A Dad Shares How He Hilariously Gets His Son To Smile In Photos

The phrase “Say cheese!” is the classic line to get kid’s to smile big for photos, but does it really give us the best possible outcome? Most kids grit their teeth, squint their eyes, and post with a totally unnatural smile. One dad has come up with the solution to this problem: just say “poop!” instead!

Pennsylvania dad —Adam Perry — shared two side-by-side photos of his 5-year-old son on Twitter, showing the difference between a traditional photo and one where he yells out “poop!”.

While the boy looks adorable in both photos, there is definitely a difference. In the left image, he is seemingly giving that forced, gritty smile that comes off like he may be in pain. The photo on the right, however, shows a more authentically happy boy, possibly mid-laugh, with bright eyes and an adorable smile.

The right photo looks much more genuine than the left and that’s because it is! That kid is definitely laughing because his dad just yelled out the word “poop” and what kid doesn’t love a good reference to bodily functions?

“My son when I tell him to smile vs when I yell out ‘poop!’ Perry, a children’s book author, wrote on Twitter.

This method is truly parenting at its best. Why tell your kid to do something like smile when he probably won’t do it willingly or with much gusto versus actually giving your kid a reason to smile?

“We always take pictures on the first day [of school] and we were in a bit of a hurry and having a hard time getting good pictures," Perry told Good Morning America. “My son always has the funniest smile when he’s trying too hard. I learned at some point that if I just yelled out ‘POOP’ and snapped the picture quick, it always worked out way better. In this case, it was a pretty dramatic comparison, so I thought I’d share it.”

The tweet has since gone viral up nearly 300,000 likes and 13,000 retweets plus over 1,000 replies.

One Twitter user noted that this trick is not just for kids. “At my wedding 100 years ago - we couldn't get my then husband or family to really smile. The patriarch went up to the photographer and whispered something ... instead of smile he said, FART - They got all smiles except from the pastor,” they wrote.

Another commended the dad on all-star parenting, “The art of parenting. Good job, dad!”

Perry is just pleased that sharing this parenting hack has helped so many other parents get great shots of their kids. “This post must have really resonated with people, and I've gotten tons of messages from people that are using this trick and getting great pictures of their kids, which to me, is the best part of all this," he added.

Alright, time to grab the camera and try this!