I’ll be sincere, I’m a lover of a very good selfie—however on the subject of self-love, belfies are the transfer. Belfies, in any other case referred to as “butt selfies,” have taken the world by storm, so we’re right here to share with you a number of the greatest ideas for tips on how to take a belfie so that you, too, can hop aboard this twenty first Century phenomenon.
A fast scroll by way of Instagram will remind you everybody loves a very good butt picture, however belfies aren’t merely a thirst-trappy ploy to get a ton of likes—they’re additionally a option to enjoy the great thing about our our bodies. Whereas the phrase “belfie” is past cringe-worthy, the idea itself is way from it. I’m all for taking pictures of your butt—in actual fact, taking nude pictures of my physique has been essential to my consuming dysfunction and physique dysmorphia restoration over the past a number of years.
The one challenge with belfies, after all, is that they’re exhausting to take. Nailing the angle in a mirror selfie is at all times powerful and lighting is difficult to handle there, too. Utilizing your cellphone’s hands-free function is a pleasant option to create a extra curated composition, however as a result of you possibly can’t see what you’re capturing as you shoot it, your complete course of tends to contain plenty of trial and error.
I’m of the thoughts that our world can be higher with extra stunning belfies in it; taking severely sizzling photographs of your tush shouldn’t be as difficult as it’s! So, I reached out to 2 New York Metropolis-based boudoir photographers—Irina Mednik of French Kiss Boudoir Pictures and Evgenia Ribinik of Evgenia Ribinik Boudoir Pictures—to get their tushy ideas and tips for taking the most effective belfie doable.
Oh, and BTW, I included a little bit of belfie inspo under with pictures displaying girls, however I need to remind and encourage you that everybody can have fun their booty with a belfie! This isn’t only for the women—we’ve all obtained belfie-ready bums!
1. Know your angles
When taking a photograph of, properly, something, angles make all of the distinction. That is very true on the subject of your butt. Mednik notes that whereas butts are available in a wide range of sizes and shapes, many ladies attempt for a similar supreme. “Most purchasers desire a spherical, plump behind that’s completely located between a skinny waist and lean legs,” she explains.
However as an alternative of striving for a stretchmark- and cellulite-free bottom that appears like Kim Kardashian’s, you’d be higher off working with what you’ve obtained. A part of the great thing about belfies—and actually, any nude pictures in any respect—is that they seize you precisely as you might be. They’re sincere, they’re actual, they’re just a little bit weak—and that’s what makes them so particular. Odds are, the particular person on the receiving finish of your belfie already is aware of what you appear to be, anyway. And should you’re taking them for your self, you positively do.
That stated, it’s possible you’ll resolve it’s price investing in a reasonable cellphone and digicam tripod
or self-timer distant
for selfies that can assist you get the fitting angle, too.
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This compact cellphone holder not solely lets you stabilize your cellphone for hands-free selfies and pictures, but it surely’s additionally geared up with three small ring gentle add-ons to enhancing the lighting and general look of your imagery.
So as an alternative of forcing everyone into some pop-culturally outlined supreme, Mednik appears at every shopper individually. “Photographing their behind actually is determined by their backside,” she says. Every shoot is the distinctive results of what a shopper appears like and what they worth aesthetically, so there’s no one-size-fits-all reply to the query of angles.
However one tried-and-true angle Mednik turns to time and again? Having the shopper lie on their stomach and arch their again so their tushy can “come out.” You need to use your again and your hips so as to add some severe form (learn: roundness) to your booty, and it’ll make the distinction between your butt and waist extra outlined. “It’s an incredible optical phantasm for many who don’t have a lot junk within the trunk—but it surely additionally works completely for many who do,” she says.
2. Use belfie inspo
Since boudoir pictures have a tendency to sit down on the intersection of what an individual appears like and what they need to appear to be, there’s plenty of variation in go-to angles and posing. Because of this, plenty of boudoir photographers ask their purchasers to make a moodboard of their favourite boudoir photographs—that method, the photographer can get a way of the shopper’s aesthetic (relating to every part from poses and angles to lighting and composition).
