Photo Ideas With an Online Best Friend You've Never Met in Person

2026-11-05 · The Hanaduul team

Some of the closest friendships start in a group chat, a fandom server or a game lobby, and plenty of online best friends have never stood in the same room. You can still make a photo strip that feels like you were side by side. Here's how to do it, what to pose, and how to keep your room code safe.

Why a shared photo strip hits different

Screenshots of a video call are fun, but they always look like two boxes on a screen. A photo strip where you both appear on the same background feels like a real hangout.

It's also a nice milestone. A first photo together can mark a friendship anniversary, a birthday or just the day you finally said you'd 'take a pic sometime.'

How to take a photo strip together with Hanaduul

In Hanaduul, one of you taps [Shoot together] on the Home screen, which creates a 6-digit room code. Send that code to your friend, and they tap [Join with room code] on the Home screen and enter the numbers.

While you shoot, you can talk to each other by voice to line up poses ('a little to the left!', 'one, two, three!'). You'll both see yourselves side by side on the same background, and the finished strip shows up in the [Together] section of both of your albums.

• Host: Home, then [Shoot together], then share the room code
• Friend: Home, then [Join with room code], then enter the code
• Talk by voice while posing
• Both of you get the strip in [Together]

Room code safety for internet friends

Share your room code only with the person you actually mean to shoot with, ideally in a private message rather than a public channel or comment. Treat it like you would a private call link.

Once you've followed each other or shot together before, you can skip the code next time. Use [Invite a friend] and your friend just taps [Join] on the pop-up on their phone.

• Send the code in a DM, not a public post
• Don't share codes from strangers' posts
• After your first strip, [Invite a friend] is quicker

Pose ideas that work from two different places

The best poses for two people in different places are the ones that look connected. Plan all four shots before you start so you're not scrambling between photos.

Try making one gesture that only works together, like each of you making half a heart toward the middle. Then mirror each other, so if one of you tilts left, the other tilts right.

• Shot 1: both wave at the camera
• Shot 2: half hearts that meet in the middle
• Shot 3: mirrored head tilts toward each other
• Shot 4: point at each other and laugh
• Bonus: match one color, like both wearing white

Pick a background that means something

Choose a place you've always talked about visiting together. With [My BGs], you can type a scene and get a background in about 15 to 30 seconds. The formula: place + time or weather + mood and colors, for example 'a cozy coffee shop on a rainy afternoon, warm brown tones' or 'a snowy city street at night, soft white and gold lights.' A short phrase works too.

People and faces aren't drawn into the background, since your photos go on top, and celebrity or character names are left out. Making a background uses treats (in-app currency), and there's a daily limit, so it's first come, first served.

Timing tips across time zones

If you live in different time zones, pick a time when both of you are home and in a bright room. Good light matters most, so avoid very dark spaces.

After shooting, you can each finish the look with [Layout], [Frame] and [Border], and adjust each shot with [Filter] and [Beauty].

• Shoot near a window during daylight if you can
• Hanaduul is iPhone only for now, so you'll both need an iPhone