We went to Toronto's professional selfie studio and had an absolute blast (PHOTOS)

Toronto has its very own professional selfie studio, so you can get professional-level shots without the pressure of posing for a stranger.

I’m not one for enjoying my time in front of a camera. I suddenly forget what to do with my hands and body, forget how to smile, don’t know where to look. It’s usually a tragic mess.  Enter Monography, a professional photography studio where you’re in control.

Hayley, our Social Media Specialist here at Daily Hive, also doesn’t like having her picture taken, but I dragged her along with me to Monography anyway. Turns out, we both had a great time!

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So how does it work?

All it takes is a little remote. Like an Apple TV remote, you can hide it in your hand, press the button halfway to focus, and a full press to take the photo. Hiding the remote was not my forte, a few of my photos came out looking like a stock photo image of someone turning the TV on.

At Monography there’s a room for black and white photos and a room for colour photos! There’s even a photo booth if you want an updated version of the old-school mall photo booth photos!

The monochrome studio is the larger of the studios and comes equipped with a big fan to get that perfectly windblown shot. The studio has two screens beside the camera, on one screen, you can see yourself so you can make sure you’re centred. The other screen will show you the picture you just captured.

Once you’re in the room, you have 25 minutes to take as many photos in as many poses as you want! Just make sure you don’t jump, you don’t want to damage the equipment!

After not quite knowing what to do with ourselves we tested out some fun poses and got some nice black and white photos of ourselves and with each other. By the end of our time in the monochrome studio, we were basically models.

As you can see in the above photos, you can get all sorts of poses in! It’s also a great way to find your best angle. In the end, we took 43 photos in the monochrome studio. We both felt unsure of what to do with ourselves, in hindsight, I should’ve looked up some top-notch model poses before our trip so we could really nail the full-body shots. Despite the uncertainty, I will say that some of the photos really captured my vibe.

After Hayley and I finished in the monochrome studio, we moved on to the panchrome studio where you can take colour headshots.

This studio is smaller than the monochrome room, but it has wonderfully colourful backdrops to get that perfect, eye-catching headshot. The incredibly kind staff was able to help us change the backdrop colours and suggested a tone that they thought would work best!

The panchrome studio works the same way, you have 25 minutes to get as many shots as you’d like!

In the end, we took almost 100 photos in the panchrome studio. Hayley and I both felt more comfortable with the smaller space and closer shots. It was easier for both of us to recall memories of school photo days and how to properly pose while seated on a stool.

 

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Book your own session

You’ll need to book your session in advance, you can pick between monochrome or panchrome, or do both!

Sessions are $70 each. The session includes 25 minutes in the studio (for two people), and five minutes to select which two shots you want retouched and printed. Each session comes with a print of two retouched shots and two unedited shots. You can either pay $30 to get access to all of the digital files from the shoot, or leave a review or tag them on social media to download the files for free!

Click here to make your reservation. Whether you’re looking for new headshots, want an Instagrammable hangout, or want a family portrait, Monography is definitely worth it!

At the end of the day, Hayley and I had a great time at the studio. I left Monography feeling much more confident in my ability to be in front of a camera, and a desire to go back. I barely made it home before I updated all of my social media profile photos.