How to Take a Perfect Selfie in Paris

Late night at Café de Paris

The summer in Paris is full of tourists and unfortunately thieves as well. I only trust families with small kids to “borrow” my camera to take photos of the Gal Pals. When a handy family is not hanging around, then it’s time to take matters into your own hands and take self portraits, or Selfies as the kids call them.

• Don’t take yourself too seriously, have fun with them. You can always delete the ones that make you look insane, tired or too pale.
• Do take several at a time and change your expression and facial angle to see which one you like best.
• When taking a selfie of more than one person, elicit the help of the second person to reach the shutter button when you can’t.
• Three in the  selfie photo is a record for me, I am not sure if you have arms long enough to fit a fourth. If any of my photography mates out there have a solution, please send me the solution in the comments below.
• Remember, those in the front always look more pale than those behind you, so try to be evenly staged to avoid the Casper the Ghost effect.
• Decide what you want, you or the building/statue and emphasize your preference, use angles and be creative; when you can’t get it all in the photo go for an artsy look and cut out parts.
• Usually it is best to hold the camera above your head when taking a selfie, it prevents the double and triple chin shots.

Here are the good, the bad and the ugly selfies I snapped last month in Paris. Some are just me and others include my two fun-loving sisters-in-law, Kate and Andrea:

We may have cut off part of Venus, but hey some parts of her were missing anyway!

Ugh, way too close of me, but we managed to get the Pyramid in too so bravo

Kim Petyt, author of The Paris Wedding and moi at The Mandarin Oriental

Moulin Rouge, I need longer arms and some wrinke-filler