P4C: Tips for Self Potraits

All the information in this series leads us into the taking of photos. The most important for Geocachers being the Self Portrait whether for Virtual or Earthcache requirements, milestone photos, or just the photos for scrapbooking and posting online. So when you're ready to take one, think about these points:

• Stand in frame and look for markers
• Set-up your support (tripod, bean bag, or other support)
• Set your self timer or use the remote
• Stay tight (zoom in and avoid wide angle settings)
• Try the flash

The challenge of setting up a self portrait is in composing the image. Being that your main subject (yourself) isn't in the frame as you set-up the camera you'll have to check for things like door frames or branches in the frame near where you'll be standing. Those marks will help you figure out whether you'll be in frame or chopping off your head. Be aware though of the background as you generally don't want it to look like you have an antenna or tree coming out of your head. But never forget that you're working in digital images now and can review the photos right there. If something doesn't look good, try it again. With practice you'll learn what works best and get faster at setting up and shooting your self portraits.

An important point to getting a flattering image of people is to stay telephoto rather than going wide. Wide angle captures distort the image with objects in the center appearing larger and shrinking toward the outside. The result is that your subject will look fatter than in real life. The more the wide angle, the more significant the effect. Using telephoto focal lengths will be more pleasing so it's best to stick with those settings. This is such a significant subject that I'll talk more about it in future postings. Next week though we'll look at taking self-portraits at arm's length.

Text and images in this post are copyright 2010 by Darryl Wattenberg, all rights reserved.