Amazing and cringe-worthy selfies: From the dangerous to the downright gross
(Pocket-lint) – The selfie phenomenon is unrelenting, you can’t open a browser without someone’s self-taken mugshot gurning down on you. That said, we’d be lying if we didn’t dot our own social media accounts with a surreptitiously taken smartphone snap taken at arm’s length, quite often featuring ourselves and a celebrity that would rather be anywhere else. So who are we to cast judgement on others?
Of course, there are some selfie-takers that just beg for us to not only cast judgement but to ruthlessly take the Michael. After all, they’ve done most of the hard work for us and, in many ways, their picture already humiliates them as much as we ever could. That’s why we’ve collected some of the best and worst selfies found from around the web.
Timetobreak.com
The first selfie?
And just to prove that selfies aren’t particularly a new craze.
This might well be the first one ever taken?
The anti-selfie
Stephanie Leigh Rose is a hilarious Instagrammer who’s had enough of the cliche tourist selfie and has taken a new stance. Instead of posing in front of famous landmarks, she pretends to die in front of them instead. The results are almost certainly chortle-worthy.
Runt of the web
Camel noms her head
As the old saying goes, never work with children or animals.
This photo is perfect proof of why. A quick chomp and this harmless selfie is utterly ruined or is it improved? You decide.
Blaze Press
People in trouble
Your raft has capsized, people are struggling to stay above water, what do you do?
Well, probably not take a moment to snap a selfie, that’s for sure. This guy had other ideas though.
Blaze Press
Selfies a mile up
Things have gone a bit awry and there are smoke clouds on the inside of this aeroplane. We’re not sure what’s going on, but it can’t be good.
This man casually snaps a selfie of the happenings, not a furrow on his brow. We can only assume things turned out in the end since the image survived for us to marvel at.
Buzzfeed
Cops and selfies
We’re pretty sure if the police pull you over, the last thing you should do is snap a proud photo of the occasion. It seems this chap not only has a habit of getting stopped by the cops, but also taking a selfie as evidence.
A stupid grin hardly looks innocent.
Imgur
Selfie-inception
We’re actually big fans of this one. This chap is using multiple devices to snap a truly brilliant bathroom selfie that’s a selfie within a selfie. We’re not sure if he’s poking fun at the selfie generation or just showing off how much tech he owns, but we love it.
Imgur
Selfie with a view
Why go outside to take a selfie when you can stay in and just use some clever trickery to achieve the same results.
We can’t decide if this selfie is genius or rubbish.
@coconutchanel
Bear selfies
A new craze swept the selfie world in 2015 which saw people snapping photos of themselves with a bear in the background. A dangerous undertaking that has forced authorities to plead with tourists not to do so. Risking life and limb is not worth it for a simple photograph.
This is still a worldwide problem that has even lead to recent grizzly deaths.
Lee Thomson
A selfie with Jesus
If you thought the skyscraper selfies had a big drop, then don’t look down. This image of Lee Thomson was taken on top of the Christ the Redeemer statue in Rio De Janeiro. If you’re not quite sure whether it’s real, you can see the view from other angles here.
angela_nikolau
Risky views from above
Russian Instagram sensation Angela Nikolau has no fear.
At least it seems that way from the multitude of gravity-defying selfies she regularly posts on the social network. These incredible images are as amazing as they are reckless.
New York Post
Bank robber selfies
A bank robber posted this image of himself on Facebook proudly brandishing the submachine gun he’d used in a recent robbery. As you’d expect, the authorities soon caught up with him and Jules Bahler A.K.A “King Romeo” confessed all.
SIBT Students
Blazing selfies
While firefighters battle with this blaze and tragedy strikes someone’s home, this cheeky lad stops to snap a selfie.
It might look cool, but it’s in pretty bad taste.
DAVIDKARNY
Reckless bridge selfie
This selfie has it all – danger, selfie stick, a view of urban sprawl. But breaking the law to take a selfie for Instagram, might not have been the smartest of decisions David Karny ever made. This selfie-taker found out the hard way when he was arrested for “reckless endangerment” back in 2015.
