The Power of the Canvas Selfie

We’re all more or less taught throughout our lives that a surfeit of self-regard is a terrible personality trait, and that we should be self-deprecating and avoid the spotlight. And in general, it’s true that a bit too much self-regard can be off-putting – but there’s a time and place for everything, and there’s a grand tradition of self-portraiture in both classical and contemporary art. With the advent of cheap canvas prints and other digital photo printing services, the deprecated ‛selfie’ can be elevated from whimsical moment into true art.

Taking a great self-portrait or ‛selfie’ isn’t something to be left to chance. The in-the-moment, spontaneous selfies are the ones that should never be on your wall as canvas prints or anything else. But if you approach the self-portrait as a serious expression of individuality and artistic sense, it can be the most powerful moment of your interior design.

Self Portrait Canvas Art Tip #1: Be Serious

Sometimes it’s difficult to be serious when you turn the camera on yourself. It can feel unnatural, and all the old rules about taking yourself too serious rise up and make us afraid – we don’t want to be accused of being pretentious or self-involved. That’s why most people make silly faces or strike odd poses when the camera is turned on them.

Resist! Plan your selfie. Choose your clothes and groom yourself as you want to be presented. While there’s no need to be overly serious in your facial expression or tone, there’s also no need to go silly. A good approach is to pretend you’re being photographed by historians for an encyclopaedia article about yourself – try to convey who you are.

Self Portrait Canvas Art Tip #2: Plan Ahead

One main reason most selfies look awful is their spontaneous nature. Instead, plan your selfie. Choose what you’ll be wearing. Choose the background – you can find a nice blank wall to give your selfie a more clinical look, or choose a spot that conveys something about you to serve as a background.

Think about your pose, too. Not all self-portraits have to be just the neck and head – you can go wider if you want. Think about the composition; a slightly off-centre selfie can bring drama and movement to an otherwise static had shot. A final aspect to think about is your eyes – should you be gazing directly into the camera, which can be a bit challenging to people as they walk into a room, or should you look away, adding a bit of mystery to the shot?

Self Portrait Canvas Art Tip #3: Uses

The Self-Portrait canvas print doesn’t have to be just you. Consider making your next family portrait a series of self-portraits, rendered as canvas art and hung together as an art piece, with each individual family member able to express their creativity while showing themselves exactly as they wish. You can set a few basic ground rules regarding clothing, grooming, and background in order to keep the picture cohesive, but the final effect could be amazing.

Or, think about the utility of a great selfie: The self-portraits, turned into bold canvas art, could be hung on the doors of children’s rooms to denote whose personal space it is. Smaller prints could be made for use on key chains, backpack fobs, or anything else where kids dispute ownership or declare privacy.

The ‛selfie’ is the ultimate expression of personality and individualism. Don’t avoid it – use it! And when you’ve taken the most amazing self-portrait in the world, click here to send it our way and we’ll turn it into something you’ll be proud to hang on your wall.