How to take the ultimate travel selfie

Frame the setting

With travel selfies it’s assumed the background is pretty important. Whether it’s the stately Colosseum, the sprawling expanse of Machu Picchu or the iconic Eiffel Tower, you need to offset your face and make room for the scenery. Yes, the shorter your arm is the harder this might be, but there are ways to work around this. Changing the angle of a shot can make for extra background space, and technically even setting the timer and then running into the photo is still classed as a selfie according to some people.

Settings

Camera phones have come a long way in the last few years, but they still vary greatly from phone to phone. Your phone evidently needs to have photo-taking facilities, and the higher resolution back-facing camera is generally the best way to go. Learn when to use (and not to use) flashes for the best effect, and if in doubt snap two versions of the same selfie (one with the flash and one without). There are also a huge variety of apps out there that allow you to tweak different elements of the shot to create a better end product.

Filters and more advanced photo editing

Filters were created to enhance photos, and the effect is often major and can change a poor photo in to something your followers will talk about for ages. Don’t go overboard, but use the nifty function when needed. Some Instagrammers exaggerate the filter effect but have thousands of followers because of how they do it. For example, when travelling natural landscapes can look even more amazing with the right filter. Others are known for never using a filter. Choose a style and make it your own.

Poise and pose

The two Ps are very important. Get one of these wrong and you’ve got yourself a selfie failure. Odd angles can create accentuated noses and foreheads, neither of which generally classify as attractive. Also, what you may not instantly realise, is that although you’re taking the photo on your smart phone and it looks good, someone else might be seeing it on the iPad – in which case it comes up much bigger.

Get creative

Selfies don’t just have to be about one expression (duckface was never cool), but they don’t just have to be of your face front on. Feet, arms, fingers and other body parts, styled in an interesting way, can often make for (arguably) more thoughtful shots, especially in hard-to-get-to locations that you can brag about down the track. Think outside the square. Sure, hands holding up the Leaning Tower of Pisa make for your standard selfie shot, but what if you used your feet instead to make it a little different.

How many

Taking too many selfies isn’t a massive problem as long as they stay on your phone. Knowing how many to post on social media sites is a whole other topic. Numerous studies suggest that most people do not perceive too many shared selfies as positive. It’s important to err on the side of caution when deciding whether or not your friends and followers really want to see another photo of you that hour/day. One shot of yourself in a stunning location per day is probably OK, but when you start hitting plural numbers it really depends on who your followers are and what kind of content they like.