What's your best technique to take a photo of your length?

[KatiSasha]

Ladies and gentlemen,

I officially have 2 left hands and a crooked neck! How in the world do you take a straight picture of your length? My DH knows that I'm growing my hair, but I still feel weird about asking him to take a pic of the back of my head. I will if I have to, but I was wondering if there's a magic technique you all have conquered? I tend to be slightly obsessive, so if I will want to take a pic everyday I could without freaking out my DH LOL

Thanks a bunch in advance!

P.S. I'm using a regular canon digi camera

[Madora]

If your camera has a self timer..and you can put it on a tripod..or a shelf, (and the lighting is good), you can try taking a picture of the back of your head yourself.

I have a heavy SONY CYBERSHOT and have just started experimenting with outdoor photography using a tripod. It sure is a LOT easier than messing with that heavy camera using bathroom lighting.

I also have a telescopic and wide angle lens which help a great deal in getting close up.

However, for some odd reason, I can't capture a decedent back of the head bathroom mirror picture the first time I try. I usually end up taking 20 pictures before the perfect picture shows up in the viewfinder. Sometimes I have to hold the camera up above my shoulders..and closer to the mirror. You sure can get a crick in your neck trying to get that perfect shot!

Also, the lighting can really play havoc with your hair coloring. The sun only appears in my bathroom for about 3 hours in the morning..so if I want natural light (and I prefer it), then I have to make plans to be ready when the sun appears.

I don't care for bathroom lighting or flourescent lighting because it can change your hair color..or make your hair look like something from under a wet rock.

After going thru all the motions, you hopefully will get a reasonably clear and acceptable picture.

Of course, ideally, someone should take the picture for you!

[staryfox6]

If your camera has a self timer..and you can put it on a tripod..or a shelf, (and the lighting is good), you can try taking a picture of the back of your head yourself.

I have a heavy SONY CYBERSHOT and have just started experimenting with outdoor photography using a tripod. It sure is a LOT easier than messing with that heavy camera using bathroom lighting.

I also have a telescopic and wide angle lens which help a great deal in getting close up.

However, for some odd reason, I can't capture a decedent back of the head bathroom mirror picture the first time I try. I usually end up taking 20 pictures before the perfect picture shows up in the viewfinder. Sometimes I have to hold the camera up above my shoulders..and closer to the mirror. You sure can get a crick in your neck trying to get that perfect shot!

Also, the lighting can really play havoc with your hair coloring. The sun only appears in my bathroom for about 3 hours in the morning..so if I want natural light (and I prefer it), then I have to make plans to be ready when the sun appears.

I don't care for bathroom lighting or flourescent lighting because it can change your hair color..or make your hair look like something from under a wet rock.

After going thru all the motions, you hopefully will get a reasonably clear and acceptable picture.

Of course, ideally, someone should take the picture for you!

Thank you!

[caiti42]

I've given up trying to do it myself. DB now does it for me :)

[trillcat]

I set my cam up on my tripod, aim at the spot I will be standing, put the cam on timer and well, stand in front of it. :)
I have one spot in my apartment I always use, so I can easily judge where to stand now, but when I first started, I stood against a wall and marked where the top of my head came to with a piece of tape. Then I put a tape mark on the floor as to where to stand, and another where to put the tripod, like an actor hitting their mark. It is a lot less complicated than I make that sound. Once you get the set up right, it isn't that difficult to redo it without all the fuss. I still have to do a few tests even now to get it just right, adjusting and fusing, but I am also slightly obsessive when taking pics.
It is always amusing when I do this, Miss Ginger Cat gets mad at me for having the absolute nerve to take pictures of something other that HER (How dare I!!) and walks around my legs in a snake like fashion meowing for attention and generally behaves like a cranky two year old child who is suddenly not the center of attention.
I have no idea how people just aiming over their shoulder in a mirror do this, tried many times, never comes out right, got some nice pics of my shoulder through extreme mirror glare though.

[baaaad_kitty]

Self timer is what works for me so I don't stretch my neck or tire out my hands. Make sure you position yourself exactly so the picture has your head centered also don't use the 2 second self timer! LOL

[teela1978]

self timer on a shelf or other piece of furniture... haven't found the optimal picture taking spot in my current residence... a tripod would be awesome...

If I'm using the bathroom mirror, I use a 2nd mirror to look at the image from my digital camera, change angles appropriately and then shoot, usually with the camera either directly above my head, or directly to the side. That might not have made any sense...

[Fadedbluedreams]

Have the hubby do it :)

[Angeletti]

What I tend to do is rest the camera on my shoulder facing into my large bathroom mirror (that way the camera is always at the same height if you take length pics every month). I then take a small hand held mirror in my other hand and look at the digital screen on the backside of the camera to see if I'm in the shot. I always have to take it without flash because flashes in mirrors don't usually mix. Like the others said though, the camera timer works just as well if you have a ledge or tri pod to put your camera on.

[eternallyverdan]

What I tend to do is rest the camera on my shoulder facing into my large bathroom mirror (that way the camera is always at the same height if you take length pics every month). I then take a small hand held mirror in my other hand and look at the digital screen on the backside of the camera to see if I'm in the shot. I always have to take it without flash because flashes in mirrors don't usually mix. Like the others said though, the camera timer works just as well if you have a ledge or tri pod to put your camera on.

Exactly what I do! If you look at the left side of most of the pictures in my album you can see my little orange camera, sometimes with a hand mirror peeking out the side. It takes a little practice, but it's pretty easy once you get the hang of it.

[trolleypup]

Camera on a tripod, using either the timer or the remote (depending on the camera).

