How to Select Your Online Dating Photo

By: Alexandra Heep

To create your best online dating photo, find someone to help you. Although you can take a photo of yourself by yourself, it is best if you have someone else take it. That way, you will have more control over how the picture turns out, and you can show yourself from the best angle possible. Also, photos taken in front of a mirror look unprofessional and will give the impression that you did not put forth your best effort.

While you want to look as good as you can, you still need to keep the online dating photo genuine. Since the goal is to actually meet someone in person, trying to live up to an air-brushed shot is unrealistic. Besides, people know when a photo is too good to be true or digitally enhanced and may think you have something to hide.

Your online photo also needs to be current. A few weeks or months old is fine, unless you drastically changed something about yourself. Again, since you want to actually meet people, they will feel cheated if you put up an old photo and find that you do not look like that in person. This is especially true if you had significant changes in weight.

Make sure the online dating photo shows only you. This means no ex-spouses, no ex-friends, no children, no other family members and no pets in the picture. As far as pets go, you can add secondary photos with pets in them to your dating profile; just do not use a picture of you and your pet as the main photo. While pets are important, the focus should be on you as far as first impressions go.

Men should not use shirtless photos and women should not post bathing suit or lingerie photos. While these will certainly produce e-mails, the goal is not to generate a large quantity of contacts, but to attract people who are looking to establish relationships, not accumulate trophies. Your best online dating photo will show the real you in the best possible light.

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