KT (Kayte) Walsh
CREATIVE  PRODUCER | WRITER | MEDIA SPECIALIST 

SELFIE: A PERSONAL ISSUE

By: KT Walsh  | 2014

People were taking selfies before smart phones. Before they were even called ‘selfies.’ They were taking them before you could even tell what you were framing for. Most of the time you held out your arm as far as you could stretch and squeezed in real tight to the person next to you, praying you didn’t cut yourself off, or had your finger in front of the lens. Then you had to wind the damn clicky wheel for ten minutes before taking a second shot for safety. 

​

Pictures were for memories. Instant flashbacks to a happy day. This is why we enjoy the Throwback Thursday aka #tbt. It takes us back to a time when people didn’t waste good film on their food.

I cringe every time I’m seated next to someone at a restaurant Instagraming their meal. I’ll admit, I’ve taken part in this behavior, but it was before I realized how idiotic it was. There are only a few acceptable reasons to take pictures of your food.

​

1. You are a food photographer, it’s your job. You get paid for it.

2. For sentimental reasons others could not understand you need to share this picture with one or few individuals.

3. You are ordered to by your nutritionist. No cheating.

​

Other than that, no one wants to see your food. Instead, savor the taste. Then work on your linguistics as you recall the meal. Try to use as many colorful adjectives as possible to more accurately describe the taste, smell, texture, and look of said memorable plate. Hearing a description of the best burger you ate is more pleasing than see a picture of it, in all of its messy, smashed, smothered-in-condiments, glory. Most food looks gross unless it’s dressed up for a photoshoot or super fancy already. And if you are at a super fancy restaurant, it would be a faux pas to take a quick snap shot of the amuse bouche.

Selfies, we’ve been taking them forever. Fascinated with our own facial features we’ve set forth on self-portraits of all kinds. Except now a degree of artistic integrity has been lost. There’s the selfie with the phone in the mirror, the serious selfie where the subject looks off contemplatively into the distance, and the belfie (butt selfie), which is apparently a picture you took of your own ass.

I understand a healthy amount of narcissism is rather good. Helps your ego feel as though you have worth. If your self-esteem stocks are high you are a more productive and confident member of society. Instagram allows us to be photojournalists of our lives, creating a map of the places we’ve been and the people we know. Sure, selfies are going to be a part of that. But maybe we should limit it to only part.

I remember the first time I heard some one call this particular picture styling a “selfie.” I thought it was adorable. I don’t know if I thought it was adorable because I was under the impression the hilarious person shooting the selfie made it up on her own, or if I genuinely thought it was a cute name for these half-assed photos we were taking of ourselves. Unfortunately, as the media grew to exhaust it, the term lost all of its magical dust for me. When it was inducted into the dictionary, I rolled my eyes in disgust. It had become a novelty like the waving wealth cats in Chinatown.

A selfie is just a shitty picture you took of yourself. You look like crap because you can’t frame it up right. It’s way too close most of the time. And you have a hard time looking into the lens and smiling genuinely. Not only are you multitasking the holding the camera, pushing the button, and trying to be a model, but you are also looking at yourself in the little screen judging the picture before it’s even taken. Thus your selfie is the worst picture of you ever taken as a photographer, and the worst picture you’ve ever posed for as subject, at the same time.

Thanks to modern technology, we’ve managed to come up with a dual digital lens to help us frame our narcissism. If you think it might be an inappropriate place to take a selfie, probably just leave the memory in your mind. Let’s be honest, it’s not called a “selfie” because of the wonderful scenery behind you. Bottom line, you’ll yield better results handing the camera off to someone else.

​

​