Web design combines a great deal of knowledge from both psychology and science. Even if you don’t consciously think about it, the choice of a particular image, user interface, color, and so on can either establish a connection with users or fail to do so. It can also significantly contribute to stronger and more impactful brand development.
Quite often, we see close-up photos of people on different websites. They’re laughing, deep in thought, or simply looking seriously at us from our monitors and mobile screens. And interestingly, they affect us — they touch something deep inside that somehow draws us to explore the site further. Using real human faces in design is one of those tools that impacts us in the most inexplicable ways. Seeing faces gives the impression that the site or app has some humanity. And that alone creates a strong emotional connection.
In this article, we’ll explore projects and variations of how photos of human faces are used in web design, how they influence users, and how to interact with them. We’ll also touch on certain elements and methods of web design. Back in November, we already discussed authentic photos in web design, where we briefly mentioned people and scenes in images. But now we’ll take a closer look at that topic since it has its own nuances.
User Connection
Every web designer has a list of elements that are almost always used to connect with site visitors. These include color, button size, layout blocks, and more, all of which strongly influence interaction and conversion. But using facial photos can be even more powerful. As we browse the web every day, we see countless faces in web design. But have you ever thought about which ones designers choose specifically? Are they in focus? Does the designer even like these people? Would they want to talk to them?
Images and photos help users understand whether they want to be part of what’s on the site. The visitor compares themselves to the face, the emotion, or the unique features of the person. Maybe they look like the person in the photo or want to be like them. Either way, the photo symbolizes and shows visitors how they might relate to the products on the site.
So, faces don’t just attract attention — they guide it toward key elements on the page. Sometimes, images show a person looking at a CTA (call to action). And subconsciously, the user starts looking the same way — at a button, link, video, and so on.
Examples of everything we’ve described can be found on schnabuliermarkt, blancohotelformentera, eighthourday, volkswagen
Faces and Emotional Atmosphere
You’ve probably had that moment when seeing someone yawn made you want to yawn too. This works in web design as well (not with yawning though). Any emotional signal — a smile, anger, sadness, tears, surprise — is transmitted to visitors. Emotions move from person to person, even if one is real and the other is in a photo. An emotional atmosphere is created — an experience of being on the site, interacting with the app.
Keep in mind, though, that emotional atmosphere and user connection aren’t always established through faces alone. Many other elements play a role depending on the user’s culture, age, and preferences. That’s why it’s crucial in web design to consider your target audience: who they relate to, who they want to resemble, and what interests them. Representing all this in photos will attract more clients, potential partners, and everyday users.
It’s also important that the faces display the right emotion related to the product or service. But don’t overdo it — not every product is meant to cause a smile, laughter, or the same facial expressions.
You can clearly see what we’re talking about on savethechildren, doomtree, krisztinatoth, hashtagbay, cuebiq
Trust Can Be Built
When it comes to business websites — large or small — photos of faces play a special role. Showing people involved in the organization, designers establish trust between the site, the company, and the user.
This is done in different ways: group photos of the team, individuals using a product or service, or even subtle cues like eye expressions or posture. This works especially well in videos. You can say, “ This vacuum cleaner is amazing!” all day, but seeing a real (non-actor) person use it will tell viewers so much more.
The more “real” people users see interacting with your site, the more they’ll trust you and your company. Models and actors often strike unnatural poses or handle the product incorrectly. And those kinds of photos — even if beautiful — can harm your design. But genuine-quality images, like slightly relaxed photos of staff with soft focus or unposed expressions, reflect real people like us. And that’s why they are such powerful tools in user engagement.
For instance, the project krisztinatoth uses not a photo but a polygonal filter for a portrait. Still, since it’s a real person (Krisztina), we sense her… kindness, sincerity, a playful sparkle in her eyes, and above all — a natural pose and head tilt. Similarly, anesthesiologie features photos of real people. Also worth seeing: studioyacine, yes-avocats. And for comparison, check julianmatthews. It’s not just that the man and woman aren’t smiling, but rather the overall composition, facial expressions, and gaze they create.
Beware of “Fake” Faces
There’s really only one type of face no web designer wants to use — the fake, unrealistic ones. You know them: perfect skin that’s overly retouched (losing texture and expression lines, like a doll), overly wide smiles (we don’t actually smile that big in offices), and artificial expressions.
When an image is authentic, it creates emotional connection and trust. But if the scene feels fake or forced, it’s more likely to hurt your site than help it.
Using faces in design is a great idea, but only if they genuinely reflect your brand. The goal is to build a connection between the visitor and the brand, guiding their exploration and encouraging purchase. Models work for fashion — sure. But not for books or healthcare.
Also worth checking out: lifeatexpedia, zahn, banditwines, 12storeez, toppaddockcafe, microsoft, ea, ubisoft
Conclusion
People are naturally drawn to other people: what they do, how they look, what emotions they show. We all want to be part of something — a big company, a group of fun friends, an adventure. That’s exactly the point of using faces in web design. That’s why photos and images work so well.
That said, designs with faces aren’t as common as you’d think (check Awwwards or CSS Design Awards), and there’s a reason. It’s hard to execute, time-consuming to pick, and requires collaboration with clients and teams. Choosing something abstract (nature, graphic shapes, cars) is just easier.
“Great winter tires!” — you can show a car on a snowy road. But try showing a driver or family next to the tires with subtle joy or appreciation — that’s harder. Volkswagen does something like this, but it’s not theme-specific. And often, clients are hesitant to share real staff photos — even though those might not even be necessary.
Still, if you compare a site with no faces to one that uses them, 90% of the time the latter will get more traffic, conversions, time on site, and return visits.