First, there were stiffly-posed oil paintings of stodgy historical figures who wore more wigs than Real Housewife Kim Zolciak (Kim, if you’re reading this, send a few my way!) But now, we have a more modern art form: selfies!
We love selfies so much that we’ve proclaimed today National Selfie Day! #Selfie has trended on Instagram 423,476,408 times. The word “selfie” is even officially in the dictionary! So, how did we go from bad emo mirror selfies on MySpace to the portrait-quality beauties we take today?
First, we’ve got to shout out Steve Jobs. Sure, there were phone cameras before Apple’s iPhone, but Jobs took camera phones to the next level. The meteoric rise of the smartphone camera launched the rise of the selfie trend. Then, in 2014, DJ Rick McNeely founded National Selfie Day. So in honor of National Selfie Day, here are a few of my favorite kinds of selfies:
Duck Face Selfies
Not to be confused with Stephanie Tanner’s infamous bullying incident on Full House, “duck face” selfies involve making an exaggerated pout, so you look like you have a duck bill. Quack!
Golden Hour Selfies
Golden hour is that moment at the end of the day when you have bomb lighting and everything is a sheen of sunshine gold. It’s an awesome time to wander outside for ah-mazing selfie lighting. Yaaaaaaaaasssss!
Fish Gape Selfies
We could probably give this type of selfie a more attractive name, but it’s great nonetheless. To take a “fish gape” selfie, purse your lips to open them a little bit. Celebs love this one!
Smize Selfies
Made famous by Tyra Banks, the “smize” is a look in which you smile with your eyes. Let your eyes smile, put on your best smirk, and let the camera roll!
Kissy Face Selfies
This is a classic type of selfie. Pucker up for the camera!
Glamour Selfies
When your makeup is on point, your hair looks amazing, and you simply look fabulous, it’s time for a glamour selfie! Do it for the ‘gram!
Pet Selfies
We all love a cute pup or kitty. So when we see an adorable fur baby, we have no choice but to cuddle up and snap an sweet pic with our furry friend!
Car Selfies
A classic for anyone who just cleaned out their car. We’ve all made sure that no one sees our backseat clutter as we snap a selfie in the front seat of our cars!
Gym Selfies
Going to the gym doesn’t count unless we thoroughly document it with selfies, of course!
Selfies are a great way to capture a moment in time, a memory, or our aesthetics. So whether you love making pouty faces or you prefer smizing for the camera, take a selfie today! And if anyone says anything about your self-portrait, remember that selfies are not selfish. It’s OK to be confident in yourself and share your shine with the world!
Featured Photo by Artem Beliaikin on Unsplash.
