How to Take a Better Selfie

We've all witnessed people pouting their lips, jutting out their elbows, flirting with the electronic device at the end of their hand. I'm thinking those people have mastered the art of good selfies.

I have a friend--a regular person--who's perfected the art of taking a selfie. I watched her the other night as she outstretched her arm, flashed, and took good picture after good picture. In fact, my friend is so savvy, she prefers to take selfies than have someone else take her pic.

I am horrible at taking my own picture...I always blamed it on my short arms. For example:

Bad selfie. Notice the arm in the picture and tentative, stiff poses.

So, I was determined to figure her technique out. It turns out, there's a few strategies...and hope for me yet. I got the low-down, so of course, I'm passing my new-found knowledge along to you, in three easy steps:

Step 1: Do not rotate the camera so you are looking at yourself. Hold the phone as if someone else was taking your picture. It's actually a little more comfortable to hold the phone this way too. The flash will go off if needed and you'll be looking at the lens instead of below it. I recommend using the side volume buttons to snap the picture. My theory is that, possibly, when you turn the phone to see yourself, you're feeling awkward/judgey/self-conscious (or is that just me?) and this transfers to the picture.

Step 2: Position the phone to your advantage. We all know (don't we?) that we photograph better from slightly above, so hold the phone up above face level. Next, turn the camera slightly, so it's at angle. This is strictly going by what my friend does...and it works. Practice angling the lens so it's not showing your arm in the picture. Selfie-practice makes for fun when you're a couple glasses of wine in with friends.

Step 3: Perfect your pose. I hate to say "pose" because that makes me think of duck lips. So, please, don't pout, but when you smile, do this: put your tongue on the back of your front teeth. Look at the camera lens, and tilt your head down ever-so-slightly. Doesn't hurt to tilt your head at an angle a smidge too. Got it? Head down, tongue on teeth, tilt, and snap. But before the snap, relax. 

So here's the photo my selfie-expert friend took:

Good selfie

Huge difference, right? So next time your out with your friends, your honey, family, or dog, give it a try. I'll keep an eye out for your amazing pics on Facebook.