Kevin Barrett 
In a lot of cases, celebrities are famous largely because they are simply more attractive than most of us. However, even the best-looking guy or gal can take a bad picture. You rarely see a bad picture of a celebrity on social media, though. Why is that the case?
The fact of the matter is that celebrities know a bunch of tricks that the rest of us simply do not. They know how to make themselves look good, and they put a lot of time and effort into making themselves look good.
Here are sixteen clever ways celebrities are making themselves look as good as possible in photos. The great news is that you can also use the tricks. You might not look as good as most celebrities do, but the advice will absolutely help you look your best.
1. Celebrities Know About Natural Lighting
One way to take a great picture is to use natural lighting. For a variety of reasons, artificial lights can result in strange shadows. Artificial lighting, depending on the type, can also tend to accentuate wrinkles and skin imperfections. It can also make the color of your skin look sort of weird. That is why many of the best selfies out there are taken outside, and most celebrities know it.
2. Celebrities Know How to Pose, and They Know How to Take a Selfie
It is all about angles when it comes to taking a flattering photograph. There are a lot of tricks when it comes to taking a great, flattering selfie. You absolutely need to take pictures at the right angle if you want to look slimmer and younger than you are.
For example, when taking a selfie, most celebrities know to hold the camera at eye level or higher. That angle makes people look trimmer and younger. You should absolutely never take a picture from below the chin line—unless you actually want to take a bad picture for some reason. Your face just will not look as sleek as it could if you take a picture from below the chin line.
3. Celebrities Know Their Best Side
A lot of people really do have one side that looks better than the other. Many faces aren’t exactly symmetrical, although facial symmetry is considered a very attractive trait.
There is a reason why many celebrities are only photographed on one side or the other. They know what their best side is, and they flaunt it.
4. Celebrities Use Special Lighting
Many celebrities and social media stars use something called a ring light when they take their selfies. Really, ring lights are good for all sorts of photo shoots. Right lights offer uniform light that comes straight from the point of the view of the camera; this is good for even, uniform light, and it also helps eliminate shadows from the face. It really is the truly ideal lighting tool for selfies and portraits.
They used to cost hundreds of dollars, but the cost for one has come down significantly in the past few years. Therefore, almost anyone can afford a ring light. You can easily get one for almost $100. If you take a lot of selfies, it is a worthwhile investment.
5. Celebrities Know To Stand Whenever Possible
If you study a lot of images of celebrities, you will tend to notice that most pictures are taken when the subject of the image is standing. There is a good reason for this.
Generally, one’s posture is better when standing. A person also tends to look thinner when he or she is standing, and looking thin is generally a major goal when taking a selfie. If you want to take a great picture of yourself for your Facebook or Instagram account, make sure you are standing when you take it. You will definitely look a lot better.
6. Celebrities Know to Tilt Their Chins Down
When you take a selfie, you should tilt your chin down. You do not want to press down too hard, as that results in a weird face, but you should never tilt your chin upwards. That is rarely a good look on anyone. It all goes back to knowing how to pose. That’s the key.
As mentioned above, when taking a picture of yourself, you should absolutely have the camera at eye level or higher.
7. Celebrities Know To Put the Hand On the Hip
As mentioned earlier in this article, a person’s posture is generally better when he or she is standing. If you are being photographed and you are standing, put a hand on your hip. Either pop that hip forward or pop it backwards.
Celebrities, in general, have mastered the art of posing and know what position looks best for their body types.
8. Celebrities Know How To Dress To Impress
The simple fact of the matter is that certain types of clothing are flattering—other types of clothing actually make a person look worse. It all really depends on the individual’s body type, and you need to figure out what works best for you. Even the patterns you wear can make a huge difference, so those definitely need to be considered. There is a good reason celebrities hire highly paid stylists. Having a good sense of fashion is a trait that—sadly—not all of us possess.
Granted, many people can’t afford a huge wardrobe or designer labels, but you do not need to spend a fortune in order to look good. You might have to try a little bit harder, but you can find clothing that looks good on you that also won’t break the bank.
It is important to note that most people should never wear clothing that is too small. That is definitely an important tip. Squeezing your body into a dress or pair of jeans that is a size or two too small is never a good look. It is fine to embrace your curves—and you should—but please do so in the correct way if you want to photograph well.
