CHỤP ẢNH – IT'S SELFIE TIME

One of the most popular activities

April 2025

When I moved to Hanoi more than three years ago, I was surprised to see how popular taking selfies was among young Vietnamese. Especially on weekends, you’d see groups of two, three, or more people just about everywhere, dressed up in fancy outfits or in the traditional áo dài, with or without a professional photographer, posing in front of scenic backdrops like Hoan Kiem Lake, Long Bien Bridge, West Lake, or one of the many stylish coffee shops.

There are also several of these popular selfie hotspots in my neighborhood. One is a café in a beautifully renovated villa with a lush green garden: the chic sofas, the large stone slabs on the path to the entrance, and the green corners are perfect for photo shoots. The tables, obviously, are not. Most of the time when I have a coffee in the garden, I find myself sitting in the middle of a scene with half-empty glasses and cups on deserted tables, and chairs that serve as racks for extra clothes. The guests are all over the place, queuing up at their favorite spots.

Whereas I didn’t mind, management eventually did. One day, signs appeared on every table: “Please do not leave your table for more than 30 minutes to take photos.” Well! We all know how hard it is to capture that elusive moment where you look both good and spontaneous ;-) and since that’s clearly the main reason guests come here, they surely deserve all the time they need.

The last time I sat in the garden with Cô Liên and took the 100th photo of us and the coffee cups, I wondered, pop culture or not, about my own motivation for taking selfies. Scrolling through my photo library, there are tons of similar ones. I can state for sure that it’s not a question of age. I guess what drives all of us is a mixture of self-expression, vanity, showing off, fear of aging, wanting to look good in memories, fun, etc. And of course, we have famous role models. We’ve also internalized iconic self-portraits. I can easily recall a number of self-portraits I’ve admired: old masters like Rembrandt and Van Gogh, 20th-century female painters like Frida Kahlo, conceptual photographers like Cindy Sherman, or pop art icons like Andy Warhol.

The next level of taking selfies is, in a way, using a photo booth with friends. I rediscovered them recently when six of us were waiting for a table at a restaurant. There was a new photo booth shop next door, and we decided to pass the time there, grabbed some props, and took photos. The best part for me? In the end, we received not only 4 funny photos but also a video of the session.

There’s a right time for everything, isn’t? My time to fully embrace chụp ảnh was in January. I finally booked a photo session at the iconic spots around Hoan Kiem Lake, dressed in an áo dài. My photographer, a lively communications student, guided me through the poses with enthusiasm. As I followed her directions, I mentally checked off all my motivations: self-expression, memory-making, a bit of vanity, a lot of fun. And in that moment, I gave myself an inner smile and a quiet nod: Well done. Another beautiful, meaningful memory added to my time in Hanoi - and one I’ll always be grateful for.