Ditching The Selfie Stick

Yes, there are places selfie-sticks aren't allowed--church interiors come to mind, I remember seeing a "no-selfie-stick" sign posted at the entrance to many (if not all) churches in Venice last October. Look for signs.

About others using your phone to take a picture--back in the old days before selfie sticks, the common advice was to find someone else who already had a camera in their hands and was taking pictures and ask them. Seems that would still be good advice.

And, I realize I sound like get-off-my-lawn old-guy, but I'm trying to figure out what photo a selfie-stick would be "absolutely necessary" for!

Churches and museums do not, by and large, allow the narcissist sticks. If you need yourself in a photo, ask someone to do it and return the favor for them. Much classier.

Thanks for your reply. I guess it's a way to not have to depend on others when you want a picture of yourself at a certain place. Will also try to look for someone else who's using a camera. Thanks again.

There have been reports of pigeons and seagulls in Venice and Rome snatching cameras off the selfie sticks when people had it up high while taking selfies.
The birds would then perch themselves on top of statues and ask for ransom in exchange for having the camera back. The pigeons could be bribed with peanuts, but seagulls would not budge for anything less than live fish.
I think it’s safer if you ask people who appear tourist couples. Don’t trust people who offer to take a photo without being asked. They are often birds under human disguise.

Please .... do so!! Little like Eric, I don't understand the need the have your face, especially silly faces, in all of your pictures but understand it is a cultural fascination at the moment. Hopefully this too shall pass. And from a photography viewpoint this photo angle is almost always the same that lead to boring pictures that almost always looks the same.

I'll try to be gentle.... :O)

Figure that they're pretty much banned in all museums, including the Uffizi and Accademia in Florence, and the Vatican Museums and Borghese in Rome. They're also banned inside the Colosseum (as of 2015) and, recently, in ALL tourist areas - inside and out - in Milan.

https://www.cntraveler.com/story/milan-has-officially-banned-selfie-sticks

And whether they're formally banned or not, it's really poor form to use them in any of the Italian churches, although you will see others who do. They've become a terrible hazard for both treasures and people when there are just too many of them swinging and poking about. In short, I wouldn't use it indoors much of anywhere but you should be OK using it carefully outdoors in most places (except Milan).

I'm occasionally asked to take phone pix of other tourists (although I carry a regular camera) and that can be a good opportunity to have the favor returned. I've also offered to take snaps when it's clear that they can't get their phone out far enough on the end of their arm!

Hi Frank,
Nope. I'm not into the silly faces etc...
What other way to call a photo self-taken just so that you want to be in that photo.
No silly faces cos I don't understand them either.

When not with our tour group, we asked numerous people to take our photo and never had an issue. We found a couple or family who was also taking pictures, and they were always happy to help. Find someone with a nicer phone/camera than you have, and ask them! That being said, I agree with the other poster about saying NO to anyone who asks you if you'd like them to use your phone to take your picture. They are the ones who want to steal your phone. This happened to us at Trevi Fountain. In 2 weeks in Italy, it was the only time that happened.

I've been a tourist in lots of places over lots of years, and I have never had, nor wanted, a selfie stick. Even when traveling alone, I got pictures of myself in various places with no problem. In fact, asking people to take my picture (or offering to take pictures of others) became a chance to get into a conversation. One of my favorite pictures of myself is a blurry, off-center one on the Great Wall in China. I had asked (via pantomime) an elderly couple if they would like a picture together when I saw her trying to take a picture of him. After I took theirs, they insisted on taking a picture of me with my camera.

If I just approach a stranger for help in taking my photo - I'm actually paranoid about losing my phone / camera.

So pick someone who already has a camera to take your picture. Or pick someone that you know you can outrun ...

OP really appreciate your thoughtful question and your patience with some of the fairly judgemental responses. Don't let name-calling or some of the other responses from people keep you from getting the pictures that you want. You've already made it clear that you are aware of being sensitive to your surroundings. Enjoy your trip and don't hesitate to include yourself in some of the pictures.

not a problem, Carol. Most of my photos do not include me when I travel - except some special places where I really must be in the picture. Thanks for the many input from various people.

Consider putting your phone on the timer, then you can hold it at arms length, and with 10 seconds after you push the button, you can frame the shot, and avoid using a selfie stick.

Ditto what Roberto said....

I always suspected those Venetians pigeons had mercenary motivations.

Being a person who hates having her picture taken and always have, I'm not a fan of pictures of me, period. As a result, there are very few pictures of me at all, much less in special places or situations.

I have Facebook friends and relatives for whom the pictures are all about them in the place, not about the wonder of the place itself.

I think neither the all-me, all-the-time nor the hardly-ever-me approach is the best way to go. I think balance between the two is a good thing. It sounds like that's what you plan to do.

