Profile pics-rant

Not noticed Gerard Butler in this post... does that mean I can have him all to myself?

I don't think it would ever occur to me that somebody was trying to trick me into believing they were Brad Pitt if they used his photo for their profile picture. :laugh:

I have to agree with this. Seems rather unlikely that anyone would think that they could try to pass themselves off for him

A friend of mine was commenting on this a couple weeks ago. I have to agree with you and her, for the most part. I don't think that anyone is actually trying to trick me into believing they're someone else by using a recognizable model's photo, but it is kind of annoying to me for various reasons, such as shooting for unattainable goals.

I dunno, a good self-esteem is an important thing to me, and I don't like seeing people without it.

I do get annoyed when people use old photos of themselves, too, and then talk about how they need to lose twenty or thirty pounds and I'm like "Whoa! You might have an ED." And then it turns out they're just using a photo of them when they were close to what they want to weigh. I can appreciate that, but I feel as though one should represent themselves somewhat accurately—even if it's with those 3d models I see a lot of people use that shows them where they're at now and where they want to be—in their avatars.

Not that I want to see a bunch of serious mugs for avs. I like it when people have one that seems fun; but something that actually looks like you and makes it a little easier to assess where you're coming from when you talk about your weight loss journey is my preference.

Of course, all of this is just in contrast to a great Lolcats photo, or something really irreverent. Cartoon characters, kittens, those are cool. I'll probably eventually change my avatar to Bubbles from Powerpuff Girls.

I actually am Angelina Jolie but nobody believed me so I had to put up the picture of the chubby chick, lol.:laugh:

I totally see where you're coming from- post pics of yourself or don't post pics of yourself... but don't purposefully try to mislead anyone.

The reason it annoys me, personally, is because it becomes a trust issue. Like, if someone makes a suggestion to me about what I should be eating, or alterations I should be making to my work out routine... I'm going to take them more seriously if I see that they're in good physical shape themselves. My brain sees the picture of the 'healthy looking' person and I think, "Okay, they obviously know what they're talking about." On the other hand, when I was a new member here, I had people give me some pretty bad advice. As it turns out, they were in no better shape than I was, and were far from experts on the subject... but I trusted them because I thought, based on their profile pic, that they had some sort of valuable knowledge I could pick up. Definitely my mistake. I learned the hard way to do my own research and not trust someone just because they 'have a hard body'- because sometimes the 'hard body' isn't even theirs.....

Of course, that's not to say that I can't learn something valuable from someone who might not yet be at their weight loss goals- but I'd rather take advice from someone who was open and honest about where they were coming from and not 'putting on a show'.

I've got to say, though- my biggest pet peeve is when people post 'results' pics of themselves and then suck their guts in. It's like, dude. You're not fooling anyone. I can TELL you're sucking in- because of the giant concave spot just under your ribs. Be proud of your accomplishments, of course- but don't over-state them, either.

I also hate when people are self-depreciating because it always comes off as though they're fishing for compliments. Like, "Look at my picture! No, wait, don't look at my picture! Your eyes will fall out! But... no, do look!" Nobody needs to apologize for how they look here at MFP- I think we all understand that we are all here to improve ourselves. Don't make excuses for who you are. But also don't sit there and call yourself an ugly ball of trash, because I'm not going to feed into that ego-boosting trip.

...Finally, I personally am a HUGE Brad Pitt fan. Hubba Hubba. But I don't think I'd be fooled if someone using his pic for their profile added me. I would be like, "OMG! Brad Pitt is on MFP and he wants to be friends with ME!"

...doublepost...

I do get annoyed when people use old photos of themselves, too, and then talk about how they need to lose twenty or thirty pounds and I'm like "Whoa! You might have an ED." And then it turns out they're just using a photo of them when they were close to what they want to weigh. I can appreciate that, but I feel as though one should represent themselves somewhat accurately—even if it's with those 3d models I see a lot of people use that shows them where they're at now and where they want to be—in their avatars.

I do this.

My avatar is always a current picture of me- but the picture in my ticker is an old one of me, at my target weight. It motivates me because I know I've been that weight before- and if I've done it before I can do it again!

my pic is me.... I really am that hideous

Someone thought I was doing what you are talking about, but in reverse.. Like wow , nobody is really that ugly..... ummm yeah, I am

I'm very happily married but I have to say that I love your look! My hubby has the tough/rough guy look and I love that. Totally attracted me to him and now 18 yrs later I still love it! So you are far from hideous I love your pic!

Anyone else get annoyed when people post photos that are obviously not them? It irks me when someones weight loss ticker says they need to lose 125lbs and they post a photo of a 105lb model on the beach. Or that suddenly Brad Pitt wants to be my MFP friend. I understand that maybe it's for motivation- like putting a skinny pic on your refrigerator or something, but I like seeing the real person.

Hah, I actually just changed my profile pic to Katy Perry (still left the real pic of me in my profile). i did it because I don't see my ticker a lot, but I do see the thumbnail pic. I'm not a huge fan, but people have told me I look like her sometimes - and she's got a great body! So, for me, it's about motivating myself towards a goal of fit and toned and confident I also love her style.

I'm also fairly new and look forward to the day I can actually post a progress pic instead!

some ppl just want their privacy. I dont like my face all over the interweb. it is the interweb after all, and nothing about it is secure.

my pic is me.... I really am that hideous

Someone thought I was doing what you are talking about, but in reverse.. Like wow , nobody is really that ugly..... ummm yeah, I am

You are not hideous at all - don't even think that way!!
(I'm used to this type of motivational speaking - I have kids!)