Tag Archive for: Kara Williams

Rise of the ‘famfie’

London famfie, Williams-style.

London famfie, Williams-style.

Even in today’s digital age, there’s nothing quite like an all-inclusive snapshot to commemorate a great moment from an epic family trip. The whole gang! In front of (insert famous site here)! Not only is the image a great memento, but it also serves as a badge of awesomeness that you can post on social media to show your friends.

In the olden days, lining up these pictures was complicated: You had to identify a seemingly trustworthy passerby, hand him or her the camera, and hope to goodness the person didn’t take photos like my Grandpa Al (who was notorious for chopping off people’s heads).

Today, however, with Smartphones, it’s easy: You fire up the camera app, shoot with the forward-facing camera and—voila!—a group selfie.

Or, more specifically, a “famfie.”

You read that correctly—the nom du jour for this group selfie on a family vacation is a FAMFIE. Say it five times fast. Now forget that you sound like a bunny when you say it so frequently. And embrace a word that is sure to be added to the dictionary before our next Presidential Election in 2016.

I was introduced to the concept only recently, when Kara Williams, one of my fellow Expedia Viewfinder contributors (and a top-rate family travel blogger as well), used it in a Facebook post about her family’s three-month tour of Europe. So I did some digging. And learned that it’s a growing trend.

Most families, like Kara’s, take famfies the traditional way—with everybody looking into the camera.

In our family, the whole notion of a famfie will play out a little differently. Because I don’t believe in showing my kids’ faces on the Internet, any group selfie we take will have to capture the *backs* of our heads. Something tells me our approach might not go over as smoothly as a famfie from the front. We’re headed to Lake Tahoe for most of next week. I’ll try it out there and let you know.

What are your secrets for taking good famfies?