Is this rude?

Gosh, that sounds exactly like the changes my therapist made, just exactly the same issue. I think she did it to make her face more prominent, but I don't believe the overall effect is an improvement, though I certainly don't want to offend her by saying so.

I agree, I might possibly be justified in asking for something, like another photo, but certainly not in expecting her to change it just because I asked. It's all I can expect to just ask for what I want and hope she takes it in the spirit intended.

Haha, wouldn't the world be very very small if we were talking about the same woman!!

I'd keep it lighthearted and say something like "I really miss your old photo!" But people that spend anytime with me know I make quirky but honest statements. The long explanation would annoy me but then that's me and my personality. I'm like just tell me you don't like it already! Too bad there isn't a like button. You're probably not the only one who isn't thrilled with it. That's usually the case.

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If your T does a lot of on line therapy I think your feedback would be something that your T would want to know. If you are the only one T does this with then I would say ask for a picture.

Well, I tried to focus more on the positive and show her I was appreciative that she did tell me I could give her feedback. Here's what I wrote (minus the basic greeting and such):

I really love your prior photo. It exudes warmth, professionalism, and cheer with the bright background, colors and accessories visible, and the amount of light in the photo. Both pictures show your welcoming smile and you, of course, but in the current one, the lighting seems so much darker. I wondered if you'd consider reverting, of course I don't expect you to! I hope you'll forgive me for my unsolicited opinion. I just find the prior photo more... well, to me it says "(her name)" louder and more reassuringly than the current one. I hesitated a long while to say anything, I just miss seeing that prior photo, and realize my initial impression of loving that last one best isn't changing with time. Thank you for 'listening.'

Well, I am so discouraged, though at least I didn't start a rupture or anything, sigh. She said she liked her last photo too. She said she understood how I was partial to it, because it was the photo she had posted when I selected her as my therapist. She says she changed it because the site she works for grades photos, and the higher the grade, the more prominently she is advertised on the list of available professionals. The site grades close up photos higher, so she enlarged it. (When she enlarged it, I guess it inadvertently got a lot darker.)

I wish I could offer to fix it for her so it wouldn't have that awful black halo around her head, it's so ominous looking, but... I found another photo of her online and I'll like... print it and cut it out and put it next to my computer when I'm in session... I guess.

Well, this sucks. I'm feeling discouraged today anyway, oh well. At least I asked, and she took it well, and even seemed to agree, and it was just one of those things.

Thanks everyone for your input.

P.S. I guess it means she'd rather find new clients than put up a picture she likes better that I find reassuring instead of black-halo-head photo.
Guess she figures I'm a sure thing, she doesn't need to worry about keeping my business. But... I shouldn't be suprised. I was very careful not to tell her how awful I thought the photo was, sigh. Like a no win situation.

Here's where I go through my "I don't want to go to therapy tomorrow" because I didn't get her comforting photo back phase. Sigh. Funny how it was easier to live with the photo than to hear I *had* to live with the photo. Hope can no longer spring eternal I guess, seems dreary to have to look at that black-haloed head all the time, and not get my way. Yes, I'm sure I'm being immature about it.

I do go to therapy though, always, and it always works out. Sigh. It's just one more of a million things that I don't get to have my way. Wah!
I think I'll wisely not discuss it in session tomorrow though... no doubt my T can figure I'm disappointed, no need to spend time on that. Just life.

Did she get a higher grade? I mean, if you are right wouldn't it stand to reason it won't? I can't imagine they don't use page views (analytics) for that. Too subjective otherwise.

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Yes, I wish they'd use analytics. She tells me they grade photos that feature close-ups of the face higher, so by posting the edited but much darker photo, her photo rating increased from "Good" to "Very Good" which helps her appear closer to the beginning of the list of available counseling professionals.

The trouble is.... judging photos by arbitrary standards, and not weighing overall effect can sometimes, as in this case, lead to worse photos being used, because the unnatural level of contrast has really degraded the quality and the enlarging has meant the photo is also more pixelated now, sigh.

Agreed. It is completely subjective. The point is to ultimately get more visitors. It's so easy to see if you are objectively. Seems like I recall a dating site doing this years ago, long before analytics. So you ended up with these truly bizarre looking photos of men. Probably women too but I wasn't looking at that.

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HOORAY!!! She re-edited her photo so it is no longer so dark and there's no more black halo around her head. I'm so happy! I think maybe she did it because of my feedback, as it had been the same for a couple months prior. Yea!