Say cheese
Common instruction used by photographers to make their subjects smile
"Say 'cheese'" is an English-language instruction used by photographers who want their subject or subjects to smile with their lips apart and teeth showing.
History
In the 19th century, most people were expected to use a neutral facial expression when being photographed. The expensive and time-consuming nature of early photography reinforced this behavior. In the late 19th century, different aesthetic and behavioral norms required keeping the mouth small, which led to photographers using "say prunes". Smiling while being photographed became normal in the 20th century, as the availability of cameras made photography a more common occurrence. Saying particular words was seen to help subjects have a particular smile, with cheese being recorded in 1943 as a word that was said in English. As such, photographers would use the phrase say "cheese" to encourage subjects to state the word while the photographer snapped the photo.
In different languages and cultures
Perhaps because of strong western influence, especially in the realm of photography, and perhaps because of increased numbers of western visitors after photographic equipment became widely available, "Say cheese" has also entered into the Japanese language.
Other languages have adopted this method, albeit with different words, to get the desired effect of shaping the mouth to form a smile.
Australia: Please!
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Say cheese” as common instruction used by photographers to make their subjects smile. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
Why this record matters
The subject matters to the general reference register because the source frames it as common instruction used by photographers to make their subjects smile. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.
Named sources, stable identifiers and responsible institutions provide the strongest route from overview to verifiable evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated May 27, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q7429063. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 1943.
The absence of detail may reflect summary conventions rather than a lack of surviving documentation. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.
- Subject orientation
- Search vocabulary
- Locating named sources
The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Say cheese”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Say cheese primary sources, Say cheese archive and cheese research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Say cheese”?
- Which institution is responsible for the underlying evidence?
- Which cited source is closest to the event, object or claim?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Say cheese” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.