfie photo than an outstretched hand in the frame. Try setting a timer instead. You can also experiment with different shooting angles to hide this ubiquitous hand.
• Take many pictures to choose the best one.
• Let your feet become the heroes of the story! Photographing your feet against a stunning backdrop will document your presence - so you don't have to worry about how you look in the photo.
• Before taking a photo, look in the mirror and, if necessary, fix your clothes, hair and makeup.
• If you don't like certain features of your face, highlight others. For example, if you don't like your lips, use bright eyeshadow to accentuate your eyes.
• Be happy with yourself. There is no other such person in the whole wide world. You are one of a kind and unique - embrace it!
• Place your phone on the floor or other flat surface with its back against something and sit across from it. The camera of the phone should be facing you. Start the timer and start posing. Look aside and smile mysteriously if you think that such a photo will expose you in a favorable light; if not, try something else.