People around the world are taking self-portraits—called selfies—every day. These photographs can be taken with any camera device, but most people use smartphones because that makes it easier to share them on social media.

What is the reason these are so popular? Selfies are a way of remembering family, friends, places—moments in life that we want to revive in the future. Memories might get lost in our brains or just put away so we can think about what is happening in the present, but with one picture a whole story can be saved.

Celebrities tend to take a lot of selfies because they want their fans to see what they do every day. Since a picture says more than a thousand words, they post a selfie and their fans know what they’re doing, where they are, etc. These are more than pictures; they are today’s way of staying in touch.

To make it easier to take a selfie, there is now a tool called the selfie stick. It is used as an extender to get the camera farther away from the person taking the picture and then get a bigger range. Senior Ariahna Hernandez has one of these sticks. “I like how the angle looks,: she said. “You can put as many people as you want in the picture. I also like how you can move the camera around and go crazy.”

Not everyone likes this kind of photography. Senior Raiya Isaac says she likes regular pictures that someone else takes with a real camera.

But like them or not, selfies are a grand sensation. There’s even a funny song with a catchy rhythm called #Selfie. So grab your camera phone and take a cute or crazy selfie today with your friends.