The age of digital cameras is upon us, and with it comes what we’ve come to call a “proficiency illusion”. That is, when a technology becomes cheap and widely available, everybody thinks that there must be nothing to it. Witness the digital art all over the web that sprung up overnight as soon as graphics editing software hit the market. Ugh.
Taking a portrait of a person is an art. It is rapidly becoming one that is unfortunately forgotten.
We’ll come out and say it right here: if we never see a photo that somebody took of themselves in the bathroom mirror again, it will be too soon. These pictures are everywhere: sloppy clothes, awkwardly holding the camera, and worst of all, a streaky, dingy mirror and a background which tells the world that the subject of the photo is a huge slob.
In addition to that, the photo shows that they’re someone with no imagination, else they’d be taking it in a full-length bedroom mirror, and no friends, else they’d be able to have someone else take the picture.
Here’s some more ways that people fail their dating photo:
In an office:
The problem with offices is that they all have fluorescent lighting. Fluorescent light is a hard, harsh, cold light that makes everyone look terrible. It saps the color from your skin, making you look like a coldblooded zombie. It etches every wrinkle into your face, making you look ten years older.
In a bar or pub:
The problem with a bar or pub is that it’s too dark. Even flash photography will only illuminate so much. Bars also don’t look that great, decoratively speaking. The people in a bar don’t always look their best, and might be in the mood to moon the camera over your shoulder. Finally, do you really want an image of you after a few beers or jello shots preserved forever?
