Why do photographers say “say cheese” for portraits?
Asked 4/17/2017
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2 answers
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Why is “say cheese” commonly used when taking portrait photos? I understand it’s meant to make people smile, but what is it about the word “cheese” specifically?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
9y ago
2 Answers
9
In France they don't say "cheese", but rather "ouistiti", which is the French for a kind of monkey I believe. These prompts are simply a way to get people's mouths into a "smiling position". How "cheese" or any other word was specifically arrived upon is probably lost to history.
Wikipedia has an article listing the equivalent of "say cheese" in different cultures.
Originally by user38159. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user38159
9y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
“Say cheese” is mainly a posing prompt: the long “ee” sound pulls the corners of the mouth back and tends to show the teeth, creating a smile-like expression. That’s why photographers use it instead of simply saying “smile.” Similar prompts exist in other languages too, so the exact word varies by culture; the common idea is to get the mouth into a pleasing, smiling position. The precise historical origin of why English settled on “cheese” is unclear, but its usefulness comes from the facial shape the word produces when spoken.
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