noun (plural selfies)

a photograph that one has taken of oneself, typically taken with a smartphone or webcam and uploaded to a social media website

Over the last couple of years, a trend emerged that has reached popularity all over the world. People everywhere take selfies. It’s like a new sport. It’s probably going to become an olympic discipline someday. In 2013, the Oxford Dictionaries crowned it “word of the year” and honestly, every time I come across this great “new” hype, I’m like “that’s so 2005.” Before phones where smart, I had one with a 180-degree-angle camera and I took selfies, all the time. The only difference is that there was no Instagram and people were just starting to get social on Facebook. According to the Oxford explanation, a selfie is only a selfie when you upload it to some kind of social media platform. I always thought it was just a picture you took by yourself of yourself. Sometimes, it does count, even if other people are in the picture, as well. Well, define it however you want, but it’s a big thing. It has it’s own song, Kim Kardashian is releasing her own selfie book and last year, when the wonderful Ellen DeGeneres took that Oscar selfie, Twitter exploded. I think it’s crazy what one picture can do. The internet is like a horde of wild beasts, just waiting for the next groundbreaking selfie. Every week there is a new one that triggers all kinds of ridiculous discussions. I think this week, it’s Amber Rose who definitely shows the world what her mama gave her. And of course what happens? Everyone throws out their opinions about whether or not curvy women or hot, some call her fat, some call her a bad mother and so on. I mean honestly people, don’t you have more important things to worry about?

We all do it. Every single person I know has taken a selfie. Ok,maybe not my grandparents but they sure are in some of mine. Personally, I think that selfies are not a bad thing. What are you supposed to do when nobody is there to take a picture of you? I just wish, people would raise their standards when it comes to quality. I usually take all of mine with an actual camera, since I’ve always been into photography. Most of the time, I carry around two. You would be surprised how much better your selfies would look, if you would actually focus on quality. Most cameras they build into phones simply suck. They might look good on your small screen, but as soon as you look at them on your computer, you will notice that in reality, they suck. When I’m on vacation or just in any kind of cool place and I see people taking pictures with their phones or tablets, which by the way looks ridiculous, it makes me sad. They snap some quick pics, which will probably stay on their phones forever, and that’s it. So that’s how you want to remember the Golden Gate Bridge? Or the Eiffel Tower? Big Ben? I think most people don’t even print out their pictures, anymore. They store them on phones, die of a heart attack, once technology fails and you forgot to save a backup, or upload them on Instagram. Today’s kids won’t even know the feeling of looking through a photo album, years later, wallowing in memories. They will just count how many likes they got on social media. Or they will get one of those special Instagram albums to actually print out all their pixelated photos. I’m not on Instagram. I wanted to install it on my computer but it’s not possible. You need the app on some kind of smart device, because that’s what the industry wants. Poorly shot selfies that were altered by some Instagram filter. I’ve seen the worst quality pictures on Facebook and still, those pictures get hundreds or likes. WHY people, WHY? For the future: If I ever end up getting an Instagram account and actually upload crappy pictures, I apologize. It might happen at some point, though.

You know what the worst pictures are? The mirror ones, featuring your phone. People don’t even look into the camera, or mirror, they just look at the screen. All those “outfit of the day” posts with people holding their cameras/phones, into the mirror. Why do you do that? Especially if its actually important to you to show it off. Ever heard of a tripod? Or heard of friends, family members, random people on the street? In case you missed it, there are also tripods for your phone. That will make the whole process easier, if you decide to take pictures with your phone, forever. I’m planning on getting a GoPro camera for myself, including a tripod. I want to take more awesome selfies including a great landscape. I want something lasting and not just something for a quick show-off.  Yes, there are some pictures of me taking pictures of myself in windows, etc. But I actually do that on purpose to see my reflection  in the picture and the actual door etc. because it looks special. I don’t use my phone, though.

If you like taking selfies with your phone, fine. If you upload everything on Instagram, fine. I don’t really care, I am just annoyed by the hype and I really don’t get what’s so cool and new about it. I wonder where all those Paris Hilton’s and Kim Kardashians would be, if it wasn’t for selfies? By 2020, it’s going to be an actual job. Description: willingness to upload selfies of your naked butt, or boobs or whatever. A week ago, I saw a picture on my Facebook feed of a really pretty girl. In this selfie though, she looks like a plastic blow-up doll and everyone of course loved it. This world is crazy.

Tips for a good selfie: 

1. Stay away from mirrors. And if you just can’t let it go, at least don’t look at the screen. Or just let other people take a picture of you.

2. Don’t constantly reduce yourself to ass, boobs and a duckface.

3. Try using a real camera. You’ll be surprised what difference it makes.

4. If you can’t live without filters, use Photoshop.

5. If you take 45679 selfies, upload the best one and not all of them.

6. Never take a picture from below. I know a lot of people criticize that “holding the camera over your head so you have big eyes in the pic angle” but trust me, it’s still better than presenting a few extra chins.

Interestingly, my WordPress dictionary does not know this word.