His Instagram account was deleted shortly afterwards.
Timing is everything
Photographic proof that it’s worth checking your surroundings before snapping a selfie. This happy father and his young one are having their photo truly ruined by their four-legged friend.
College Humour
This bear does not look amused
Yes, another casual photographer capturing an image of himself with a bear in the background. Will people never learn?
The bear looks fairly unamused and rightly so. Don’t try this at home folks or outside for that matter.
Blaze Press
Funeral selfie
We’ve quietly confident that this photo is fake or at least heavily Photoshopped. We hope so anyway.
But, disturbingly, there are masses of “funeral selfies” out there on the web if you do a quick search. A disturbingly inappropriate trend.
YouTube
Those are some sharp teeth
We’re pretty sure this is fake. Either way, it’s one of the most intimidating selfies on our list.
Selfie inception
This image was posted on Reddit wiht the caption “My friend climbed a mountain and took a selfie, was photo bombed by girlfriend taking selfie.”
What a view.
infocism
Gravity-defying
Like a shot from the International Space Station, this selfie appears to defy gravity. Not just a floating chap but his shoes too. Some sort of trickery going on here, surely?
@GeorgeKourounis
Did it just get warm in here?
There are a few death-defying selfies on our list, then there’s this.
We assume this is just an active volcano and not one that’s about to erupt in earnest. Either way, it’s got to be pretty toasty in that suit.
Distractify.com
A photo with the Pope
Nothing to see here. Just a casual selfie with the Pope. Not something you see everyday, that’s for sure.
Worldwideinterweb.com
Pitch invasion
If you’re going to invade a sports pitch and interrupt a game, then doing it in style is key.
Capturing the event for prosperity is also worth doing. We assume.
Worldwideinterweb.com
Hard as a Hello Kitty case
Look at the gains on this chap. He’s clearly comfortable enough with his masculinity to rock a Hello Kitty case.
And who are we to argue?
Runt-of-the-web.com
Railway safety
A surprising number of daft people get killed every year while wandering about on train tracks. An equal amount of daft people risk their lives to take a selfie on a train line. We’re not sure if that’s the case here, but it’s certainly dangerous.
Runt-of-the-web.com
What’s going on in here then?
Which one is doing the impression?
An unexpected guest has arrived to check out the surroundings, but who’s looking at who?
Never work with animals
They say you should never work with children or animals. Taking selfies with animals can also be a bit of a nightmare.
Timetobreak.com
For Tinder?
If you thought the previous angle was interesting, this one is even more intriguing. We advise using a dedicated filter when taking a picture of the moon.
Twitter
Foodies
We’ve all seen the trend of sharing your dinner on Instagram, but have you ever seen anything as romantic as this? This selfie stick captured date will be the envy of the internet.
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Ranker
One does not photobomb the Queen
There’s a certain etiquette to meeting Royalty. We’re pretty sure photobombing your way into a procession to snap a selfie is not the way to do it.
The Queen is pretty nonplussed by the whole thing, but this chap is no doubt about to be tackled by bodyguards if nothing else.
runt-of-the-web
Light lunchtime snack?
An unusual insight into the day-to-day life of the casual cubicle office worker. This lady is seen trying to snap a selfie while chomping down on a banana. Certainly a real eye-opener for all concerned.
Rachel DePompa NBC12
More money, more problems
Another classic case of bragging selfies leading straight to a jail cell.
This image of John Mogan was posted online shortly after he robbed an American bank in 2015. Mugshots soon followed when the police caught up with him.
Yaroslav Seheda
Skyscraper selfies
Death-defying selfies are incredibly popular it seems. Yaroslav Seheda and his friend snapped this selfie after climbing to the top of a tower with a vertigo-inducing view of the city below.
Distractify.com
Perfectly timed
There are some perfectly timed photographs, then there’s this bad boy. We only hope the landing went as smoothly as the photography.
