Karen
Rothschild
Mr.
Schwager
English
404
8 March
2014
Quarter 3 CWP
The ways of photography are
ever-changing and ever-evolving. The way in which we communicate will never be
the same. What we share and how we share it is forever changing. No longer must
we be forced to take a picture and only hope it turns out to our liking after
getting it developed. We can snap a picture any time, any day, and share it
immediately. And what would we ever want to share besides pictures of ourselves!
We change technology almost as much as technology changes us. Our lives are
drawn around how we communicate with each other. We live in a land of vast
communication. We can share every aspect of each moment of our lives. And how
do we use these great opportunities to stay connected? With all of the
blessings of our technology, we shall never forget what a friend’s face looks
like. No longer will we ask ourselves what our old friends are up to, because
we can simply scroll through one of our multitude of social media sources, and
check out some of their recent pictures of themselves! Our generation has been
blessed with the greatest invention of all time. This invention has been vastly
improved with the development of the front-facing camera. Yet even before said
development, we were not stopped! We call the new invention The Selfie. Selfies
have taken off around the world, gaining great expanse of attention and even
becoming an official Oxford Dictionary term! The dictionary definition runs: “A photograph that one has taken of oneself,
typically one taken with a smartphone or webcam and uploaded to a social media
website.” Selfies open up a whole new realm of photography. If one were to
search “#Selfie,” a multitude of up close photos of peoples’ faces would
surface. We can see face after face, and never run out. On Instagram alone, we
are blessed with the opportunity to see over eighty-four million pictures under
the tag Selfie. Selfies are a way of life that spans generational, national,
and language borders.
Selfies are often taken for granted.
They are often thought of as simply another picture of someone’s face. But a
great deal of attention goes into a quality Selfie. A quality Selfie doesn’t
magically appear. Selfies take skill, repetition, and learning. Attention to
detail is a must for the quality Selfie taker. He or she must take into
consideration a variety of aspects. Natural lighting or fluorescent? How much
face to body ratio to include in the picture? Whole face or partial face visible?
To use a filter or to go all-natural? What caption will grab the readers’
attention? What time of day should said Selfie be uploaded? To use hashtags (a
form of metadata tags to search through media) or to not use hashtags? What
accessories to wear? What is the background? Is this an appropriate location to
take pictures (i.e. not a bathroom)? How close to hold the camera? What face to
make for the photo? To look at the camera or to look away? How should the
camera be angled for the best possible looking version of my face? To capture
the perfect Selfie, one must look at every aspect of the picture. It is often
thought that Selfies are for lazy teenagers; yet in reality, Selfies are a
science of their own.
Selfies are a beautiful means of
communication. Being face to face with another person is now possible at
anytime. As the saying goes, “the eyes are the window to the soul,” and with
Selfies, the windows never close. You can peer deep into the soul of a close
friend or a total stranger. The possibilities are endless.
The caption on the photo dives into
even greater depths to better understand a person. The viewer can see the
reason behind the Selfie. What drove that person to take that picture at that
time? The Selfie taker can often be cryptic with the caption. What better way
to show how dark and mysterious you are than by placing an irrelevant quotation
next to a picture of yourself?
Most
often, song lyrics are used, and the mood of the song can help decipher what
the Selfie is meant to mean. The meaning of the song may have nothing to do
with the photo or the person, but it might simply be a popular song at the
time. Selfies give you the opportunity to look at a person’s face whenever you
please! In real life, it might be considered creepy to stare at a person’s
face, but on the Internet, stare away! The person that uploaded the Selfie put
it up with the intent for viewers to stare their eyes out! What a beautiful
blessing, the gift of a photo of one’s face.
With Selfies, one can share his
or her face with the world at any time, any day. We are no longer burdened to by
looking at pictures of people doing interesting things, or travelling the
world, but rather we have the enjoyable chance to stare directly at their
faces. Oh what a blessing! With Selfies, one can upload a radical picture of
his or her face, and a completely relevant caption to go along with it! Our
children and grandchildren will never have to wonder what we looked like as
teenagers, because we make sure to have our faces in nearly every photo. The
Selfie defines us. It is our window to creativity. The possibilities are
endless. We can portray ourselves in different manners in order to manipulate
how others view us! We can be who we want to be, or at least pretend to be.
Taking and sharing Selfies is one of the greatest benefits our generation is
able to bask in. Our generation is so poetic, taking lyrics from popular songs
and using them to apply to our faces! Selfies most definitely show one’s true
self!
All of the vast technological
advances have created a brighter future for the Selfie. The future is
optimistic, and the Selfie is here to stay! What better way to express one’s
self than a good old-fashioned Selfie! Selfies will sculpt this nation’s
future. We must all work to open more Selfie opportunities for the generations
to come. We have found the perfect means of communication. I am proud to be
able to say that I grew up in the generation of the forever popular, Selfie!
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