Using a real photo for your avatar

It took me about a year to decide on joining this forum and over a year later I have finally decided to substitute a real photo as my avatar. This was a decision I thought hard about, but which I now feel happy with. Another recent thread explored the motivation that drives crossdressers to place their photos on the internet and the general thrust of the responses seemed to be that it is an act of self affirmation – a view that I share. I wonder what went through the minds of other contributors to this forum in and around the time when they decided to use a real photo as their avatar. No doubt some may still be agonising over whether this is a step too far whereas others are long past that stage.

It took me a few months. I finally decided to post my real pic for my avatar.

I don't recall giving it much thought to tell you the truth. By the time I joined this forum I'd been out and about quite a bit and had plenty of pics to choose from. At first i went with one from my jamie Austin makeover oh so long ago because it made me feel happy and pretty.
By the way - YOUR avatar is darling! What took ya so long?

I thought about posting a photo in my avatar for a few months before finally deciding too.
In the end i just decided it was something i really needed to do for myself as part of my accepting who i am.

I had some reservations, but eventually concluded that the downside/threat was low probability.

At any rate, I for one, am glad you did make the swap to a very pretty avatar. Love the hairdo! I find that girls with nice features, like you, have more luck with such hairdos that present more of their face.

Thanks for sharing.

I fretted over this for while and finally took the plunge. Its good to put a name with a face. As for anyone that still feels anxious about posting their real picture, I really do understand.

Babette

You ladies are brave,until I get out of the military I will not show my face in my avatar. My Heat bank robbing picture will have to suffice.

I waited for a really good picture of me before I posted a real pic of me in my Avatar.

I posted mine because I am not ashamed of who I am..I am proud to have a fem side:love:

You are an inspiration. You show those of us that are still in the closet that there is nothing to be affraid of, maybe one of these days I will believe that :eek:. Also My wife and I look at these pics together and see that many are very modest and that not flamboyet, So there shouldnt be too much to be affraid off right???

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Deborah Jane

I thought about posting a photo in my avatar for a few months before finally deciding too.
In the end i just decided it was something i really needed to do for myself as part of my accepting who i am.

---

And what a loss it would be for us if you hadn't decided to!!! :love:

And Sapphire? Your avatar is very pretty. I think you made a terrific decision. Welcome to the forum!

It's funny you started this thread as I just put my picture in my avatar this week. I was very nervous about how I would look but took the plunge anyway.

Well, even though I posted a number of pics of myself in that Be-All thread (those were my first pics ever posted) I'm still gonna continue to use art. I'm not afraid anymore, I just think the art is prettier than my skinny ol' butt! :D

for me i have nothing to hide . it's choosing the right avatar thats the problem .
when i try to use some form of art i get asked too many times why no avatar .
so i try my best ...

I'm glad you decided to go with a real picture. Everyone has to balance their own risks, but I really like being able to see all the lovely, lovely people that we all are.

I alternate avatars often between actual photos and cartoon characters. I think it gives members a break from looking at my mug to often.

The only thought I had about posting my pic was "If I can't be open with these people who can I be open with" and so far everyone here has been wonderful. love ya all.

When I first joined this site a little over two months ago I did not have the nerve to post a pic in my avatar. After two months of reading hundreds of threads and starting a few of my own I lost that inhibition that prevented me from showing my face. There have been other threads on this same subject and it is good to see this subject disscussed here again. Reading threads like this one gave me the inspiration to post my first pic here on this site. It is a decision I am happy I made.

It's great to see everyone's photo!

I came out in '96, so posting a real image hasn't been an issue. Now unfortunately I'm kinda slammed back into the closet, but I can still use my own photos. Current one is a few years old, but it's real. The only issue is with my wife.

I'm not in the military, but too many people know my face to show it openly. Doing so could not only hurt my career, (yes I am still working) but also damage my reputation with the church groups I work with. Not all of them are as Christian as they would have one believe!

If you can identify me by my avatar, more power to you!

Sissy/Stephanie

Lady on the outside, but man underneath!

When I first started on the net it took me a while, now I do not care if my photo is seen since for the most part most of us do look 180 deg different.

Took me a couple minutes.... lol and thousands of photos and movies later...

I use the most feminine pic I have. It was taken after a transgendered Fashion show I was in.

I don't care if any one I know from RL recognizes me. I'd just ask them what they are doing hanging out about TG sites. ???:eek:

Since I am well known in the industry I work in, I won't be using real photos. Hope everyone here understands.

I flirt with the idea of putting my pic up all the time and I actually do put it in my album every now and then and then take it down.Before I post a permanent pic as my avatar I want it to look totally different than me in male mode.I mean I want to be so far away from my male look that there would not even be a slight hint. The other side of the coin is really my own personal fear of doing it ,and I will eventually come to terms with it.I am really appreciative of everyone who does put their's up because it keeps me in a positive mood about it .hopefully I will get what I want out of my photos and post a good avatar in the near future.

