A woman has ignited a huge discussion after sharing her family holiday card online. Influencer Amanda Cooper and her siblings subtly flipped off the camera during the photo shoot, which has upset many viewers. Now, Cooper is sharing her perspective on the contentious holiday card.
Family portraits are always a delightful way to commemorate those significant gatherings. For some families, these moments happen only a few times each year. While capturing these images is enjoyable, reflecting on them years later—witnessing how styles change and how people age—makes it much easier to remember those times.
Additionally, it provides the younger generation with a glimpse of how their uncles, aunts, grandparents, or even parents once looked.
For Amanda Cooper and her mother, Melynda King, taking family portraits has always been an enjoyable experience. In an interview with Today, Cooper mentioned that her mother takes it quite seriously, as last year she “went to Home Depot and bought paint sample cards of the colors that we were all allowed to wear.”
After the large family captured this year’s holiday photo, Amanda Cooper, an influencer with approximately 30,000 followers on Instagram, chose to share it online. However, one particular detail ignited a significant debate.
Amanda Cooper and her siblings flipped off the camera as part of a holiday photo prank.
Cooper posted three pictures, some of which were zoomed in, revealing how several family members flipped off the camera. Her brother-in-law suggested they use the code word hippopotamus.
“So just before the middle finger picture, I shouted, ‘Everyone say, ‘I want a hippopotamus for Christmas!’” Amanda explained, adding that she informed her mom before posting it.
“I received a text from Amanda that simply said, ‘I’m going to apologize in advance for the reel I just posted,” Melynda remembered her daughter saying. “Then I watched the video and burst out laughing. I found it absolutely hilarious.
Amanda shared some photos along with a caption that said, “When your mom/mother-in-law insists on professional family pictures three times a year…”
The images featured various close-ups from different perspectives, showing how they discreetly flipped off the camera. The caption continued, “Someday we will appreciate all the family pictures.”
The internet is split over the prank.
The photo gained popularity, and the comments section was buzzing with reactions.
“This is fantastic. All in good fun,” one user commented.
“I adore a family with a sense of humor, and they clearly have it,” another remarked.
A third person reminisced, “I did this when I was 10 because I wasn’t happy with how my mom styled my hair. It’s been 30 years, and she still hasn’t noticed.”
On the other hand, some were not amused by Amanda’s joke. A few users found it quite offensive.
“Be thankful she cares; this is so disrespectful,” one comment stated.
“I dislike this immensely. How terrible,” another expressed.
Father claims it’s “the best family picture” they’ve ever taken.
A third commenter said, “Talk about passive-aggressive! Wow! Not cool at all!,” while a fourth added, “It’s so unfortunate. I wish I could go back and take family photos with my parents, and here you are being total jerks.”
Some users defended Amanda, with one stating, “I assure you the photographer didn’t just take this one picture.” Another mentioned, “I’m sure they have a lovely shot, and this is just their less flattering one. Lighten up.”
Another user remarked, “These are digital, and they took many. Do you really think they did this for all of them?! These comments are so over the top.
In an interview with Today, Amanda Cooper expressed her disbelief over the negative reactions she faced after sharing a video of her and her siblings giving the finger. She emphasized that it wasn’t merely one photo, as they acted playfully in other images as well.
“I received my lovely Christmas card,” Amanda’s mother remarked. “However, my husband insists that I should send the middle finger photo to our closest friends. He believes it’s the finest family picture we’ve ever captured.”
We’d love to hear your opinions on Amanda and her siblings’ prank in the comments on Facebook!
