Buzz
Though the exact origin of the tradition is unclear, we know that when you say 'cheese,' your mouth naturally forms a smile—lifting your cheeks and showing your teeth. It looks like a smile, and since smiling is the go-to expression for photos, this request is quite practical.
The real question, however, is why a smile became the go-to expression for photos. Christina Kotchemidova, an associate professor at Spring Hill College in Mobile, Alabama, explores this in her 2005 essay 'Why We Say 'Cheese': Producing the Smile in Snapshot Photography,' offering a fascinating hypothesis worth considering.
Smiling wasn't always the norm for photos, according to Kotchemidova. In the 19th century, photos often featured serious, somber expressions. This was influenced by traditional European fine art portraiture, where smiles were typically reserved for peasants, children, and the intoxicated. The period's beauty standards also demanded a small, controlled mouth. In one London photo studio, the precursor to 'say cheese' was actually 'say prunes' to encourage sitters to form a small mouth.
Then, at some point in the twentieth century, the smile became the dominant expression, reigning supreme over photographs with unwavering authority.
Kotchemidova suggests that previous studies connecting the rise of smiling in photography to factors like 'the rapid camera shutter, the popularity of attractive faces in media and politics, and the growth of dental care' point to technological and cultural shifts that may have initiated a process of 'mouth liberalization.' However, Kotchemidova proposes that we view smiling for the camera as a cultural creation of twentieth-century American snapshot photography.
Photography was once the realm of the wealthy. However, at the turn of the century, Kodak’s $1 Brownie camera (launched in 1900), along with their instructional books and pamphlets for photographers, and their extensive advertising in major national magazines (back when everyone read Life), opened up the world of photography to the masses and positioned Kodak as the authority on the subject. Kodak’s influence grew to what Kotchemidova refers to as 'cultural leadership,' shaping how photography was understood and used in broader society.
In this leadership role, Kodak marketed photography as a fun and simple activity. The company’s slogan, 'You press the button, we do the rest,' reassured customers that the complicated work—developing film and printing photos—was taken care of by Kodak experts, making photography accessible to everyone. Kodak’s advertisements and publications presented photography as an enjoyable experience for both the photographer and the subject, designed to capture and preserve happy memories. One key element of this message was the consistent portrayal of smiling faces among satisfied customers, which became 'a model for how subjects should look,' and spread alongside the adoption of the technology.
Kotchemidova concludes that Kodak’s dominant role in the photography culture, combined with their pervasive presence in ads, magazines, and their own publications filled with images of smiling faces, enabled the company to establish the standards and aesthetic of good snapshots, making smiling for the camera the cultural norm.