Having said that, I checked my Facebook page and discovered that I do have 11 travel pictures of myself alone. Two are selfies. The other 9 were taken by other people.

My favorite is one of me sitting in a side entrance at York Minster holding the leashes of 2 Corgis. I came upon a mother and adult son there with the dogs. I asked them if I could take a picture of them with the dogs because my husband loves Corgis. They offered to take a picture of me with the dogs instead. I would never have asked them to do that, but I'm so glad they suggested it.

Unlike trips in the past, I noticed absolutely no one using a selfie stick in Rome, Ravenna, Venice or Milan this past summer. I also noticed no one with selfie sticks anywhere on the Village Italy tour. They may have been around, but I didn't see them.

I'd suggest buying a small P&S Camera and using that instead of a phone. It will take better pictures and you won't be as concerned about having it stolen by a stranger.

I normally travel with a large DSLR and I'm frequently asked to take pictures of other tourists using everything from DSLR's to iPad's (I must look reliable or perhaps they figure they can run faster than I can, which is true - at this point, I'd have trouble outrunning a guy in a wheelchair). If someone asks you to take their picture, ask them to return the favour.

Forget using a goofy and annoying selfie stick. People using them look ridiculous. In a pinch, just use your arm.

Lo, you wrote "They offered to take a picture of me with the dogs instead. I would never have asked them to do that, but I'm so glad they suggested it.". When I was in Bangkok alone, I met another tourist who went solo. He offered to take the picture and took one for me. It's a very rare moment though. So in my collection of photos in Bangkok, only 3 had my face in there.
Ken,
Thanks for your suggestion on getting a small P&S Camera. I already have a P&S camera - Lumix LX3. I'd probably be just as concerned about losing it. lol... When the camera goes, so do the pictures. I lost my camera before but that was because I left it in the safe and forgot about it. :(

Perhaps it's just me reading too much about pickpockets etc.

Anyway - thanks for all the feedback.

I think it’s safer if you ask people who appear tourist couples. Don’t
trust people who offer to take a photo without being asked. They are
often birds under human disguise.

Don't think so, Roberto. Like, where are their wings?

Saw few if any of these 'narcissist sticks' (thank you Laurel!) on our trip in 2010 but quite a few in 2015 and this year, chiefly at the places you'd think--Florence's Duomo, Rome's Trevi Fountain. In fact, at Trevi a young Dutch couple asked us to take their picture with a nice camera, which we did and then I immediately flinched like I was going to run off, but then grinned and the ice was broken. They took our picture with my iPhone--the only obligatory pic of the trip--and we spoke for a couple minutes and wished each other well.

If pics are necessary for evidence of visitation, I'm all in favor of actually communicating with someone, maybe a small step in ridding the world of the image of the 'ugly American'. But don't forget to have a sock full of quarters at the ready to clock anybody that tries to run off...

Happy New Year!

Oh God Roberto - dying here...lol.

I don't have many photos of my husband and I on holiday - I will use the timer if it's a quiet spot. Never asked anyone. An Irish girl in Ravello took a few photos of me/hubby/mom.

When we were in Paris over near Bir Hakeim, there was a family there who asked me to take a photo with the Eiffel Tower in the background. After finishing, she said - do you want me to take a photo of you and your husband? I'm like (looks at Eiffel Tower) - "nah"

There have been reports of pigeons and seagulls in Venice and Rome snatching cameras off the selfie sticks when people had it up high while taking selfies.

Instead of asking for ransom, these birds should drop the sticks into the canals or fountains.

I must be weird, but I think using my arm makes it more fun if I need to get myself in a picture.......because I am usually acting goofy when I am doing it....

Just use common sense when doing anything by asking yourself "is this action going to negatively affect others around me?" be it a selfie stick, loud talking, gesturing, eating etc...just be considerate and you should be good to go. Most tourist places are crowded and you may be in someone space maneuvering a selfie stick so obviously you would not want to do that. Even with my camera I am super conscious if I am blocking someone view while taking a picture. I like the selfie stick because I have short arms and my fat face is usually in the foreground and you can barely see the background and of course we want pictures of our young selves traveling because so much changes over the years its fun to look back in 20 years and see your hair and fashion choices and the places you visited. We have some gorgeous pictures of Positano that we could have only gotten with the stick due to the bigger range it allowed us to capture. I have found that most people who travel are kind and considerate and I have never had a stick in my face or has one cause me any distress when others are using it.

There's another option that may work for you: several phones (including the Samsung Galaxy S8 & S8+) include what they call "Dual Camera Selfie." The feature takes two simultaneous pictures: one using the front facing camera and the other using the rear facing camera. The result is a "picture in a picture" that shows the scene you want to take with front camera and you inserted from the rear camera.