I must be a pure narcissist because I used a photo as my avatar from the very beginning and never even gave it a second thought.

i plan on starting at the botom and slowly working my way up...lol
Nat
xox

Just seemed to be a nice and the right thing to do.

I like my girl side. It makes me so happy to look in the mirror and see a girl, well...woman now. I constantly forget how old I am lol. This forum seemed like a suitable venue. My pics are so far from the me that I present on a daily basis, there was nothing to fear.

well, I used anime as my avatar because I love how she looks and that's my target, but if you want to know my real self just go to my profile and I have a pic there. I thought that was a good way to show myself to the world.

I didn't think twice about posting a photo ~ but I thought hard on which one to post ~ I think this is my best

I had already posted photos on the Internet so it didn't take me any time. Anyway, were all proud of ourselves aren't we.

It was a tough decision for me but then I finally thought what the hey and just did it. I've been through about a dozen different ones.

This is a pretty safe place to be when it comes to pictures but it didn't take me long to post once I had some to show.

My wife insists I keep my mustache so I can't look to girly so a good feminine pic ain't hoppening so it just my best looking part the legs. I love your avatar pic you look so good you must post some more pics Sapphire.:hugs:
Angie

It just felt right to show who I am. No regrets what so ever.:)

I didn't consider using a non-photo avatar. When I'm "talking" to someone on-line it is much easier to relate when you have a real face to match to the thoughts. I had also already started going out in public so a photo on the Internet was really no big deal. I was careful with the backgrounds for awhile though.lol
Attachment 67518

I did not use an avatar for many years. I finally decided to buy a digital camera recently and did not hesitate to post my picture. I just like being able to associate a face with a name.

I started with a shadow photo oh my legs, heels and skirt. When I bought my wig I was amazed at the difference it made and I took the plunge. Since then I have rung the changes, more so since I acquired my forms, and finally (for now) settled on this one.
If anyone manages to recognize me they will get a prize after I ask them what they were doing here in the first place :)

:love:

Edwina

Your avatar photo looks great. A smart business woman motif.

I put up my avatar photo pretty quickly and I'll admit it was sort of a vanity thing. With so many good looking gurls here I felt that I had to join in. Still no face shot though as I haven't done anything with makeup to really top things off. Also, still a little shy.

Christine

Once I had a pic of me from makeovers I posted it up here. I don't remember if I found this site before or after I had a pic but it was the wanting of Ashlee to be introduced to all of us that made me do it. I like the current pic, I may switch it up with another pic after a makoever in the future.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Jenni Y

I alternate avatars often between actual photos and cartoon characters. I think it gives members a break from looking at my mug to often.

---

I agree with Jenni!!!! Also, as others have said, its very unlikely that you will be recognized by anyone you know while in fem mode!!!

The only reason it took so long for me was the lack of pictures that might be used. All of my pictures were of the analog type until recently and as soon as I got some digital ones I had my favorites up on the web and as my avatar.

[SIZE=4]The only reason that it took me nine nanoseconds to decide to post a real picture is because I had to pick just one. I am so indecisive that I had to find one that represented me appropriately. Since my web site has been up for over 10 years I felt that anyone that really wanted to know the real me had already done so.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=4][/SIZE]
[SIZE=4]Tami[/SIZE]

Here is a link to a website that will take any picture and create an aviatar to the size you need it.

http://www.shrinkpictures.com/create-avatar/

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by MalibuJenny

I must be a pure narcissist because I used a photo as my avatar from the very beginning and never even gave it a second thought.

---

ditto for Me too---I had been dressing and going out for years when I found this site---my femme self looks so different then my butch side that anybody looking, even close friends and relatives wouldn't know--

Because of my work I'm not able to post a pic of myself en femme and I feel like a neck down shot is cheating. I would love to be able to post a face pic, maybe if I get a convincing makeover I would post it.

But I really do think that avatar pics do define us more than anything else on this site. I associate the pics with the posters. Some faces really stick in my head and I feel like I know them better. I often take the opinion of someone who has a face pic as more credible than someone who does not.

That's my real motivation for wanting to post a face pic, I want you to know who I am and that I have nothing to hide. As it is, I do have something to hide and how can you really get to know me if that's the case?

PS. I look nothing like the animated lady in my avatar.

I was a lurker to begin with and was so impressed with the ladies that did post their photos, that I wanted to use this as a way of saying who I was. At first, the avatar were full body shots, showing some face, but not a lot. Now I am happy to post head shots...and smiling head shots.

Ive used my real pics for years...Hey if someone sees me ..I ask well why were YOU looking at those sites? usually they r speechless or it turns out they are a cd/tgirl or big admirer in either case it usually ends there...

It's funny that this thread came up, because until just recently, I had been using my photos. I changed for two reasons: One, I can't get my new dig camera to talk to Mr. Computer. No new pics, yet, but I'll get it figured out soon. (I hope!) Two, (yea, right), this is really my new look!