I imagine you’re the same kind of person who would have argued that it was a massive reach to say Chad and Troy were in a relationship. This wasn’t ever said explicitly, instead you could work it out by reading between the lines. It was never explicitly said that
Sage was related to Jade but the breadcrumbs were all there.
To argue the picture can’t have been taken by Lana because she isn’t mentioned is not evidence she didn’t take it. We can presume either, the camera is on a timer or someone took the picture, either is an assumption that the game doesn’t tell us explicitly. I forget if taking pictures was Lana‘s hobby that Jill picked up or if it was always Jill’s?
It is not a “massive reach” to suggest that Lana may be taking a picture of a group of women, around her age, standing 100 yards from her family home. It is also not a massive reach to equate Lana and Lynette. Let’s go over the (potential) evidence.
These are all facts given to us by the game.
1. Lynette and Lana both died young
2. Lynette and Lana both liked to write
3. Lynette and Lana were both ostracised from their families
4. Lynette is friends with the parents and or older relatives of Jill’s friends
5. Lynette has a picture with said friends, standing in front of the Royce family home.
6. The MCs Polaroid of Jill fades into the picture of Lynette and her friends.
The game is explicitly telling us there is a connection between Jill and Lynette. Taking 1 step from there I am saying either Lana and Lynette are the same person or they knew each other. That is not a massive leap.
The only thing that doesn’t sync with the timeline is Jill’s age. This is presuming we know her age. We don’t. DPC has hidden surnames in the past to mask identities, it isn’t a huge stretch to think he might mask someone’s age to hide someone’s identity.
IF Jill is older than we think, this ’fixes‘ the main sticking point of this theory.
Lynette’s journal is taking place before she leaves the family home to be with Neil. Something she does against her fathers will. Lana is estranged from her family because she did something that they didn’t like. Leaving to be with a poor, uneducated, construction worker could be that reason.
Jill’s friends all seem to be either older or at least at a different stage in their lives. One talks about travelling to Japan and investing. This certainly isn’t proof, but is curious, and could imply she is older than we know.
With regards to Lynette and Lana, not looking alike I agree. However it is interesting to note that in Jill‘s flashback, she has black hair, however in this picture her hair is lighter when compared to Jill.
I agree Aunty Jill still requires a few to many well what if maybes to be as sure as some of us were about Chad and Tory or Sage and Jade. But I don’t think it is irrational. And certainly not as out of left field as Zoe and Josy being related would be.
What I am 100% confident of is that there is a connection between Jill and Lynette, and that connection, one way or another is going to involve Lana.