Online Dating Photo No-Nos

It’s the first thing people see: your online dating profile photos. They are nothing less than your business card and resume and you want to make sure that your potential matches are seeing the best “you” possible. Your smile, your goofy side, you in action during your favorite activities – no matter what the photo shows, it should always show you. But did you know that there are things that your dating profile photos should never show?

Another “date” cropped-out of the picture. I have no doubt that you look stunning in those pictures from the wedding or baseball game you went to with your ex-whomever. Your potential matches want to envision themselves in a picture with you, not try to figure out who’s cropped-out of your pictures.

Your children (if under 18). While they may be the apples of your eye, it is unsafe to have your minor children in your online dating photos. Your photos can allude to the fact that you enjoy family by showing you at the playground or your kids’ sporting events, but no photos of you with your children. People in your life should have to earn your trust prior to being introduced to your most prized companions. Keep them safe by keeping their identities safe. Hundreds of people may look at your profile pictures on any give day, and this puts your children in an unsafe position.

Your license plate. We all travel and take pictures near and by our cars. Have you taken a good look at your photos to ensure that your license plate isn’t in plain view? This is one piece of information people don’t need to have access to, so keep yourself in a safe position by editing-out your plates. You can blur-out your license plate with photo editing software.

You with a gazillion other guys/girls in the picture. It’s true – there’s nothing that’s more of a turn-off than one of your potential matches seeing you surrounded by a bunch of “competition.” Ladies, this means to ditch the photos where you’re surrounded by all your best guy friends at a nightclub where everyone’s holding a beer. Guys, this means those photos of you flanked by a scantily-clad hot chick on either side don’t belong in your profile. Opt for pictures with friends having fun – but not the kind of fun that makes you look like less than the stellar person you are (see the next tip).

Ditch the drinks. While you may know the context of that photo where you look drunk and you’re holding the yard glass at Mardi Gras, your potential matches don’t. Skip the dating profile pictures that feature drink-a-thons and questionable behavior induced by Mr. Alcohol. Your ideal match may not drink, or even if he or she does, may not understand your brand of fun quite yet.

”Mug shots.” Those pictures for your company’s website or business card. Yeah. Skip those. They’re not really “you,” are they? While they might be professional shots, you’re better off with pictures that look like you every day. Passport photos are definitely a no-no, too.

If you need pictures for your online dating profile, don’t feel bad abut enlisting a friend or two to help. Throw some clothes in the car and head out to your favorite park with a digital camera and keep snapping until you have pictures you like! Put your best “you” forward and make your potential matches chomp at the bit to initiate contact with you. There’s simply no substitute for a smile.

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