Survey shows that Filipinos are number one at taking pictures of themselves

A recent survey conducted by the telecom giant Nokia contained interesting yet unsurprising findings about Filipinos and mobile technology.

A total of 8,077 people in eight countries — Sweden, Switzerland, Italy, India, the United States, Singapore, China and the Philippines — participated in the online survey. All the participants owned mobile phones with cameras.

Filipinos were number two at taking pictures with their mobile phones. Seventy percent of the Pinoy respondents said they took pictures with their phones at least once a week, and 31 percent said they did so every day. The Chinese topped this category, with 86 percent taking photos weekly, and 33 percent daily.

However, Filipinos were number one at sharing their images through social media platforms. Fifty percent of Pinoy respondents said they upload their photos to Facebook, Twitter and other social media. In fact, 47 percent of Pinoys said it was the main reason they took the pictures in the first place.

Filipinos take more photos of themselves (49 percent) than any other group in the survey, and share more photos of themselves (44 percent). Eighty-four percent of Filipino females between 15 and 25 said they take photos of themselves with their phones. For males in the same age group the figure is 60 percent.

And 44 percent of Filipinos between 15 and 25 said they had uploaded a picture and then removed it after thinking it over.

Let’s over-interpret the data.

One, we really enjoy taking pictures of ourselves. No doubt some of this behavior is due to vanity, but I think part of this is documentation. We want a record of what we did, where we went, and who was there.

You know how some people, when they travel, will save every ticket stub, concert flier, menu and even the safety instruction card from the plane, the one specifically marked “Do not take this card from the plane?” Taking pictures with our phones is like that: we do not make distinctions between the important and the trivial. We accord them the same treatment, thereby trivializing the important and elevating the trivial. Shoot now, edit the nonsense later. Unfortunately only the unemployed have the time to review all their photos and delete the trash.

Phones with cameras are so convenient: everyone has become a photojournalist. If something happens, shoot it yourself. If nothing happens, shoot anyway. It’s digital, 8 megapixels, no need to have film developed, so shoot at will.

If cars in a traffic jam turn into robots and start thrashing each other, you don’t have to call the papers: shoot it yourself. And if the news media aren’t taking your photo even if you are more interesting than any artificial celebrity, be your own paparazzi.

By the way, the survey also found that the photos Pinoys share online most frequently are of friends (59 percent), children (45 percent) and themselves (49). We suspect some statistical glitch because in our observation, the number one subject of the Pinoy is the person holding the phone.

Given our fondness for self-photography, we wondered whether phones with self-shooting capabilities are more popular than those without. Nikka Abes of Nokia said these were not necessary since Pinoys have worked out the best way to angle their phones for their auto-portrait. It’s all in the wrist: practice, practice, practice.

Over-interpretation number two: we really like sharing information about ourselves. Correction: we love oversharing. We have long known that chismis — our brand of gossip — isn’t just talking about other people. It’s an opportunity to talk about ourselves. We weigh in on the news, we announce what we would’ve done under the circumstances, and we pass judgment. Ostensibly we’re discussing the causes of J-Lo’s divorce, but we’re really talking about ourselves. The fact that J-Lo and Mark Anthony have no idea we exist is beside the point.

We have become the hosts of our very own talk shows. Unlike Anderson Cooper or Letterman, your show only has one subject: you. What you had for dinner Tuesday night, what you wore on Thursday morning, what beverage you ordered at Mini-Stop at 2 a.m. You don’t even need a telecommunications franchise, just Facebook and Twitter.

Three, the ease and speed of technology does not give us much time to consider the consequences of our actions. That’s putting it kindly.

Paranoid schizophrenics think they are always being watched. It turns out that they are correct: they are being watched. You’re all being watched. The punchline is that you make it possible for everyone to watch you.  

Then again the survey implies that Pinoys like to stand out. Seventy percent of Pinoy respondents had a positive attitude towards colorful phones, and 31 percent thought it would be fun to have a phone with a different color from everyone else’s.

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