合影
hé yǐng · HSK 7
to take a joint photo
📸 合 = join/together + 影 = image/shadow; a joined image = a group photo
影 means shadow or image (same character as in 电影, movie). Add 合 (to join, combine) and you get people joined into one image: a group photo.
合 — 乛 (lid/roof) + 口 (mouth)
Originally a pictograph of a lidded vessel — a cover (亼) closing over an opening (口) — giving the core sense of 'come together, join, fit.' From 'fit/match' it extended to 'combine, unite, agree' and to measure-word uses. The reading hé reflects this 'joining' meaning.