Photobombing is the act of purposely putting oneself into the view of a

photograph A photograph (also known as a photo, image, or picture) is an image created by light falling on a photosensitive surface, usually photographic film or an electronic image sensor, such as a CCD or a CMOS chip. Most photographs are now create ...

, often in order to play a

practical joke A practical joke, or prank, is a mischievous trick played on someone, generally causing the victim to experience embarrassment, perplexity, confusion, or discomfort.Marsh, Moira. 2015. ''Practically Joking''. Logan: Utah State University Press. ...

on the photographer or the subjects. Photobombing has received significant coverage since 2009. In discussing a "stingray photobomb" picture that became popular, Andrea DenHoed suggests that the photobomb label "implies a narrative of surreptitious sabotage," although in the sense of unintended or initially unnoticed people in the background of spoiled photographs, photobombs have existed for much of the history of photography. In 2014, "photobomb" was named Word of the Year by the '' Collins English Dictionary'' after several photos of celebrities photobombing at awards ceremonies had gone

viral Viral means "relating to viruses" (small infectious agents). Viral may also refer to: Viral behavior, or virality Memetic behavior likened that of a virus, for example: * Viral marketing, the use of existing social networks to spread a marke ...

Examples in the media

* Bill Clinton photobombed Kelly Clarkson during her performance of "

My Country 'Tis of Thee "America (My Country, 'Tis of Thee)" is an American patriotic song, the lyrics of which were written by Samuel Francis Smith. The song served as one of the ''de facto'' national anthems of the United States (along with songs like "Hail, Columbi ...

" at

Obama's second inauguration The second inauguration of Barack Obama as president of the United States was the 57th inauguration and marked the commencement of the second and final term of Barack Obama as president and Joe Biden as vice president. A private swearing-in cere ...

in 2013. A few weeks later, Clarkson herself photobombed Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi at the

2013 Grammy Awards The 55th Annual Grammy Awards were held on February 10, 2013, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles honoring the best in music for the recording year beginning October 1, 2011 through September 30, 2012. The show was broadcast on CBS at 8 p.m. E ...

. *

Aaron Rodgers Aaron Charles Rodgers (born December 2, 1983) is an American football quarterback for the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL). Rodgers began his college football career at Butte College in 2002 before transferring to the ...

, quarterback for the

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. It ...

in the

NFL The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the major ...

, is well known for photobombing the captain's picture before every game (if he has not been elected a captain himself). *Queen Elizabeth II photobombed two Australian athletes at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Scotland. The resulting image was displayed for a question in that year's edition of '' The Big Fat Quiz of the Year''. *A putative "first photobomb", taken by Mary Dillwyn ''circa'' 1853, was discussed in a Wikimedia Foundation blog in 2015. *On social media, a man in a giraffe costume has been seen speeding past a family on a ski slope in Colorado posing for a picture, which is an example of a video photobomb. * Prince Harry photobombing America's Next Top Model Winnie Harlow and her agent at a lunch after the Audi Polo Challenge. * Paul McCartney photobombed fellow

Beatle The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the development ...

George Harrison George Harrison (25 February 1943 – 29 November 2001) was an English musician and singer-songwriter who achieved international fame as the lead guitarist of the Beatles. Sometimes called "the quiet Beatle", Harrison embraced Indian c ...

and some female fans. *

Jack Black Thomas Jacob Black (born August 28, 1969) is an American actor, comedian, and musician. He is known for his acting roles in the films '' High Fidelity'' (2000), ''Shallow Hal'' (2001), ''Orange County'' (2002), '' School of Rock'' (2003), ''E ...

and Dustin Hoffman photobombed Angelina Jolie. * Ed Sheeran, fan of

Ipswich Town F.C. Ipswich Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Ipswich, Suffolk, England. They play in EFL League One, League One, the third tier of the English football league system. The club was founded in 1878 but did not ...

, photobombed a Norwich City F.C. fan along with Adam Drury and Grant Holt.

References

External links

{{Commons category, Photobombing
Cheezburger photobomb section

Tumblr photobomb section

Funnyordie photobomb section
Internet memes Photography by genre