What types of portrait styles are available to obscure a person's likeness?

Question

I am creating a social media profile and want to include a headshot/portrait... well, I don't really want to because I don't like posting photos online due to personal reasons. But in this day and age, it is quickly becoming necessary, even for employment. So my question is: I want to post a photo which makes me a "real person" and conveys my likeness, but would not make me easily recognizable outside of this photo. I am looking to obscure some or most of my major features. Some things I have considered:

1. Shadows
2. Digital filters: softening, blurring, black-and-white, (what ypes are best?)
3. Abstract cutup
4. Profile / sideshot
5. Headwear / sunglasses / scarf

As mentioned above, this may be used professionally, so one of the most important aspects of a suitable answer is that the photo not be perceived as strange, weird, odd, crazy, unprofessional, etc.

Now, to add the bit of paranoia that's lying beneath the surface of this question. Because of the field I work in I know it will not be long before, if not already, these photos are cataloged by machines, so ideally the suggested portrait techniques would foil facial recognition software, in case you are familiar with any techniques they use. The premise is that anything posted on the internet lives forever. What other ideas would help me accomplish this goal?

Answer 1

Post an artist rendering. This can be a pencil drawing or water colors etc. Many photo editing programs have the capacity to simulate an artist rendering of a conventional photograph. Perhaps you should pay a visit to a local artist. The image you post can even be a caricature.

Answer 2

Grow a beard (or wear a fake one) The thing that fools most people when it comes to recognising others is facial hair (and even hair styles). When dealing with unfamiliar faces, the amount, type and style of hair provides most of the distinguishing features (facial shape and features are generally used more once you know a person better).

Hats Hats obscure your hair style, which helps make it harder for people to recognise you, and particularly if they cast a shadow over your face.

Eye Patch For facial recognition software one of the most important features is the position of the eyes relative to one-another, so if you can obscure 1 eye, or half of your face, then it makes it much harder to even detect a face.

In summary - dress like a pirate

Answer 3

You don't say what kind of camera you have. If you own a large-ish camera (DSLR or large mirrorless) then you could take a selfie in a mirror or reflected in a body of water. It's a relatively common genre of shot, and the camera can obscure a lot of biometric markers – at least one eye and the nose.

If you don't own a large enough camera you could rent one, but it's going to be harder to respond to questions about the photo.

Answer 4

No obscured image is going to meet the expectations of a professional context with a high probability. In part because an aversion to having one's image online does not meet typical expectations in a professional context where a headshot is expected. For example, a company may normally post pictures of staff online and have a standard process for creating those pictures in-house.

That said, an alternative to the various options described in the question and answers is to post a photo of someone else, ideally perhaps with a passing resemblance to minimize the odds of being caught out in the deception.

Answer 5

You could use a photograph that concentrates on what you're doing, rather than your face. This should be relevant to some feature of what the profile is for. Assuming it's a professional profile here are some ideas for a wide range of jobs:

• A mechanic: legs sticking out from under a car
• A climbing instructor: halfway up a cliff
• A scientist: looking down a microscope, aligning a laser with laser goggles on, or whatever it is you do in the lab
• Something more vague and cerebral: The sort of standing on a mountain looking at the sunset shot you'd get on a motivational poster.

Some of these of course work better if you're vaguely recognisable from behind (distinctive hairstyle, beard...). This isn't your CV as such, at least not accoridng to the question, so you don't need a headshot, you need a statement. In most fields, treationg it like a caption competition would be going too far. Unlike instagramming it to death, if this doesn't work out, you don't look like you've got something to hide, just like you've taken an odd approach.