Welcome to AdoramaTV
my name is Marcin Lewandowski
and in this episode of the Viewfinder
we'll look at the phenomenon
that is ‘The Selfie’ and look at tips and
techniques to make yours
stand out in the crowd.
There are tens of billions of
selfie photographs uploaded just to
Google photos alone each year,
and most of them are trying to replicate each
other, and they're more or less the same.
This makes them much less exciting as
photographers, or at least as people
having an interest in photography,
we have the power to do much more than
that and present ourselves in a creative
way without that much effort really.
It's just a matter of the imagination. In this
episode I will give you a few tips and
ideas to make a great unique selfie using
reflections and shadows for inspiration.
So what is a selfie? According to the
Oxford Dictionary it's “a photograph that
one has taken of oneself, typically one
taken with a smartphone or webcam and
shared via social media”. Even this
description leaves a lot for the
imagination - a photograph? This can be
practically anything. Some advice on the
internet about paying attention to “good
lighting” is one of the reasons we get so
many bad selfies.
If I could get a dime each
time I was given a suggestion to
photograph in the middle of the day in
full Sun because the light will be great
for portraits, I would be a rich person…
seriously though, a selfie could be so
much more. For starters let's look at a
few ideas on how to make a unique and
creative one. The first thing I want to
talk about is reflections - not the
standard snap in the bathroom five
minutes before leaving for an evening
with your friends, but something a bit
more thoughtful.
Look for mannequins or
photographs in shop windows to
superimpose your reflection. If you keep
searching I bet you can find something
funny or graphically interesting. While
looking at the shop windows check for
where the Sun is in the sky and look at
how the mannequins are positioned. Find
some that are lit strongly from one
direction and go for a more graphical
option. If you can find strong features
in a display or around your reflection
that's even better. This is just a
starting point because so many other
things can reflect us. Mirrors are one,
but almost any other surface that's
polished enough could be potentially
used for a selfie. A vintage car wheel
hubs, Christmas tree bulbs, knives,
sunglasses and puddles after the rain.
The main thing is to keep an open mind
and forget about the usual selfie we see
taken by the millions. I encourage you to
make a difference and inspire others to
try something new.
Reflections are not the only option
however intuitive as it might seem.
Looking for a shape can be equally fun
and interesting so why not play with
your own shadow? When we were children
this was a ton of fun - did the world
really change so much?
Our own shadow can be easily combined
with already existing features and
superimposed over them in a variety of
ways. Create your eyes from features of a
surface you cast your shadow on, add
things growing on your head, maybe even
combine it with a reflection for ultra
selfie. These are just two very open
ideas that can be mastered forever
without ever having to take the same
photograph. I want to mention a few
photographers that are true masters of
self portraits each in a unique way. It's
not a definitive list by any means but
the spark to kick start your engines.
First of all Lee Friedlander - he has
photographed himself fuller longer that
he can probably remember and each of
the selfies he publishes is a story in
itself, not in a way that Cindy Sherman's
self-portraits are but all are unique.
There is the serene simplicity of Vivian
Maier self-portraits and crazy works of
Yasumasa Morimura. Pick and choose but
most of all enjoy your creativity. I hope
this episode will inspire you to be
creative with your selfies. Subscribe to
our channel for more and check out the
Adorama Learning Center for more tips
and tutorials. This was Marcin
Lewandowski for Adorama TV,
see you next time.