What about photo-shopping the pix?

Ethical use of selfies and selfie sticks

I was thinking about creating a post on this, then I found this one. I want to defend selfies and selfie sticks, done thoughtfully. There are four points I'd like to make.

1. Selfies are not necessarily narcissistic. You are not Ansel Adams. That photo you're taking of the Eiffel Tower has been taken. You can find it on Google. Yes, even the artsy one from underneath the tower. Yes, even the one in black and white. What probably doesn't exist is the photo of YOU with the Eiffel Tower. That's what I want to see. That's what your family and friends want to see. It's an original. And there's an intimacy from the arm's length photo that I enjoy.

2. People think they take good photos. Most don't. The number of times we've handed our camera to someone only to get a photo of us without the background we wanted is quite high. When that happens, it's awkward to ask for another. You usually wait until they leave to take it yourself or ask someone else. And there are tricks to taking a better photo. Do you know about "touching the sky" on a phone to change the lighting? It's a great way to get a better shot.

3. Selfie sticks can capture fantastic photos that can't be taken without them. The angle you can get with that extra length can give you the height you need to take a great shot, especially with several people in it. Unless the stranger you ask is really tall, you're not getting that shot.

4. Rudeness does not require a selfie stick. (props to Letizia's post!) We've all seen people in crowded spaces take way to long to take a photo of someone with a good 7 feet of space between them and their subjects. Again, you're not Ansel Adams and it's a point and shoot camera. It's rude to block the passage of a dozen people for your photo.

In our travels most of us have seen rude, thoughtless behavior, with or without selfie sticks. Instead of judging others for using the sticks and taking selfies, ask if they are really being disruptive. Instead of writing people off as narcissistic, see what fun they're having on their vacation. Imagine how their mother, grandson, or niece will enjoy seeing them on vacation. Better an ethical selfie stick in a traveler's hand that some other stick up somewhere else.

In our travels most of us have seen rude, thoughtless behavior, with
or without selfie sticks. Instead of judging others for using the
sticks and taking selfies, ask if they are really being disruptive.

Sorry, Scott, but too many people I've seen with these things have been disruptive. They do NOT care if they're taking way too long to get the shot (actually, too many shots) and/or blocking someone else's view. Many are also careless about injury to people and valuable relics. That's the reason they're increasingly banned from museums and even public places in some popular city centers.

It's OK if in a space that isn't crowded with other tourists but otherwise, leave them in your bag. No one cares if you are getting the "good" shot with the thing if you're in everyone else's way. And yes, I dealt with enough photography in my profession to know how to frame a shot/adjust the lighting for reproduction but most point-and-shoot folks will not be doing that with their devices.

As I said upthread, in 2010 I saw very few 'narcissist sticks' (yes, Scott, that's exactly what they are) in Rome & Florence, none in Sicily. By 2015, there were enough of them consistently during the day in central Florence to make me growl like a caged animal underneath my breath. And of course, there were always the ever-present African sellers of them as well. I waited until nighttime to get my shots when the piazzas were deserted. Last year March in Rome, I avoided most crowds, opting to see the hidden Roman gems so I almost forgot that the sticks existed.

Maybe I'm turning into the guy that sits outside his screen door waiting for the kids to accidentally throw the ball into my yard so I can snatch it and run into the house--HAH!--but really...what's the point of the selfie shot? To verify you've been there? I'd much rather set up a neat shot--without the requisite crowds or myself--on a cool angle, with some depth perception to it, then crop and saturate it a little afterwards. All on my iPhone.

Heck, that's what I'd routinely do at night after a day of walking around in Rome or the Amalfi Coast. I'd have maybe 60-70 pics to go through each day on my phone, ones that I'd shoot in 2 seconds so as to not bother anyone. After we'd get back to the apartment or B&B, I'd get a cold bottle of water, put my feet up, and edit. Delete more than half, but work with the others to make them more vibrant while the actual memories were still fresh in my mind. By the time I got home, they were all ready to be shown to friends or posted on social.

I value those pics and look at them often while planning the next journey!

Scott said “What probably doesn't exist is the photo of YOU with the Eiffel Tower. That's what I want to see. That's what your family and friends want to see. It's an original. And there's an intimacy from the arm's length photo that I enjoy.”

Chances are that one’s family and friends are bored out of their collective brains with the travel snaps.

Selfies are soooo yesterday.

