I had the honor to speak with a real life Photobomb master yesterday. After searching through a hundred of her best bombs, I asked her to write a How To Guide for photobombing to which she graciously agreed. Cherish these words from the champion herself.
The Art of Photobombing (preserved for eternity in the Hall of Fame!)
By KristenStep 1: Location, location, location…
Find any events that are camera-friendly and GO! Special occasions, bars, graduations, parties, or weddings often ensure the presence of unnecessary photography and group photos.
Step 2: Be on the prowl…
Once you’ve arrived to your carefully selected gathering, start identifying your victims. Keep an eye out for the narcissistic girl that is really taking pictures to improve her Facebook profile default. Perhaps you’ll spot the good friend that loves capturing every moment of every party. A better find would be the slightly to highly intoxicated individual with a camera as he or she will eliminate Step 5. Keep in mind that many photobombs can result from bombers randomly seeing a camera aimed in their direction so be sure to watch for such spontaneous opportunities.
Step 3: Time to get ugly…
Once you have your victims in mind, start warming up your ugly side. You need to pull off your best work once you are staring into the light of a random camera behind a group of unknowns. As a warm-up, try moving every muscle possible in your face. Improve the number of chins you can form as well as the contrasting direction of your eyes (the more cock-eyed the better). Your mouth can be your best feature while photobombing; a creepy smile or a crooked, toothy formation can make all the difference. Additional factors include the angle of approach (90* angle bombs are far more effective than simply standing next to the group) and grasping the context of the intended picture i.e. a couples shot, B.F.F.s, or even grandparents. The more precious the intended picture, the more epic the photobomb.
Step 4: Get in, get out…
Once you’re warmed up and know your approach, be sure that you’re able to commit to any attempts. Once you see the camera, you have about 3 seconds to work your magic. Nail that horrendous expression, enter the frame awkwardly, and immediately return to your previous conversation or location. Time is of the essence. The longer you wait, the more likely the photographer will notice you and call you out. Trust me, you don’t want some middle-aged man to realize you’re about to destroy a picture of his loved ones. You will lose all chances for the rest of the night. Besides, the sooner you remove yourself from one bomb, the sooner you can do another.
Step 5: Prepare for feedback…
Congrats! You have successfully photobombed a seemingly wholesome moment. Things to expect:
-The photographer will keep an eye on you the rest of the night (unless he or she is the slightly to highly intoxicated person mentioned in Step 2; you’re safe) .
-If the photographer did not see you bomb, you will likely hear from him or her at a later time.
-If you bombed a friends picture, you will likely be harassed and called vulgar names for approximately 2 minutes.
-Finding tagged pictures of yourself on Facebook should someone recognize you (even if you don’t know the people in the picture).
-If everyone is chill, expect laughter. It’s hard to deny that this stuff is fun.Good luck, fellow photobombers!
Now that you have the inside information make sure to treat yourself to some of her finest work.
Bomb On, Dear Kristen. Bomb On…
If you’re a fan of Kristen’s wild antics then be sure to check out Emplastro, the videobomb master of Portugal
-
-
Copy & paste this:
Is it me, or do you totally look like Kristen Wiig?
As an amateur photobomber myself, I must tell you that your body of work has inspired me. I can only hope that my future bombs will make others laugh as hard as yours have made me laugh. Long live Queen Kristen!
I need to be this girl’s friend, like, a year ago. I love her.
I literally laughed so hard, I cried. You are truly an artist. A master, if you will, of your craft.
I’ll use this advice to the best of my abilities. Thank you for sharing this with us amateurs.
Real tears, sore abs, almost peed…
LOLZ
this is golden work. Real mastery how you arrive in a pic just in time to bomb…and the contortions are gut busting
Excellent. Some of them bare a Sheri O’Teri resemblance.
bear
Wait for it, and… oh wait! No one cares.
i just started crying from laughter
YOU…are amazing!!!
You’re a legend. You’re effin hilarious! I don’t even know how you make those faces, but you still manage to be pretty anyway! My favourite was the one where you can just see the top of your face close-up. SOOOOO FUNNY.
So, how would she then obtain the pictures of these said photobombs, if they were truly surprises? I call lame bullshit. Ha ha.
Well there IS this popular site I know called Facebook…aaaand anytime a friend notices me in a picture they can do this thing called “tagging…but yeah you got me…creating fake photobombs sounds much better anyways…
OMG You are incredible. You have THE most amazing faces!! :L Hahah, i think i actually jusst wet myself laughinn :L x
i seriously had to run to bathroom. i thought i was gonna piss myself. you. are. a. GOD.
Goddess. That’s why we “Hail the Queen”
omg!! i tried making a few of these faces…you are a fucking epic PRO!!!!!!! the fourth from the bottom is just impossible.
You really do have a gift. Hilarious!
Brilliant. You must be so much fun to be around. Love your smackdown to Austere.
I really shouldn’t have looked at this at work. I’ll send you the cleaning bill for my pants…
Oh. My. Gosh. I think I’m in love.
wow, is it wrong that the one with the mirror turns me on!
good lord woman… you are my hero.
hahaha she totally reminds me of my sister, in every picture i take i noticed my sister looking very similar to that ^
The 15th picture down doesn’t even need anything. That girl already looks like the Joker.
Oh Lord these are friggin hysterical! You must have the most fantastic sense of humor! Be safe, but don’t stop!
They are great some of those faces I’ll have to remember some were a little creepy….Yesterday a friend tagged me in thirty pictures from one party thats my record for bombs at one event. Anyone better that?
Marry me…for the love of God, you must marry me…
Whenever I am blue I come back to this post.
Bomb on, brave warrior, bomb on!!!
Third from the bottom ain’t a photobomb. A lot of people seem to not know that the Force actually works via tendrils, kinda like the fingers on a hand. The Jedi guy is doing a Force Pull and those Force tendrils apparently planted themselves on the subject’s eyelids and upper lip. Whether he’s trying to Force Pull her on to the bed or to somewhere else however is beyond me.
Kristen you’re so epci i would marry you!!
Love your work Kristen!
Check out some of my work as The Folsom Zombie appearing in many a picture on facebook & keep on bombin’
I have to admit when my baby sister shared this on her facebook I almost peed my pants and as I am 40 yrs old that is BAD!!! I will say I have taken your advice to heart and we went forth and PHOTOBOMBED at the 2010 Dragon Con in Atlanta, Ga. I am in a Wheelchair so at a height that people do not usually see me. At least not til the pics are developed
I cannot wait to see what came out! I also took pics of other photobombers and educated and taught some new people how to photobomb! I was so happy to see someone do her first photobomb to one of the official photographers for Dragon con lol!
Thanks Again!
Kelley Sue
it’s so f**kin’ hilarious that you use the fact that you’re in a wheelchair to bomb pictures XD
I’m laughing my ass off right now, you are so great, girl
Hahaha had the best photo bomb from my friend Alex ages ago, loved it so much it was my facebook profile pic for ages. LOL!
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=180533&l=e19961f471&id=1723195237
Bringing it back:
http://kcurtzeonline.com/PhotobombChick/
This awesome lol. Thanks for the link to your site.
Two of the photos, it is not her (#19 and #23).
Incorrect!
Amazing, absolutely amazing. I nearly laughed to death on the one where the two girls to the left of you in the mirror picture are just making duck faces, and you’re derping. I’m still not sure why some girls think the duck faces are cute; to me, they’re not (I’m a girl) and the whole “sexy” vibe makes them seem easy. Anyway, really nice work! I hope to be half as good a Photobomber as you someday.