[Joribear]

Thanks so much for starting this thread! I was just thinking of it last night as I was trying to grow a couple more arms to be able to take a decent picture of my bun curls.

Well, trying to get a picture of the curls without showing the mess that is my bathroom vanity!

[freckles]

for me, the best method is to get DBF to do it. When I first joined LHC, I tried to take some myself, and they are terrible. A couple of months in, I sucked it up and asked my sister to take a photo of the back of my head. Now my boyfriend takes most of them. Yes, they think I'm properly weird! :lol: But, I'm not bothered :)

I take my pics on my iPhone because I don't have a camera, so I downloaded an app with a self-timer and now, in a pinch, I can take my own. It usually takes a fair amount of time to get the height/angle/time right by balancing it on furniture though. The mirror method has always totally failed for me -- I can't get it right at all! :)

[tgagurl27]

I put my camera on my set of drawers that are about my shoulder height and take two steps forward and because it is on a self timer of 10 seconds I stand there and pose hehe... I can understand how you'd feel weird about getting the hubby to take a photo everyday :D But remember a watched pot never boils so it's best to do a photo every week or at the same time every month, it makes it more exciting

[Night_Kitten]

I use the self timer, and put the camera on a shelf, adjusting the hight with books ( to about waist level). I use the same place every time, so that I know where I should stand and how to place the camera...

Before that I took pics with my cell-phone camera using a full-length mirror, but it was hard to get a good pic that way, and after a while I realised that because the camera is at sholder-hight it creates a steep angle and that made the hair look longer than it really was...

[racrane]

I take it myself in the mirrors but I take about 10 shots of my ear first. When I move back home for the summer I can ask my mom or dad to take it. I'm excited about that. :D

[KatiSasha]

Thank you so much for all of your suggestions, I'm gonna try all of them out and see what works best. I've already pinpointed a few things I was doing wrong :) I know every day pics are unnecessary, but knowing myself - I go overboard on everything before settling down into a manageable rhythm, so I was giving myself a permission to be a little crazy for the first couple of weeks :)

I get so much inspiration from seeing everyone's progress and now I can officially participate in a "non-lurker" status.

Thanks a lot everybody, I'll post the most successful shot on here and let you know what techniques worked best for me!

[Mirsha]

My camera doesn't auto-focus when used with the self-timer so I:
Place a dummy (tripod) where I want to stand
Focus on the dummy from where I want the picture taken
Lock focus
Put the camera on the tripod and move it to the spot I focused
Activate selftimer
Stand where tripod first stood
Mess up the framing
Take a picture of the back of my knees
Have terrible lighting
Have labels hanging out my clothing
Find out my underwear is showing
Retake same picture at least 10 times before deciding to wash hair to get weird waves from elastics out
Wait for hair to dry
Blowdry on medium heat because I'm impatient
By now the sun has gone down
Spend hours twiddling with external flash, exposure and placement of said external flash
Get frustrated
Look at the time
2:00
Brush teeth
Undress and dive into bed
Sleep
Have breakfast
Tidy up all equipment
Remember I still haven't taken a nice length shot
Shrug
Say to myself: I'll do it another day
Repeat cycle on another day


This is probably the reason you don't see many length shots in my album :D

Exaggerated, of course

[Firefox7275]

for me, the best method is to get DBF to do it. When I first joined LHC, I tried to take some myself, and they are terrible. A couple of months in, I sucked it up and asked my sister to take a photo of the back of my head. Now my boyfriend takes most of them. Yes, they think I'm properly weird! :lol: But, I'm not bothered :)

I take my pics on my iPhone because I don't have a camera, so I downloaded an app with a self-timer and now, in a pinch, I can take my own. It usually takes a fair amount of time to get the height/angle/time right by balancing it on furniture though. The mirror method has always totally failed for me -- I can't get it right at all! :)

Oooooh ..... *runs off to iTunes* :p

[KatiSasha]

And the winner is...

The two-mirror method! I tried the self timer only to take a couple of really nice butt photos... :rolleyes:

Even though I'm sporting a "Look, Ma! No arms!" look, I'm pretty happy. :cheese: My bathroom lighting is always constant, so it's good for lenght shots. As far as color, this looks pretty spot on too.

http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/album.php?albumid=7820&pictureid=102606

Thanks again everyone!

edit: Umm, the IMG thing is not working for me, even though I'm linking the link above, is that wrong?

[Jean Stuart]

I try to use a different person very time I need one done. Since I also need help taking style pictures too I cycle through my family very quickly and they are getting very annoyed/ worried. :D

[DreamDance]

I have been thinking about this for a while, so I read through the thread excited! I tried all the tips here and then did a sigh-shrug. I'm going to have to ask my husband to take pictures for me. Oh well, I've asked him to do weirder photographs for me... like of my shoes... I doubt he'll even remember to remind me I'm weird.:)

[luxepiggy]

I just use the 10 second timer and set it on top of a ledge or piece of furniture of the appropriate height. Once you find the right configuration, just remember the setup for the next time, and it's smooth sailing (^(oo)^)

[Phexlyn]

The best technique for me is to ask someone else to do it (this applies to other areas in life as well :D), followed by using the self timer on the camera. There's no way I could take a photo of my length by just holding the camera at any weird angle, my arms are not long enough for that!

I know it's kind of strange to ask someone to take a picture of your hair/back, but DBF is used to it by now and I try not to ask too often :)

[SoulOfTheSea]

Have someone else take the picture, in the house, with the flash :D

[PianoPlaye]

Got to love the internet - I'm streaming music, admiring length shots & downloading a self timer app all at once! :D

[Xandergrammy]

My DH is trained to take them and I'm very grateful. :inlove: