THE SELFIE IS THE NEW AUTOGRAPH

 The selfie is a digital trend that has gradually slipped in to become an autograph. ‎

‎

Selfies are faster, easier, can capture multiple fans simultaneously and are also more convenient. There’s the tendency of making the fan feel closer and involves latest technological gadgets which are more fun to operate.

The downside of a selfie though is that autography is an old beautiful art which could involve graphics and calligraphy painstakingly penned down in the author's own writing, unique to each fan and could even come along with words of encouragement, thereby creating a more personalized relationship.

I like to look at the selfie as both a modification on autograph and as a separate art with similar intention.

What the selfie has done is upgrade the autograph to the 21st century reality with the help of technology and social media. A signed autograph hitherto was seen as a personal encounter with someone famous. But it sometimes lacked authenticity and most times it couldn't also capture the moments those encounters happened. The selfie brought all these together; the time, the ambience, the memories and of course that authenticity that the normal autograph couldn't mostly give‎.

Needless to say, in a bid to feel special, a fan could involve graphic enhancement with the use of Photoshop application so as to give the impression of a photograph taken with the star, hence being deceitful.

‎Like we know, a picture is worth a thousand words. That personal endorsement and validity the selfie brings makes it priceless. However, the selfie though brings both parties together in an emotional and powerful keep sake memory, cannot be said to replace the autograph 100% as there are a great many people that would still opt for an autograph alongside a selfie