9. Celebrities Know That They Absolutely Need to Photoshop
Celebrities know that photograph editing software is their friend. If you are looking at a picture of a famous person—one they posted anyway—it is almost a guarantee that they used some sort of software to eliminate their flaws. Nobody looks that good in real life. People get blemishes from time to time, after all, and there is nothing wrong with that. If they can be “removed”, though, why not make that happen?
The good news is that it is not difficult to learn to use photo editing software. You can learn to use it well enough—at least for selfie purposes—in just an hour or two.
It is important, though, not to overdo it with the editing. You have to be subtle. People will notice if you make too many edits. There’s a fine line between looking your best and looking completely and totally unnatural.
10. Celebrities Know to Take More Than One Selfie
Years ago, in the dark ages of photography, you couldn’t take hundreds of photos of yourself in order to get the best one. At times, you just had to settle for mediocre. Film was not cheap. Developing that film was not cheap either.
Happily, times have changed for the better. Celebrities know to take dozens of pictures of themselves and then post only the best one. Everyone interested in looking their best online should do just that. It only takes a few minutes of your time, and it is definitely time well spent if you really want to look good on the internet.
11. Celebrities Know To Keep the Backgrounds Simple
Celebrities—and good photographers—know that backgrounds should be simple. That is why you rarely see a selfie of a famous person with a cluttered background. A cluttered room, for example, does not add anything to a photo if you are trying to look good. In fact, clutter can be extremely distracting, which makes a picture look positively terrible.
Find something simple and clean, then stand in front of it. The photo of yourself will look a lot better if you do that.
12. Celebrities Know How to Smile
This is a simple trick, but it is also one that really works. When you are smiling in a photo, be sure to press your tongue to the roof of your mouth. Your cheekbones will become more prominent.
Everything around your jawline will be tightened, too, which is almost always a good thing. Give it a try sometime and you will notice the difference. It is a subtle thing, true, but it is often the little things that make a photo really great.
13. Celebrities Know To Keep Their Hands Busy
This is another really simple tip, but one that you may not have considered. When your hands are visible, they should be doing something. If they are just sort of hanging there at your side, they actually look sort of weird. They are just sort of there, and it can be really awkward looking.
Therefore, you should keep your hands busy; if you do not feel like using your hands as part of a pose, just shove them in your pockets or grab something to hold—like a bag or another person’s hand.
14. Celebrities Use the Right Camera, and They Use a Timer
A phone’s front camera is, in general, better than a back camera. Celebrities know that. Celebrities also know to set timers on their phones. Pressing the picture button on your phone can result in an image that is a bit blurry.
15. Celebrities Know It Is Important to Smize
It was Tyra Banks—on the show “America’s Next Top Model—that taught us about “smizing”. If you are not familiar with the term, it means to smile with your eyes. You don’t want to smile with just your mouth.
If you want to “smize”, try laughing about something genuinely funny before taking a picture. It will relax and calm you, which will make the photo a lot better. Try to appear—and genuinely be—playful.
Tyra Banks, who is currently 44 years old, first started modeling at the age of 15. She was a Victoria’s Secret Angel and also appeared on the cover of GQ. She had a talk show for five seasons. She is one of the top-earning models in the world.
She started acting in the early 1990s. She appeared on an episode of a sitcom. In 1995, she appeared in the film “Higher Learning”. She was also in “Coyote Ugly”, which came out in 2000 and was a box office hit.
Banks has also published a young adult novel. Time magazine considers her one of the most influential people in the world.
The show “America’s Next Top Model”, which was created by Tyra Banks, first aired in 2003.
16. Celebrities Know How to Use Makeup
A lot of people claim that the best photographs are taken without makeup, but they are kidding themselves. People get blemishes, and they also get dark circles under their eyes when they are tired. If you want to look your best in your selfie, you will probably need to use makeup in order to hide your flaws.
The important thing is to make it look natural. You don’t want to overdo it with the makeup unless you are intentionally going for a specific look.
There are other tricks out there, of course, if you want to take a great selfie. For example, you can raise your eyebrows a bit in order to make your eyes appear larger. Large eyes are considered attractive by many. Holding your phone to the size is also a good idea at times. Taking a good picture of yourself is a skill, though; as is the case with most skills, practice makes perfect.
Loading…