Taking photos of yourself...

[Stephanie43]

I find that after going through the photos I’ve taken of myself, sexy and pretty Stephanie never really gets captured in my photos. At least not all the photos. I think I’m much prettier in black and white or some form of a mono tone. Lol.

We’ve all been there I’m sure. You get in your sexiest, prettiest pose, look in the mirror, like what you see and snap the picture. You then realize the picture you just took went through your phone or camera’s ugly filter before getting to your viewing screen.

[Kas]

Tell me about it. Had that exact problem last night. I guess there is always another day...

[docrobbysherry]

Nope. I take better pix of me with a timer than anyone else. And, it's rare when the reflection in my mirror is prettier than my pix!

Even tho I'm nearsited and don't wear glasses when I dress!

[Judy-Somthing]

I've taken quite a few photos over the last forty years and have tried all kinds of lighting and found sun light works the best especially now at 60!

[Tracii G]

Natural light I find works best for me.
Even better if its a bit overcast.

[Rica]

This is a fun subject. I'm a semi-pro photographer and I can say for sure that there are some very pretty people on this place. I say to myself if I could get some of these people in my studio, the photos would be really nice. If you have a studio around your place, you should do a photo shoot. It's so fun. A lot of work though. One of the ones I did had over 2000 shots. Hours and hours. I was pooped. The models were angels though. They do work hard. Anywho, I hope to see good photography from every person. You will be happy I can assert such.

Rica

[lingerieLiz]

Relax about how you look. You will find that most all people don't like their pictures. I've known several beautiful models. They didn't like looking at their pictures. Try doing a side by side inverted (mirrored) image. You will like the picture better. Your used to seeing yourself in the mirror. When you look at a picture you see what others see and it looks strange.

[IleneD]

The subject of self-photography fascinates me. I've taken (literally) hundreds of photographs of myself [dressed up en femme] over the last 15 months or so since I began to seriously and fully dress. I don't know why.

The mere fact I've taken hundreds of photos of myself is mind boggling. I never did selfies before finding my inner CD. I don't have very many photographs of myself over my life and career; and I've done some pretty unusual and exciting things. But since I started dressing up in women's clothing, I have developed a habit of taking dozens and dozens of photographs of myself when I have time and space to dress.

I set up the tripod with the SLR camera. Set the timer. Stage a few photos of myself dressed in something pretty. Change outfits. Re-shoot.
It is so strange of a habit. It smacks of narcissism, which I never thought I had much of. It screams, "Look at me!". I don't recall behaving like that in my past. Yet I'm compelled to shoot photographs of myself as though the camera has a magic eye that sees deep within me. It sees the real inner me. Maybe it's to capture an image of myself I find quite remarkable, and can't believe it.

Why do we take photographs of ourselves?

[Rica]

The subject of self-photography fascinates me. I've taken (literally) hundreds of photographs of myself [dressed up en femme] over the last 15 months or so since I began to seriously and fully dress. I don't know why.

The mere fact I've taken hundreds of photos of myself is mind boggling. I never did selfies before finding my inner CD. I don't have very many photographs of myself over my life and career; and I've done some pretty unusual and exciting things. But since I started dressing up in women's clothing, I have developed a habit of taking dozens and dozens of photographs of myself when I have time and space to dress.

I set up the tripod with the SLR camera. Set the timer. Stage a few photos of myself dressed in something pretty. Change outfits. Re-shoot.
It is so strange of a habit. It smacks of narcissism, which I never thought I had much of. It screams, "Look at me!". I don't recall behaving like that in my past. Yet I'm compelled to shoot photographs of myself as though the camera has a magic eye that sees deep within me. It sees the real inner me. Maybe it's to capture an image of myself I find quite remarkable, and can't believe it.

Why do we take photographs of ourselves?

It's like you are taking a picture of a different person. Maybe a more interesting and fascinating person?

[AllyCDTV]

When I do a photo shoot, it usually results in hundreds of pics, where at least 90% get deleted. Good thing it's all digital and the days of film are long gone. You just have to practice and try new things. You never know when a tilt of the head, a different kind of smile or a change in camera angle will make the difference.

[Tracii G]

The best pics seem to happen out of the blue when you really aren't trying.
Just relax and have fun with it.

[Teresa]

Stephanie,
As Ilene says dump the phone and get a decent camera on a tripod. I was a professional photographer for 30 years so I do know a few things about the right gear . Most compacts and phones take wide angle shots , that is the most unflattering way to take pictures , I always used long lenses for portraits and if possible weddings . A close up should be taken at eye level to reduce the size of nose and chin , a full length should be taken at waist level to give a balanced look to the body . That works for most people I had to know how to flatter them to stay in business .
I usually stand a full length mirror next to my camera , if it looks OK in the mirror the camera should capture it .