It's one thing to take one or two snaps of yourself in front of the Eiffel Tower, darn - I have photos of me and hubby in front of the Tower (that I got using the self timer on our camera) - it's another thing altogether to stand there for 10 min with it at your back as you take photo after photo of yourself to get the perfect instagram shot. Or those who have to take their photo in front of every...blessed...thing...especially in art museums - yes - I have seen people take a selfie in front of an amazing piece of art, but not even bother to look AT the artwork (or give it a cursory glance). Do your selfie, but ENJOY the art and don't stand there for 10 min taking dozens of photos of yourself (you'd think after all that time, they'd be pros at selfie taking).

We did a harbour cruise in Portsmouth, UK and one girl sat there with her back to the view for at least 30 min, the whole time filming herself.

And don't even get me started on duck face and 'V' for Victory hand gestures (yes, in Monaco we were on the same trail as this one woman who at least 3 times we saw stop, do the duck face and the 'V' gestures...just...stop).

I agree with everything Nicole P said. Just last month I watched a young woman in front of the Orvieto Cathedral taking selfie after selfie, making the ridiculous pouty mouth (duck face?) over and over again. Frankly, it was pathetic. She was so busy taking photos of herself that she barely looked at the gorgeous structure behind her (which should have been in front of her, of course). Very sad.

"2.People think they take good photos. Most don't. The number of times we've handed our camera to someone only to get a photo of us without the background we wanted is quite high. When that happens, it's awkward to ask for another. You usually wait until they leave to take it yourself or ask someone else."

And just to add - if I wanted someone to take a good photo of my husband and I, I'd look for someone toting an actual 'high end' camera (boy, I sound like a snob...lol) as they most likely will frame the shot better/take more care - as I do when people ask me to take their photo. Personally...in my humble opinion...someone taking multiple shots with a phone isn't that worried about framing and background - they're just taking dozens of shots and hoping for a few good ones. (Not in every case - I have seen some amazing phone shots as well, but the general, everyday phone photo taker isn't composing great shots)

...if I wanted someone to take a good photo of my husband and I, I'd look for someone toting an actual 'high end' camera .

Good luck finding one. I'm guessing you mean a DSLR, specifically a larger full frame model instead of the Canon Rebel or Nikon equivalent. I've been amazed at how dramatic the change has been. On our last two visits to Europe, DSLRs have been very rare and point and shoot cameras have been non-existent. Phone cameras do a good enough job for social media, which is where these photos will end up.

Remember the photos of rooftops from the 1950s with all the TV aerials sticking up? I have some recent photos of iconic scenes I took that have a forest of selfie sticks and smartphones in the foreground. To the OP, use consideration and taste as your guide.

I'm reminded of the Kinks song "People Take Pictures of Each Other":

People take pictures of the Summer,

Just in case someone thought they had missed it,

Just to proved that it really existed.

People take pictures of each other,

And the moment to last them for ever,

Of the time when they mattered to someone.

Don't show me no more, please.

There have been reports of pigeons and seagulls in Venice and Rome snatching cameras off the selfie sticks when people had it up high while taking selfies.
The birds would then perch themselves on top of statues and ask for ransom in exchange for having the camera back. The pigeons could be bribed with peanuts, but seagulls would not budge for anything less than live fish.

They only speak Italian until the correct ransom has been quickly delivered!

We first saw selfie sticks in Paris a few years ago. I remarked to my wife that a fleet footed individual could grab the phone and begone before the phone owner knew what hit them. I just do not see any need for one personally. My wife and I usually get someone to take a picture of us proving that we were on the tip together!

Actually, I’d never ask anyone to take our photo. As mentioned in a previous comment, I had an Irish girl offer to take a photo in Ravello (and I did the same for her) but otherwise I make do with the self timer, or I take a pic of hubby and he takes one of me...and I don’t even ask him to do that anymore because when we were in nyc in 2015, I asked him to take my pic on the Brooklyn bridge and he huffed and rolled his eyes, so I don’t ask him to take my photo anymore. (I’m horribly stubborn...if he offers to take my photo, fine...but I’ll never ask him to take my photo again. Yes, we’ve been together 29 yrs...he loves me...stubborn and all).

I am so over taking pictures (I will not bless them with the term “photographs”) using my phone. In Venice last week, I saw an exhibition at Tre Oci, a retrospective of the photographs of Fulvio Roiter, and it enlightened me. From the Greek, photos means light, graphos means writing, photography means writing with light, and Roiter exemplified that for me. Photography means telling some sort of story, the chosen medium being light.

So for my next visit to Venice, a couple of weeks in September, I am going to take a decent film camera and just a 35 to 70 zoom lense, and get back to basics. Once you have focussed, you only have three things to manipulate, the photographic triangle, maybe the photographic curse.
Film speed, and that’s already loaded, you are stuck with that unless you carry a couple of bodies.
Aperture
Exposure.

I’m going to work my way around the triangle, and start with 400 ASA, B&W.