Hello, Fairgoers!
If you love the North Dakota State Fair as much as we do, and would like to commemorate as much of your experience as possible, you might be interested in taking pictures while you’re here! One of the most popular types of pictures trending across all social media platforms is known as the “selfie,” or a photo of oneself, often showing what they’re doing or how they’re feeling.
WHY IS IT IMPORTANT TO HAVE A GOOD SELFIE?
When you look back on your memories from the North Dakota State Fair and see photos of yourself, don’t you want them to be good looking? We want to help you create some of the best memories that you can! But other than simple aesthetic value, there are a few other reasons!
Here at the NDSF, we have a lot of events centered around photos. For instance, we have a daily SNAPCHAT giveaway, where we urge our followers to send in their photos based on our daily theme. If you don’t follow us on Snapchat yet, check us out at ndstatefair!
We also have a daily INSTAGRAM contest where we choose a daily winner for a NDSF t-shirt when they tag their pictures with #ndsf, and at the end of the week we’ll choose a BIG winner based on the quality of photos sent in!
Not only that, but today at the NDSF, Friday, July 22nd, is State Fair Selfie Day! You can find Selfie Stations near the Ferris Wheel, the Crop Plot, and the Grandstand
But enough about WHY, let’s get started on HOW to get your best photo!
STEP 1: LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION!
You want to remember your experiences at the Fair in the best way possible, and what’s a better way then featuring yourself in front of one of the Fair’s most popular attractions? Sure, it’s easy to do something like this:
But that doesn’t scream FAIR and FUN! It just lets us know a little too much about your preferred bathroom schedule and activities. Plus, EVERYONE does bathroom selfies, and you want this one to be unique!
Try a photo in front of something you enjoy about the Fair! It could be one of your favorite rides:
With one of your favorite snacks:
or even in front of one of your favorite places!
My desk after a hurricane, probably.
Either way, you want to incorporate your favorite parts of the North Dakota State Fair in your photo!
STEP 2: LIGHTING IS KEY!
The North Dakota State Fair is definitely WHERE SUMMER SHINES and you want to take advantage of the long days! Natural light acts as one of the best lighting sources for photographs, and can be great for creating shadows and depth on your face as well! However, be sure to avoid selfies facing the sun, as your eyes won’t appreciate the angle:
Instead. try putting the sun behind you to create a nice halo sort of appearance around your figure!
Use the sunlight to your advantage, and if you do take any selfies inside the buildings, just be sure to remember the importance of your background (and filters if you so desire!) You can also experiment with your positioning to the light source, and it’s probably best if you lay off the flash.
STEP 3: GET THE RIGHT POSITION!
Posing for selfies can be difficult! When you’re looking for a pose, you have to remember to always BE YOURSELF! But there are a few fun ways you can pose for your selfie.
Our Crop Plot makes a pretty great background!
Pose with something you like, or something you won! Bring it up close to you, but don’t act scared of it! Be proud of what you have in your photo with you!
USE THE RULE OF THIRDS!
The rule of thirds is an extremely important composition that can be used to improve your photos. Instead of taking your photo straight on like this:
Kind of horrifying.
Imagine your screen cut into thirds, and position yourself on one of those lines! The top left or right corner can be great for a photo focusing on you, and looking more toward the bottom left or right can be great if you have a lot to put in the background!
Not exactly in the middle, and with a bit of a crop it would be ideal!
EXPERIMENT WITH ANGLES!
Don’t have your shoulders facing straight on, try other positions! Tilt your head slightly to the left or right, up or down! Find your best side, and just keep experimenting!
There is no “correct” way to take a selfie, but if you’re looking for a more interesting photo, we hope some of these tips might help! Just remember, the selfie is really all about YOU! We want to see your experiences reflected in the photo, and want you to have the best selfie that you can. The most important part is that you have FUN doing it!