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The quality of a custom avatar depends almost entirely on the source image. Follow these guidelines to get lifelike results that render cleanly across expressions, angles, and lighting.

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Technical Specifications

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Composition

1

Front-facing pose

The subject should look directly into the camera. Small head tilts are okay; profile shots are not.
2

Neutral or gentle expression

A closed-mouth smile or relaxed neutral expression works best. Avoid open-mouth laughs, exaggerated expressions, or eyes closed.
3

Head and shoulders visible

Frame the subject from the mid-chest up. Leave a small margin above the head — don’t crop the top of the head.
4

Uncluttered background

Use a plain, evenly-lit background. Avoid busy patterns, other faces, or high-contrast objects behind the subject.

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Lighting

  • Even, diffuse light across the face. Soft natural light near a window is ideal.
  • Avoid hard shadows on one side of the face, from a hat brim, or under the eyes.
  • No direct back-lighting — the subject should be brighter than the background.
  • No colored gels or dramatic lighting effects.

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Face and Features

  • Face fully visible — no sunglasses, no face masks, no obstructions.
  • Standard glasses are okay but reflective glare on the lenses can cause artifacts.
  • Hair should not cover the eyes or eyebrows.
  • Facial hair is fine — beards, mustaches, stubble all render well.
  • Makeup is fine — extreme theatrical makeup may reduce realism.

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Camera and Quality

  • Sharp focus on the eyes. Blur anywhere on the face will carry into the avatar.
  • No heavy filters or beauty smoothing — over-processed skin loses the texture Huma-3 needs to render naturally.
  • Avoid heavy compression artifacts — export at high quality if resaving.

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Common Mistakes to Avoid

  • Group photos or multiple faces in the frame
  • Selfies with distortion from ultra-wide phone lenses (stand back and zoom in instead)
  • Cartoon avatars, AI-generated portraits, or heavily stylized illustrations (unless that’s the intent)
  • Old low-resolution photos scaled up
  • Images with watermarks or logos over the face
Only upload photos you have the legal right to use.
  • For your own face, no additional permission is needed.
  • For someone else’s face, obtain their explicit written consent before creating an avatar.
  • Do not create avatars of public figures, celebrities, or minors without proper authorization.
Uploading a photo of another person without their consent may violate privacy laws in your jurisdiction and is against TruGen’s terms of service.

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What’s Next?

Create a Custom Avatar

Ready to upload? Follow the creation flow.

Avatar Gallery

Prefer to use a stock avatar? Browse the gallery.