Written by Lauren – University of Michigan

People can learn a lot about you from your Facebook profile. By considering your favorite movies, pictures, quotes and the things other people write on your wall, it is quite easy to get a good idea of who you are as a person. And knowing that, many of us are extremely careful about what we throw on there.

And I’m not talking about taking down all those drunk pictures from the Jell-O wrestling tournament so you can get that job with the government you’ve been coveting. I’m talking about leaving those up to show anyone and everyone who is looking that you are one cool girl who happens to enjoy wrestling in gelatin.

Your Facebook picture is especially important. It’s the first thing people see when they look you up, not to mention the fact that it comes up next to every wall post, Facebook message, chat, update, etc., that you do on that damn website. Naturally, you are going to put a lot of thought into your photo of choice. It needs to be a good representation of who you are, be it an artist, a class clown, or any other type of person.

I spend a lot of time on Facebook (is there a 12 step program out there?!) and I’ve noticed that of the 38 million people using the site worldwide, there only 6 basic types of photos that people post on their profile:

1. The Flattering/Pretty Picture:

This moment is most typically captured by the Facebook user while at home alone. He or she will break out the camera and take anywhere from 20-76 selfies before finding the one that shows off their features the best (Read: the one where they look the hottest.). This photograph can also be taken by someone else for the sole purpose of getting a good shot for Facebook. Because why else do people take pictures alone?

2. The Crop-Out-Everyone-Who-Looks-Bad Photo

This photo most often appears among women (who only care how good they come out in a group shot). The Facebook member thinks she looks great (and that her cleavage is out of control), but everyone else is looking pretty blah. Not wanting to miss out on a top notch Facebook moment or have strangers wonder which girl she is in said photo, she sloppily crops the rest of the subjects out of the photo.

3. The Funny Drinking Photo:

This photo is the product of a drunken night during which, every photo taken is followed by screams of, “FACEBOOK!!!” This photo makes the user look cool, funny, and having more fun at their respective college than any of their friends at other (crappier) schools.

4. The Artsy Photo:

“Look at me! I’m so artsy! I think a lot. I want everyone to think that I am too cool for Facebook and that I rarely ever think about it, but I went to the beach to play guitar just so I could put this awesome shot on my FB profile! Did I mention I love playing the guitar?”

5. The Look-at-Me! Photo

This photo allows the Facebook user to show off some amazing accomplishment – be it winning an award, rocking a jump while skiing, or hanging out with a celebrity – without having to sound like a douche bag who announces it to everyone. Deep down, though, they hope and pray that their wall will fill up with posts of people commenting on this very awesome accomplishment.

6. The Happy Couple Photo:

Because once you are in a relationship, that is all that matters. Your identity is his identity. And aren’t you guys so cute?!!?! So in loooove?! Everyone just needs to know how serious this is.

Oh, and he better also have a picture of you two on his profile, or there is going to be trouble.