If you have been using social networking websites, you might be very well aware of the term ‘Selfie’. A ‘Selfie’ is a picture that one has taken of oneself, with a smartphone or webcam to upload to social media websites. The term Selfie was coined back in the year 2005 and was declared as the word of the year for 2013 by Oxford, although it has never been as ubiquitous as it is today.

How to take a good Selfie?

I’m pretty sure that every one of you often taken a selfie, and now with Smartphones having a small flip button; it’s really hard to resist the temptation to get clicked.

It’s not just about pointing your camera at your face and take a shot without planning. Taking a good selfie is an art and it takes proper angling and lighting to click an attention-grabbing selfie.

Tilting the phone at a 45-degree angle just above your eye line, finding a suitable light source, and striking a flattering pose are just small examples of what a little care can do to improve your selfies.

How to take a Selfie with a front camera

Choose the correct angle- Shoot a selfie from a little above and also sticky your neck a little to look slimmer and hide the bugle under your chin. Focus on your face and tilt your neck a bit to get an attractive selfie.
Find your good side- Everybody has a good and a bad side, check which side of your face gives you good selfies.
Good light plays an important role- Avoid using flash to take selfies, use natural light rather. It is always the best idea to take selfies outdoors.
Be Casual- Don’t try too hard and avoid over-expressions to get a good, natural, and attractive selfie.
Choose a nice backdrop- Please do not click your selfies in the kitchen, parking lot, bedroom, or bathroom. Choose a really nice backdrop to take a nice selfie.

How to take Selfies – guys or girls

Girls should take their selfies taking their one hip way out, this makes the body look slimmer.
If you want to show cleavage, prop yourself up with elbows in a bed or the floor.
If you are a guy and want to show your muscles, stretch out the arm you want to show off and click a selfie.
Girls can show their duck lips and guys can focus on their ironman pose.
Use filters and photo editors on your selfies before you upload them on social networking websites.

How to take Selfies with Windows Phone

If you are a Windows Phone user, you can download the apps from Windows Store which helps you getting nice and eye-catching selfies.

Camera Timer

This selfie app comes with two very handy tools. The first is an audio countdown and the second is the hand-free photo-taking option. With the audio command, you can click the selfie just by saying ‘one’. This app helps you take better group shots and selfies with Windows Phone.

Glam Me App

This app allows you to take a self-portrait with the main camera as well as the front camera. Features like slim face, eye brightness or contrast, smile enhancement, and smart Light make it a perfect app for taking selfies. Smart Light feature enhances the light quality of your picture automatically when you’re using the front camera of your Windows Phone. The Lumia phones sure can take out some great selfies!

How to take a Selfie with a DSLR

There are tons of selfies on the web taken from a Smartphone, but those do not compare to the ones taken with a DSLR.

To take a good selfie from your DSLR camera, you would first need a tripod and a light stand.
Set your DSLR camera on the tripod and adjust the light stand to a height as tall as your eyes.
Pre-focus it and use your trigger to click the selfie. If you do not have a trigger, you can set your camera timer to 15-20 seconds and get an ultimate selfie clicked.

How to take selfies without a front camera

Don’t worry if your Smartphone doesn’t possess a front camera or it is not a good one. Following apps can help you to take good selfies without front camera-

Self-Camera – This is an Android app that recognizes your face and the voice command can click the picture automatically. The app supports the features like flash mode, white balance, and focus mode.
Whistle Camera – As the name suggests, this app lets you click a selfie with just a whistle. To take a selfie with this app, you need to learn how to blow a whistle. The other features of this app include- autofocus and hands-free.

General Tips on How to Take Good Selfie

Use a decent camera.
Proper light is very important.
Dress well before you click.
Choose the background carefully.
Don’t take selfies in the mirror, rather set a timer, pose and click.
Don’t try hard, smile, and be natural.
To make your features look sharper, keeping the light source at a 50-60 degree angle above your face level, may help.
If you are on the fatter side, taking a selfie with your arm at a raised position may make you look slightly thinner and hide your double chin, if any.

Have a look at some of the best Selfie Sticks for Android, and iPhone.