Any specific tips on getting villager photos in New Leaf?

[Genjiuki]

So, I’ve found it’s relatively easy to get villager photos in Wild World and New Horizons, but, for some reason, I haven’t been able to get any in New Leaf.
I talk to my villagers every day, send letters with gifts occasionally, and complete their requests, but still haven’t gotten close. It’s odd too because in general I don’t think my friendship is super high in the first place even though I’ve had my town for almost a year now and I’ve been super attentive to them all.
Has New Leaf ever been data mined for friendship mechanics like New Horizons has? If so, what actually increases friendship? I just can’t seem to get my friendship high with any of them, regardless of what I do it seems…
Any advice/tips?

 

[Yoshi155]

It also feels like that me too. There’s villagers who’ve been in my town for months and I still haven’t gotten their pictures. Honestly I think the best thing to do is butter them up a LOT, and say yes to basically anything they ask. Even if they ask to trade a stringfish for a moldy shirt, it’s February 28th, and it’s the last thing you need to donate.

Edit: Completely forgot to mention April Fools’ day before. On April 1st, Blanca goes to the house every villager and disguised as them, and you have to differentiate them when they both tell you a fact about them and you say if it’s true or not, which helps you pick who’s the real one. I don’t think these facts are ever actually mentioned in game, so you’d have to look online. If you get it right, you’ll get their pictures, making it an extremely easy way to get all of your villagers’ photos. Actually, it’s so easy it almost feels kind of cheap to me, so I think I’d just get all of them right to get Blanca’s photo, which you get if you get every villager’s question correct.

 

[Rubygame]

It happened that some of my villagers gave me photos as a reward for doing something, but very, very rarely in 6 years. I think in New Leaf the photo as a reward is not something programmed to be given as a sign of maximum friendship. I mean: it's certainly true that if a villager gives you a photo of him it means you have maximum friendship with him, but it's not a thing programmed to be the most important reward of maximum friendship, it's just... a casual reward. This is because we can get the photos of our villagers in a simple and immediate way every April fool! It's not something uncommon to obtain, so it's not the first thing the villagers do to show you their utmost affection.
But that's just my guess!

 

[Orbinaut]

I actually forgot about getting their photos during the April Fools event so these replies are genuinely helpful.
Thanks.

 

[inkateries]

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[Shawna]

It's the opposite for me...I've gotten pictures in New Leaf (not yet on my current file as it is only 13 days old, but on previous ones), but I have never gotten one in New Horizons, even on a previous island I managed to keep for over a year...nope never. Yet, I've gotten one in less than three weeks in New Leaf.

I have a tip. I think this can help to boost friendships more quickly. Hell, I think doing this could give you a better chance of getting a villager picture in return: You should "go above and beyond" for your villager (if at all possible). Here are some examples of what I mean:

* If they ask for fruit, try to give them a perfect one, even if they wouldn't mind the regular version. If you have decent wi-fi and can save up some TBT, I would recommend trying to buy it from a TBT shop on here. I actually have a full stack of each of the perfect five main fruits I bought, so I already have them ready in case a villager asks for specific one. I will not have to worry about them asking me for a fruit that I "don't" have.

* If they request furniture, try giving them a refurbished piece. I heard that this can give you a bigger friendship boost then just giving them a regular piece, and I discovered last night that the villagers will acknowledge that it had been refurbished. ^_^

* If they ask for a fish/bug type (as opposed to a specific one), try getting them a rare one. For example, if a villager asks for an ocean fish, you can try to get them a shark. They are actually fairly common for what they're worth. Another example, let's say a villager asks for a stag beetle...you can get them a golden stag. Thanks to Tortimer Island, these aforementioned creatures are out regardless of the time of year. <3333

I would also recommend maybe keeping some perfect fruit, refurbished furniture, and rare creatures in your storage (that's what I been doing), so you will already have it. I find being prepared is a lot more relaxing than waiting until a villager asks you for something. If I am just naturally fishing/bug catching, I find myself having a lot more luck than then when I am trying to hunt down something specific.

 

[Shawna]

* If they ask for a fish/bug type (as opposed to a specific one), try getting them a rare one. For example, if a villager asks for an ocean fish, you can try to get them a shark.

I can confirm that this specific example does, in fact, work. I did exactly this just a bit ago and Rooney gave me his picture. ^__^
Good thing I kept a shark in my storage.

This, kids, is why I recommend you guys to keep some rare bugs and fish in your storage. ^_^