Restaurant Vizhen Selfie

By now, you’ve probably heard the word “Selfie” floating around the internet. But what is a selfie? And how does it work? We’ll tell you all that and more in today’s blog.

Definition

If you’ve recently spent time with your child or grandkid and instead of the usual lunchtime conversation, they sat there taking photos of themselves, you’ve seen a Selfie attempt in real life.

A Selfie is defined by Oxford Dictionary as “a photograph that one has taken of oneself, typically one taken with a smartphone or webcam and shared via social media.” Oxford Dictionary even named the word ‘Selfie’ Word of the Year in 2013. They have become quite popular within the last few years, especially among the younger generation.

Some Selfie History

However, this modern phenomenon is not as ‘modern’ as people think. The first Selfie was actually taken way before 2013, dating back all the way to 1839, by a man named Robert Cornelius.

This chemist and photographer snapped the first ever self-portrait. Too bad he didn’t upload the photo to Instagram with the hashtag #selfie to receive the credit he deserves.

You are probably thinking, I’ve been taking photos like this for years, why now are they naming it? It’s probably because it wasn’t until a few years ago that smartphones began to have front cameras, and more and more computers have webcams installed resulting in making it much easier for people to take Selfies. Also, with the rise of social media, requiring pictures on people’s profiles, Selfies make it easy to take a quick photo of yourself and show who you really are.   If someone else takes a photo of you, let’s say while you were on vacation, that is not considered a Selfie because you are not the one taking the photo. Here are a few examples of a Selfie vs. non-Selfie:

How to Take a Selfie

It’s important for any social media profile (such as Stitch or Facebook) to have a recent photo of yourself. Getting a self-portrait taken by a professional photographer is expensive, timely, and no longer the social norm, so you can feel good about saving your time and money!

To take a Selfie on a smartphone (Iphone, Samsung Galaxy, LG 4G Nexus, Android, etc.):

1. Open your camera application.
2. Make sure the front camera is on and facing you. In the top right hand corner there is a switch sign that, when tapped, will flip between the front and back camera.
3. Practice your smile and make sure you can see your entire face.
4. Take a Selfie!