These incredible bikers sure have some mad skills worthy of a quick mid-air selfie.
Timetobreak.com
It’s all about the angle
If you’re going to take a selfie, you might as well try to get your best side. We’re not sure what’s going on here or what the intended result is, but we’re impressed by the flexibility of this snapper, if nothing else.
Runt-of-the-web.com
Pre-surgery selfie
This lady appears to be getting a selfie while in surgery. That’s a new one on us.
“Hang on, before I go under the knife, say ‘removal of lower colon’.”
GartAlgar (Imgur)
Plane crash
No one is going to believe this. Better snap a selfie. This US Marshall can be seen bobbing up and down in the ocean after surviving a plane crash.
Certainly a first.
Distractify.com
When being skewered isn’t enough
As if running from bulls isn’t dangerous enough on its own. Why not try snapping a selfie at the same time? Just in case being skewered isn’t enough proof of what you’re doing.
Death by clown
We couldn’t resist adding another one of Stefdies antics to this list.
In this selfie, Steff has died on the clown’s turf in Rome. The clown doesn’t seem best pleased about it either.
Worldwideinterweb.com
An unhappy chappy
Yet another cat that’s not keen on being snapped.
This chubby chappy might want to be elsewhere. Hilarious nonetheless.
Runt-of-the-web.com
Fake it until you make it
This image might look like a boyfriend carelessly snapping a selfie as his other half hangs dangerously off a cliff edge, but we’re pretty sure that’s Macklemore.
Reddit
King of the jungle selfie
People are forever posting pictures of their cats and dogs on the internet, but this selfie takes things to a whole other level. If you thought selfies with bears was bad, imagine what a lion might do.
These guys seem to be the best of friends though.
This pussy did not approve
A feline friend who was very much not up for being included in her lady owner’s selfie. The furry feline showed her discontent with a quick bite to the face.
NASA
In space, no one can hear you selfie
Astronaut selfies are really out of this world. It’ll be hard to top this one for sure.
Imgur
Nicolas Cage looking worse for wear
Celebrities are people too.
Long haul flights are no fun for anyone, but poor Nic Cage still has to keep his adoring fans happy. We’re sure there’s an etiquette to snapping celebs and this must be breaking the rules.
Timetobreak.com
Glider selfies
Although we’re no fans of selfie sticks, that’s a heck of a cool use for one. We’re not sure if this is fake or not, but it’s pretty cool nonetheless.
Andrew Bloch
Selfie sticks and creatures
That is one chilled out guy.
Casually posing for a tourist selfie as if he’s going to get paid for doing so or is just happy for the exposure.
Kelly Nash (Instagram)
Baseball to the head
Yes, this really happened. This image of American reporter Kelly Nash shows the moment a stray ball blasts through the air to hit her in the noggin. The dangers of spectatorship and not paying attention to your surroundings.
Timetobreak.com
Long arms and impressive hair
We have to admire the arms on this guy.
We bet they make taking selfies a little bit easier. Though he could have just asked the lady sitting him next to her to help him with his snaps. What a poser.
Runt-of-the-web.com
Trapped in an elevator
Look closely here and you’ll see some poor folks trapped in a elevator while this cheeky chap snaps a selfie.
We hope he had the decency to call for help afterwards.
Metaweb
Retro selfie
We’re fairly sure these old phones didn’t have a built in camera, so this selfie actually raises a few questions as well as being amusing. Good work sir.
Reddit
Pooch photobombing
We have no idea what that dog is doing, but it’s hilarious. There are a few photobombings on this list, but this might be our favourite.
UNew
Turn your nose up
Take a look at the bottom left of this photo and you’ll get a right eye full of unexpected nostrils.
Talented
This might be an odd selfie, but you have to admire the flexibility of this photographer.
Fox Two Away
This pilot in the Royal Danish Air Force posted a fairly awesome selfie as they fired off an air-to-air missle.
That’s not something you see everyday.
Writing by Adrian Willings and Rik Henderson.
