A Software Engineer Headshot in the Fog

The Into the Fog register

In summer the fog takes San Francisco, the city of the AI laboratories, and leaves one colour: the international orange of the Golden Gate's towers, showing through the grey. The portrait for a researcher or engineer here is a picture of a city rubbed out to a single mark.

Three photographs. At a tall window of a converted brick warehouse office, fog pressing on the glass and the city reduced to grey shapes. On the edge of the Embarcadero with the bay flat and grey and the piers fading. And at half-length at Fort Point beneath the south end of the span, the orange underside of the bridge rising into the fog.

The ground is held to greys: a charcoal overshirt, wet concrete and a flat bay. Orange is the one hue, worn once as a knit at the collar and echoed once in the bridge. The light is fog light, diffuse and without a shadow.

How to take source photos for the Into the Fog pack

Better source photos make better portraits. A few things sharpen the likeness before the wardrobe and the setting go on top.

1. Even, soft lightStand near a window with indirect daylight on your face. Avoid overhead bulbs and phone flash; both flatten the face.
2. Front or three-quarter angleCamera at eye level, facing it or turned slightly. No shot from below, no wide-angle close-up.
3. Face fully clearHair off the face, no hats or sunglasses. A clear, front-facing photo gives the most of you to work with.
4. A thoughtful, low-key lookThe fog calls for an unforced expression. A relaxed, thinking-about-something look in your source photos suits it.
5. Plain background is fineDo not worry about your own backdrop. The pack's three settings replace it entirely.

Frequently asked questions

Is this taken in San Francisco?

The setting is built from it: a warehouse office window in fog, the Embarcadero and Fort Point under the bridge.

Why is so much of it grey?

Fog turns the city to values. The one orange in the frame is the Golden Gate's, and the pack repeats it once at your collar.

Is it suitable for a tech profile?

Yes. A charcoal overshirt and a quiet window read as modern and technical without being a costume.

Will the photos look like me?

Every photo looks like you, well photographed. If one is nearly right, say what to change, in your own words.

Do I have to write a prompt?

No. There is nothing to write: you pick a pack, and it is ready in seconds.

How many photos of myself do I add?

Between six and twenty, from different days and in different light, with your face clear. We check each one when you add it.

What happens to the photos I add?

They are used only to create your model, on our own servers in the European Union. They are not shared and not sold.

When the Into the Fog pack fits

• A software engineer headshot for a company team page, a conference talk or a hiring post
• An AI researcher portrait for a paper, a lab site or a podcast guest slot
• A tech headshot for LinkedIn that feels like the Bay and not a stock office
• A founder or early-stage profile photo for a pitch deck
• A gift for a friend who moved to San Francisco and still talks about the fog

About narcis

Most AI photo tools put every pose, job, era, and style in one giant catalog. The photos all look like every other AI photo on the internet — a glaze over a stock face. Narcis goes the other way. One job: photos of you that look like photographs. You add at least 6 photos of yourself, and we create your AI model from them. Your photos are ready in a few hours, and we email you when they are. Then this pack and every other pack on Narcis can be made with your face. Each pack is curated against real references — paintings, photographers, places — and tested on real faces before it goes live. Built and run by one small team, on our own servers.