5 Tips to Take the Perfect #Selfie

Love it or hate it, it looks like the #selfie is here to stay (for awhile at least, right along with the hashtag), and everyone’s in on the craze: Ellen snapping a star-studded pic mid-Oscars; President Obama mugging with Red Sox player David Ortiz; even the Pope smiling for a selfie or two or 12.

And with the rise of selfies comes an acute sense of self awareness and even perfection anxiety—the selfie trend has increased demand in cosmetic procedures in the under-30 set, with one in three facial plastic surgeons noting a boost in requests for procedures due to patients being more self aware of looks in social media, according to a new study by the American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery (AAFPRS).

“Social platforms like Instagram, Snapchat, and the iPhone app Selfie.im, which are solely image based, force patients to hold a  microscope up to their own image and often look at it with a more self-critical eye than ever before,” says Edward Farrior, MD, president of the AAFPRS. “These images are often the first impressions young people put out there to prospective friends, romantic interests, and employers, and our patients want to put their best face forward.”

Thirteen percent of AAFPRS members surveyed reported a 10 percent increase in rhinoplasty in 2013 over 2012, a seven percent increase in hair transplants, and a six percent increase in eyelid surgery.

We say, let’s take a different route! Put the plastic surgery aside and instead use these five simple tips to take a picture-perfect selfie.

1. Be natural: No posing, please, as it has a tendency to look fake. The best selfies are snapped when you’re just having fun and being relaxed, allowing your confidence and, well, natural “self” to shine.

2. Along the same line as tip number-one, free yourself of the unnatural “duck face.” Trust us, rarely anyone looks good when sucking in your cheeks like that.

3. Keep your camera steady by placing it on something level; if this isn’t possible, focus on keeping your camera-holding arm steady (no wobbles here!). And on that note, camera position counts: Hold the camera too close to the body, and it will make your features appear wide; too far away, and your arm might be in the shot. Find a happy medium that works for you.

4. Practice your angles and know what’s your “good side” to achieve the most flattering shot. (How many images have you captured where you’ve tilted the camera too high, looked up, and got a prime shot up your nose, or angled the camera too far down and were in danger of getting a double chin?)

5. Take advantage of all the selfie tools out there, from HISY™, a Bluetooth-controlled camera shutter remote permitting you to take videos or pics from far away, to Camera+ app by tap tap tap, touted by many for its progressive editing functionality.