It may appear bizarre to make a Pinterest board devoted to booty photographs, however odds are, you’ve already bookmarked a number of Instagrams you’re excited by recreating. So begin there. What do these pictures have in widespread? Do they skew extra Kim Kardashian break-the-internet Paper cowl, or extra artsy and genuine? Possibly one thing in between? Realizing what you’re attempting to do will maintain your belfie course of shifting alongside easily.
However both method, should you’re in want of just a little inspo, Mednik and Ribinik shared a few of their go-to poses, under:
Crossed legs
Stand together with your legs crossed. It will emphasize the form of your tush, supplying you with that hourglass look so many individuals are keen on.
Sit it down
Sitting would possibly seem to be a bizarre transfer for a belfie, however in response to Mednik, it’s an incredible selection for folks with butts on the flatter facet. The trick is to sit down together with your physique angled barely away from the digicam, creating a wonderful curve to your bottom—even when that curve is virtually non-existent if you’re standing. (No disgrace—keep in mind, flat butts will be simply as stunning as juicy ones. Your physique isn’t fallacious simply because it doesn’t meet our present, fashionable supreme.)
From the facet
Aspect selfies are additionally an incredible choice—simply make sure that to differ what your legs are doing. “The booty at all times appears rounder if the leg dealing with the digicam is tremendous straight when you take a facet selfie,” Ribinik advises. “Popping it whereas in that pose additionally helps!” (She particularly vouched for a lower-angle set-up on this pose. “I really feel prefer it provides the booty such a cool, spherical coronary heart form,” she says.)
I do know what you’re pondering—these poses are all good and properly for boudoir images. However how am I alleged to snap something like this with out the assistance of a private butt photographer? Your cellphone’s self-timer is your greatest pal. Make a time out of it and have some enjoyable training poses and angles. Simply discover one thing to prop it up in opposition to, and also you’ll be in enterprise very quickly.
3. Thoughts Your Lighting
When lighting your belfies, revisit your moodboard (or your bookmarked Instagrams, or wherever else your belfie treasure trove lies). What do the pictures you’ve saved appear to be? Is the lighting mushy and romantic? Is it harsh? Totally different lighting set-ups can provide pictures totally totally different vibes, so spend a while determining what you need on the front-end.
When you’re undecided, Mednik and Ribinik suggest beginning with mushy, pure gentle. Harsh, shiny gentle (the sort of factor you’d get from a flash, or from a highlight) tends to flatten your curves, leaving them blended into the background. It additionally tends to forged darkish shadows that intensify cellulite and uneven pores and skin (which we’re mainly all coping with—we’re people, in spite of everything).
Gentle, pure gentle, alternatively, creates a extra romantic temper—and it’s simpler to work with. Not solely are you able to merely open a window (no tools, required), however you may also be rather less exact together with your angles and composition and nonetheless find yourself with one thing that appears good.
Since we don’t all have skilled lighting kits at our disposal, just a little planning will repay. Mednik recommends setting an earlier alarm and snapping some belfies at dawn, “when the sunshine is admittedly mushy and flattering.” She recommends mendacity on the mattress together with your booty up, window behind you.
Situate the cellphone throughout the room so that you’re sandwiched between the window and the cellphone. “That’s the most secure gentle to work with,” she says. “It’s sometimes superb on everybody and might also have a moody really feel to it, too.”
4. Take into account your composition—and what garments you’re carrying.
You don’t should take a images class to study what the “rule of thirds” is—it’s already constructed into your cellphone digicam. You recognize that grid that pops up if you’re posting a photograph on Instagram? That’s your rule of thirds grid. Situating the focus of a picture on the intersection of two of these strains will draw the viewer’s eye into the composition, making your picture extra compelling.
“If I’m getting a brilliant close-up I often go together with the rule of thirds, however the destructive area to the facet does look attention-grabbing so long as there isn’t litter,” Mednik says. “You need to make sure that the background is as clear and easy as doable as to not distract your eye from the actual magnificence within the picture—the butt.”
So far as clothes, Mednik and Ribinik each agree: The much less, the higher. When you’re not fully snug taking a nude picture, each photographers suggest a thong or cheeky panties to emphasise the curve of your booty. When you’re not fairly there but, pull a Kylie Jenner (as seen above) and let your panties peek out of some low-cut denims. I do know, proper—the solely time low-rise denims will turn out to be useful.
A model of this text was initially printed in April 2020.
