Self Portrait Photography Ideas at Home with your Phone
Are you looking for self portrait photography ideas at home with your phone?
Then read on because today’s post contains lots of ideas and projects for phone self portrait photography, as well as some handy apps and accessories that will give you even more creative options.
(Just so you know: This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases).
But first…what is self portrait photography?
First of all, let’s quickly define self portrait photography - what actually makes a picture a self portrait rather than a simple selfie?
A selfie is a snapshot taken with your phone camera - usually in order to post on social media.
When taking a selfie, you typically hold the phone up with one arm, looking into the selfie camera on the front (display side) of the phone.
A self portrait taken with a mobile phone, on the other hand, is a portrait of yourself that you take with a lot of intention and most likely some kind of artistic aspiration.
You would usually not hold the phone in your hand, but instead prop it against something (or use a tripod) and trigger the camera using the self timer function.
Therefore, taking a self portrait is a much more deliberate action than simply snapping a quick selfie - you’re aiming for a higher quality photo that has some kind of meaning or is aesthetically pleasing.
2) The technicalities of taking self portraits with a mobile phone
Next, let’s quickly talk about the technicalities of taking self portraits with your phone.
First of all, if you can, invest in a phone tripod like this one.
It’s absolutely not a must - if you don’t have a tripod, you can prop your phone against a stack of books, for example.
However, with a tripod, your phone is much more stable, protecting it from dropping on the floor.
Also, you have more creative options since it’s easy to change the height of the tripod and the angle of the camera.
Secondly, when you take a self portrait with your phone, it’s best to use the camera on the back rather than the selfie camera on the front, as the photos will be of much better quality.
It’s a little annoying to do it this way because you can’t see yourself on the screen, but you can do a few test shots first to check the framing, or place a mirror behind the phone so you can see the reflection of the phone screen.
When you’re ready to take the picture, navigate to the self timer function and set it to the desired timer - on my iPhone, I can choose between 3 and 10 seconds, for example.
Simply set to the longest timer you have available, press the button and get into position.
You can also invest in a wireless remote, which makes it much easier to take the picture because you don’t have to constantly get up and press the shutter button on the phone screen.
These are very inexpensive, so it’s well worth getting one if you enjoy self portrait photography.
Alternatively, if you have an iPhone, you can use voice control in order to take the shot.
If you also have an Apple Watch, you can take photos using your watch - see this article to learn how to do either of those methods.
Tip: Focusing on yourself with a mobile phone
From my experience, getting the focus right on a phone camera isn’t as tricky as on a DSLR or mirrorless camera - usually, the phone will automatically focus on your face.
If you want the focus somewhere else, for example on your hands or an object elsewhere in the frame, you can use the focus lock feature (most modern mobile phones will have this).
On an iPhone, you simply tap on the screen where you want the focus to be and wait for the yellow square to appear.
Then, tap and hold your finger in the middle of the square and keep it there for a couple of seconds until you see “AE/AF Lock”. Now, your focus is locked onto that spot.
Of course, if you use the camera at the back of the phone, you can’t do this while you’re posing because you’re not able to physically be behind the camera, so instead you can use a stand-in:
Place something in the frame where you’ll be standing later, like a tripod or a chair, focus on it and lock the focus.
Then, remove the object and pose in exactly the same spot.
Ideas for self portrait photography with your phone
Now that we’ve got the technicalities out of the way, let’s move onto some practical ideas for your self portraits!
Use Props
This is hands down one of my favourite methods for achieving interesting self portraits.
Objects carry so much symbolism - for example, think about candles, skulls and clocks symbolising the passing of time and mortality.
I’ve actually written a whole article on the subject of symbolism of objects - check it out if you want to know more!
I think props are a great tool for self portrait photography because you can give your images more meaning and really tell a story with them.
They also make your photos more visually interesting.
If you’re not sure what to use, simply have a look in your room or home - you can grab some fruits or vegetables, fresh flowers, plant pots, decorative objects, holiday souvenirs, pieces of jewellery like heirlooms, or whatever else you can find!
Ideally, you’ll use an object that carries a specific meaning.
This meaning can be very personal and doesn’t have to make sense to anyone but you.
Go abstract
A self portrait doesn’t always have to be figurative - how about creating an abstract image with your mobile phone?
What do I mean by abstract?
An abstract self portrait or image in general is non-representational, i.e. it doesn’t show a recognisable subject.
Instead, it focuses on colours, shapes, lines and textures, letting you create in a very free, non-realistic way.
For example, you could only photograph a tiny area of your skin or hair, or just one body part such as your lips or one eye.
Or zoom out and show the overall lines and curves of your silhouette, turning your body into an architectural shape (this works particularly well if you shoot against the light).
