Vancouverscape, a Vancouver based blog covering travel, tech, and lifestyle

Vancouver-based Get Snap and Go has entered the self-portrait (aka selfie) market with a selfie stick monopod for your smart phone or point-and-shoot compact digital camera.

The idea came about earlier this spring when Snap and Go’s founder was on holiday in Paris. Trying to get just the right angle proved challenging (likely for others too), and at that moment, the proverbial lightbulb went off.

Those who know me realize how much I cringe whenever I hear the word selfie. It’s not a word that’s about to go away anytime soon, and the concept of taking your photo without having to ask anyone in public (with the potential risk of having your smart phone or camera run off with) is the best reason I can think of to check this product out.

The Snap and Go Selfie Stick is portable, lightweight, and works with Android models with the built-in timer in the camera app. For iPhone and iPod users, it’s a matter of downloading the free Camera360 app and using its self-timer feature to grab shots.

[Get those great overhead shots by turning the camera away from you too!]

Once the app’s launched, you can tap on the screen to set the timer to fire the camera at 3, 5, 10, 15, 30, or 50-second intervals.

Screw in the tripod insert, clamp the phone in, and you’re good to go. I did find that either with or without an iPhone 5s case, the clamp, while solid, isn’t super solid, so I’d hesitate to take it over water or out on the deck of a tall building.

We had a blast taking it around the Squamish Valley Music Festival last weekend.

The Snap and Go Selfie Stick is 8” when compact, extends to 38” (97cm), and weighs a mere 150 grams. It’s excellent for travel, video blogging, hiking, camping, weddings, parties, concerts, aerial shots, sporting events—just about anywhere you’d like one to 100 people in your frame!

Get Snap and Go’s monopod retails for CDN $24.95; their website offers free shipping anywhere in North America. Future plans include offering a remote that can be used with the iPhone.

I was given a Get Snap and Go monopod to test-drive for this feature.