Influencer Shares Secret Hack for How She Gets Perfect Selfies by Screenshotting

Woman taking selfie with greenery background

Photo: yuliasverdlovaphoto.gmail.com/Depositphotos

Taking the perfect selfie is not as easy as it may seem. While some experiment with filters or editing, an influencer named Liliana Madrigal has shared her secret to get amazing self-portraits. Her tip to get the best selfies? Taking a screenshot instead of an actual photo when using the front-facing camera on your iPhone.

After getting many compliments and questions about her selfies, Madrigal decided to reveal how she does it in a now-viral TikTok. “I always get asked how I take my selfies so I’m going to show you because I do not [use the camera],” she says at the beginning of the clip.

In the video, Madrigal proceeds to take a regular selfie, but strongly dislikes the result. “Ugh! The quality always comes out so bad,” she exclaims. She then gives it another shot, but takes a different approach. Rather than going for the shutter, she presses the buttons on the side. “What I do is I pose and instead of tapping [the camera button] to take the picture, I screenshot,” Madrigal says.

Comparing the results, the influencer prefers the second one. “I just like how it comes out way better because the lighting is such a difference,” she says. “And I don’t know why our phones do this but this [screenshotting] is the way around it.” As a final touch, she makes sure to crop the borders of the screenshot—and voilá, the perfect selfie is ready to be posted.

Some users shared that they get a similar effect from taking a video and taking a screenshot from there. Others have used the occasion to critique the iPhone's picture quality. On the other hand, some voiced their dislike at how detailed actual pictures are. As a result, the lower-res screenshot offers a filter-like effect compared to normal photos. The iPhone’s HDR effect enhances depth and detail in landscape photos, but some don't think it’s optimal for selfies.

Whether you feel like giving this selfie hack a try or sticking to a technique that makes you feel more comfortable is totally up to you. Whatever you choose, we think you'll look awesome.