If you need some inspiration, Google the photographer Edward Weston who created beautiful abstract photographs in black and white.
Make use of shadows
Another great inspiration source for self portrait photography are shadows.
You actually have two options here:
You can photograph shadows from objects falling onto your face and body - try sitting in front of a window shutter (you can replicate one by cutting slits into a piece of cardboard).
Or use some flowers, a piece of lace fabric, a straw hat or some other textured object and place it in between you and a light source in order to create gorgeous shadows.
Alternatively, you could also photograph your own shadow (with your body outside the frame) - you can get very playful with this and try different poses.
You may have to experiment a bit with the size and position of the light source - generally, the closer the light source, the larger the shadow.
Use lens attachments for your phone
With a mobile phone, you’re a bit more limited in terms of photography because it only has fixed lenses (as opposed to a DSLR camera, for example, that lets you mount all kinds of different lenses).
However, you can work around this by getting some fun lens attachments for your phone like these.
They are very inexpensive, but powerful as they give you the ability to change the shooting angle of your photos to wide angle, macro (close up) or fish eye - my favourite one is the fish eye lens because it creates such an interesting, outer-worldly effect.
Shoot in or near water
For the next idea, shoot in or near water - the best way to do this is to take a self portrait while you’re lying in the bathtub, if you have one.
If you don’t have a bathtub at home, you could use a paddling pool.
Fill it with water and then play around with different props or materials; for example, you could add flowers to the water, or try food colouring to colour the water:
If you’re not able to actually get into the water because you don’t have a suitable tub, you can fill a tray or similar flat dish with water and photograph your reflection (you can also do this outside on a rainy day by photographing your reflection in a puddle).
Colours
Colours can be a fantastic inspiration for self portraits.
You can work with colours in many different ways:
For example, you can decide on a colour scheme for your self portrait and only use props, clothing and make-up in the designated colours.
Another idea is to use coloured light - you can buy these inexpensive coloured gels and mount them in front of a lamp, like a desk lamp, in order to create super cool, cinematic photos (a cheap DIY version of this is shooting through coloured fabric, but make sure it’s either heat-proof or not too close to the light source).
Here’s an example of a portrait taken with coloured gels:
Experiment with portrait mode
If you have an iPhone, try playing with portrait mode for your self portraits.
First of all, it creates a shallow depth of field (blurry background), which looks very beautiful.
Secondly, you can choose different types of lighting, e.g. natural light, studio light, contour light, and so on.
Of course, this doesn’t compare to actual artificial lighting in a studio, but you can still achieve pretty cool effects.
Play with flash
The next phone self portrait idea is to play with your camera’s flash.
Usually, we tend to avoid direct flash in photography because it can lead to very harsh lighting and unflattering shadows in the face.
However, in some instances, this can be a desired effect as it gives images a very editorial look often seen in fashion photography.
In fact, there are some famous photographers known for their use of direct flash - check out the work of Bruce Gilden and Jürgen Teller, for example.
Flash photography can be a little unpredictable, so you’ll want to experiment with this - try using flash as the only light source, or combine it with additional lights at home.
Also, you can achieve really fun effects with flash if you place a mirror behind you reflecting the light.
Go for a cinematic look with low light
If you’re not a fan of flash lighting, try going for the opposite look by shooting in low lighting conditions - for example, set up a small desk or bedside lamp and switch off all other lights/close blinds or curtains.
Then, position yourself close to the lamp and take your self portrait.
I love this method because you can get very cinematic, moody self portraits without much effort or equipment at all.
Photograph your silhouette against the light
Another option is to take your photo against the light in order to create a silhouette effect like this:
To do this, position a light source behind you and the camera in front of you, so you’re sandwiched between light and camera.
Once you’ve got your shot, convert it to black and white as this will enhance the silhouette effect.
You can intensify it even more in post production by increasing the contrast/blacks and whites (do this in your native phone editing app or in a free editing app such as Snapseed).
Use a camera app to play with shutter speed
In contrast to a DSLR or mirrorless camera, on a phone camera, you’re not able to change the shutter speed (if you’re not sure what that means, read this article).
However, that’s a real shame because you can do a lot of creative things with different shutter speed settings, like creating motion blur.
There is a way around it though - simply download a camera app such as Camera+ (it’s subscription-based, but there is a free trial).
Now, you can change the shutter speed on your phone, achieving all kinds of creative effects.
Try a fast shutter speed to freeze movement, like 1/200 sec and above, or a very slow shutter speed like 1 sec or slower to create a ghostly motion blur effect.
Are you looking for even more self portrait photography ideas? Then download my free e-book now which contains 50 creative ideas and projects for self portraits. You can get it HERE.