A staple in everyone’s travel packing nowadays is a camera — and boy, it’s been around since the days of film! The cool thing about digital cameras is that companies are always coming out with new ones every week — this makes the costs for the previous models lower — and 7-8-9-12 megapixels can be cheap nowadays. Then we could argue about professional photography, and dslrs and, well, this isn’t about that.
It’s a joy to carry a camera around to capture the sights, moments and, well the lovely travel buddies you have along. The sad part is, if you’re too accustomed to taking the photos, you may not know how to look good in ‘em.
I mean, for photos you take, you could always manipulate on photo-editing software, but for the ones you don’t have control over? It’ll be instantly uploaded, with or without your blessing. To save yourself from this kind of worry, here are a couple of tips, so that you could photograph better.
For your smile, think happy thoughts — the ones that make you all giggly and tingly on the inside. That’ll help produce genuine happiness on your photos. Remember: people can tell when you’re faking! Ever had a photo taken where your smile was too wide and all your gums were showing? Try lessening that unflattering pose by practice. (Plus, some teeth whitener won’t hurt.)
Hide that neck! Always, always raise your head and slightly look down when taking photos, this avoids the double-chin look. Imagine that you’re a giraffe trying to squeeze into the frame.
Add dimension. Remember that a photograph, or an image is in 2D — try to add dimension by bringing a side of your body closer to the camera. (This is especially true for men — we tend to look the camera head-on, making most photos look stiff.) Try bringing one of your shoulders closer to the camera, or try posing at an angle. Experiment!
Remember to look slightly ABOVE the lens, not directly at it. I have several photos where it looks like I’m looking somewhere else, I look cross-eyed, and so on.
Find out your best angle. Try looking over your photos — have you noticed that one of your friends has the exact same look in every photo? That friend may have found what looks good for her when it comes to getting photos taken. Determine your best angle by looking at the mirror. Does getting a shot from the right make it look like you have comb-over hair? The funny thing is, most people look just directly at the mirror, that’s why they haven’t seen what they look like from different angles.
Dress for timelessness. Dress rules apply, only take in consideration the lens of the camera. Stick to solid colors to avoid looking wide or narrow — horizontal stripes and vertical stripes, respectively. I mean, you only get to share this slice of time for future generations once, why spoil your kid’s eyes?
Have fun, practice! If these tips are hitting home for you, then think about this, do you even like getting your photo taken? Maybe you just don’t get your photo taken too much. You can always practice at home and instantly see the results, and if you’re not happy, you could change! Relax, and have fun sharing that beautiful smile for the world!
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Tags: camera, photogenic, photography, photos, Travel
June 17th, 2008 at 11:06 pm
Great tips. Now, only if I can remember them after a few drinks.