This is how you get the best selfies
This is how the perfect selfie succeeds
Researchers at the University of Bamberg have investigated what makes a good selfie. The study shows which camera positions are particularly flattering on the face and what it is better to avoid.
People look more attractive in photos when they turn the left side of their face towards the camera. This is especially true for women, say researchers. With application photos, however, you should do it differently.
Wif he chooses the right selfie perspective, the effect of his photo on others is better in hand. According to researchers, women in particular look more attractive on selfies if they turn the left half of their face towards the camera. If, on the other hand, show the right half of your face, you appear more helpful and intelligent. This is what psychologists from the University of Bamberg have found out. Men also benefit from the right perspective – but the effect is not quite as strong for them.
One reason for the different effects of the respective halves of the face is human perception, as psychologist Tobias Schneider explains. The left side is the human chocolate side, as previous studies have shown. Emotional states of this half of the face are perceived more strongly by the viewer. In other words: A look at the left half of the face is more likely to arouse sympathy. If the right half of the face is more dominant in a photo, it is more likely to convey intelligence.
Are special camera positions flattering?
For their study, the scientists took computer-generated 3D models of human faces from seven camera perspectives typical for selfies and had them evaluated by more than 300 test subjects. Based on the pictures, they should above all assess the attractiveness, dominance, intelligence and body weight of the depicted.
But why selfies? “This has been a phenomenon of the last few years,” says Schneider. Because they noticed that many people, including international stars, put themselves in the limelight with selfies, the researchers asked themselves: Isn’t there a system behind this?
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“The examined variables play a decisive role in social interactions and even in partner choice,” says psychologist Schneider. The aim of the study was to find out whether certain camera positions are particularly flattering or tend to result in negative assessments.
If you take photos from above, you look thinner
The results complement existing knowledge about the effect of photos from certain perspectives. In a study from 2012, the scientists, together with colleagues from the University of Mainz, were able to show that a camera position slightly above the person being portrayed affects the assessment of body weight. The lower half of the face and chin appear narrower due to the perspective.
“Normally when we take a selfie, we hold the camera diagonally next to us and raise or lower our arm a little,” explained Claus-Christian Carbon, Professor of General Psychology. This intuitive action could greatly contribute to the fact that viewers estimate the body weight to be significantly lower. The test subjects attributed up to 15 kilograms less body weight to the photos that were taken diagonally from above from a side angle.
The findings of the investigation are not only exciting for selfie followers. Once the connections between perspective and effect are aware, those photographed can use them in a targeted manner. For example, for particularly professional-looking application photos – taken slightly from above with the right half of the face facing the camera.
This article was first published in 2017.
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