I my business I had to work on a very low percentage of reject shots, when using medium format film cameras every shot had to count, I didn't have time to keep reshooting when I had two or three weddings to cover in one day .

[Abbey11]

I use both DSLR and phone and also tried videoing myself and then take screenshots from the video, can get some nice dynamic pics

[Stephanie43]

Abbey11,

I love the video, then take screen shots idea!!

[donnalee]

The pictures in one's mind's eye are always the best.

[Keely]

I use a DSLR on a tripod. I have a remote release.
That setup seems to give me the best results although I have a few phone selfies that aren't too bad.
I agree, outside natural light seems to give the best picture.

[GretchenM]

Lighting is really important which is one of the reasons natural light is more flattering than flash. Cloudy bright is the best as it produces nice soft shadows. Cloudy bright is where the clouds are thin and some sunshine gets through to produce soft shadows under trees and the like. But if you don't have enough natural light set it up with two lights, one being the brighter main light coming from the side and a second from another direction that is dimmer (or further away) that fills in the shadows produced by the brighter light. With digital you can use bright household lights (not fluorescent) and correct the white balance in the computer to remove any color cast. Direct flash is what we mostly use, but one of the problems is that it is so stark. If you are using a DSLR, also try using a very mild softening filter. Of course, that alters the reality of wrinkles and stuff like that, but if you are trying to portray a softer and sometimes more sensuous feeling a little softness really helps.

[Krisi]

I used to do a lot of photography (amateur) so I know a bit about it but it's hard for me to pose naturally for a photo and especially waiting for the self timer. A remote would probably work better and I had one on an older camera. Teresa's point on using a long lens (zoom out) is valid but it can be difficult when taking photos of yourself, especially inside most homes.

Every once in a while I manage to get a good photo where I have a good look on my face and am almost "pretty". The rest are just training photos.

[Stiletto Gurl]

I find the timer on my cell camera very helpful... other than that, selfies I always look horrible in... I cant seem to get the picture taking down correctly either...

[Ressie]

Getting good at posing in a fem way is part of the equation. I'm getting better at it but still have a long way to go. It also helps if I can see myself in a mirror as the timer takes the photo.

Screenshots of videos have also worked out good as far as getting those exact moments that look the best. So many little things can mess up a photo. Wrong facial expression, forget to suck my stomach in etc!

[Alice B]

I have taken many photographs of myself indoors using a tripod, strobe and timer. And ones using a mirror. I have also taken some outside in the sun and even underwater shots. I prefer the indoor shots and like the results because I have better control of the lighting. The outdoor shots are often too harsh because the sun will not listen to me when I yell at it to move.

[alesha]

I’m kind of a serious amateur photographer and I’ve done a few paid gigs. As everyone has said, lighting is the most important. I’ve gotten some decent selfies with my phone but my best shots come from my dslr. That’s not to say you need some fancy expensive equipment to take good shots. Just a couple of quick tips: avoid direct, overhead lighting and avoid using the flash unless absolutely necessary.

Also, look up posing techniques. That helps. Look up Peter Hurley on YouTube. He’s a famous celebrity headshot photographer and there might be clips of him explaining how to pose for headshots - how to move your neck/head to minimize double chins, turn certain ways to minimize prominent noses, etc.

[Beverley Sims]

I can take or pose for quite attractive stills.....

Meet Miss Ugly when I an shot with a movie camera of any sort.

Yes if it walks like a duck.........

Well you get the idea.

Videos are a great way of brushing up on your deportment.

Over the years I have improved a lot.

I do not appear to have a walking impediment any more.

The speech impediment can still be rough though. :-)

[Tahoegurl]

I think that the picture part for me is like a review of my work...are the makeup right, clothes right...shoes etc. And a part is like at me , and a part is that picture of a different person. I do appreciate the critique from others to maybe fine tune some things. I really try to avoid getting to cerebral about all this. I love to dress, l like how I look when dressed, and it is just who I am...so I take pictures in boy mode and I take pictures in girl mode.

[Sandra_Dodds]

Why do we take photographs of ourselves?

For me it provides an opportunity to look back and admire my outfits when there is no opportunity to dress. I can log into my Flickr account and see myself dressed, feeling feminine.

As others have said, it's all about the lighting, having a good camera and being able to use a remote control. I don't do selfies when dressed because of the risk of accidentally leaving images on my phone and them being found.