The Rise of Profile Photos

Fri Apr 03 2020

Given enough time in a shower, you develop shower thoughts – but mostly you get pruney fingers. Given the current social distancing measures, everyone has taken to the internet to get their work done. I am now working, taking classes, and hanging out with friends on the internet on a daily basis. The omnipresent prevalence of online platforms has gotten me thinking a lot about how we express our identity on the internet. Specifically, profile pictures have seized my attention lately.

On the internet, you can express yourself in ways that are infeasible in real life. The very notion of a profile with a bio and a brave little emblem representing you at your best is a new paradigm. This gives immense control over your first impressions on the internet– something that we desperately wish for in the real world.

Like many self-reflective individuals in my generation, I probably spend way too much time thinking about my profile. I don’t believe that this is necessarily a bad thing, putting some creative effort into your profile picture can raise your self-esteem – or something like that. People should take pride in their profile images because it is a stamp of your identity: an image or ideal of you at your best. Your profile is a place to carve out your home on the internet.

Not everybody puts effort or thought into profiles, that is perfectly fine. However, as people start to do more things online, we will see more in-depth and creative profiles. As one of my friends put it a long time ago: “Upload a damn photo! You don’t want to be another faceless Jeff on the internet”.