To promote the launch of the first full-length Simpsons feature film, Burger King and Fox have created The Simpsonizer. Woo-hoo!
Go to simpsonizeme.com, upload a photo of yourself and the application analyzes your face, turning you into an honorary Springfield resident. Yep, that's me on the right – or as close as I could get anyway. There's a picker tool to help you dial in the details once your photo has been Simpsonized. They don't have my ultra-stylish "New Media glasses" in the picker, but those Web 1.0 ones will do in a pinch.
Here are some tips from my own trial and error:
1. The site is under a heavy load, so if you keep getting errors, try again.
2. Your picture needs to be at least 640x480, but bigger is better. Go for 800x600 to be safe.
3. 72dpi is OK, but again: bigger is better.
4. Straight-on head shots are all that seem to work. If you get errors, go into Photoshop and pump up the contrast settings. The more, the better.
5. While in Photoshop, removing any random items behind your head will also improve your results, especially if they have a lot of texture. A white wall works, but things like bricks, trees and skylines need to go.
Here's a comparison of the original uploaded picture and the resulting likeness:
The hair, nose and facial hair are all pretty accurate. I had to change the mouth to make it look more like me. Plus, my coworkers insisted I leave my mouth hanging open (I'm chatty). There are limited options for sideburns, soul patches and glasses. Thankfully, there are also limited choices for how fat you are – in Springfield, either you're in great shape or you're an oaf.
