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This iPhone app will make your kid smile before every picture

Tired of jumping around and acting goofy in an attempt to get your kid to smile for a picture? An iPhone app called Picasound may be what you're looking for.

A list of sound clips included in the $1.99 version of Picasound.
Jason Cipriani/CNET

It's always a bit frustrating when you're trying to get your child to pose for a photo and they won't even look at your iPhone, let alone smile for it. In the past I covered GroupShot, an iOS app that combines multiple photos to ensure everyone is looking at the camera in the final shot. A great app, but it doesn't solve the problem of actually getting your child to smile.

Instead of jumping around, making noises and embarrassing yourself, let the iPhone app Picasound make animal sounds for you.

Using the app is very easy:

  • Launch the app and scroll through the available sounds until you find one you think will work.
  • Press and hold the shutter button to begin playing the sound.
  • Once your child is smiling, lift your finger and Picasound will take the picture.

There's four different versions of the app available in the App Store. Ranging in price from free to $3.99. The only difference is the number of sound clips included in the app. The free version includes four clips, with the top-end version including 80.

There are a couple of things about the app I hope to see fixed in an update. I'd like to be able to control the autofocus and autoexposure settings. I'd also like to be able to switch sounds after pressing the shutter button without Picasound taking a photo. Kids are temperamental; a sound that worked earlier in the day may not work later on. Snapping a photo of your kid not smiling while changing sounds just adds clutter to your Camera Roll.

Download your preferred version of Picasound from the App Store.