The Sweet Angle – Portrait Photography

Anybody can take a great looking photo of a great looking face. But only an experienced photographer can identify the best features of a face and use it to make the subject look better.
While I was experimenting with my face, taking mug shots of mine, I noticed that I have a face-angle in which I looked at my most flattering (which isn’t much, but still 🙂 ). But I quickly realized that this should be applicable to any face.

There is a “sweet” angle for all us. Photogenic wise, I mean !

 – aneeskA

To illustrate my point, look at the photos of Nikhita from various angles captured by the photographers Deepthi Indukuri and Amardeep Singh.

Pose 1

Pose 2

Pose 3

Pose 4

Pose 5

The five photos reveal five different faces of Nikhita. But somehow Pose 3 doesn’t seem to complement her radiance like the four other photos. Even though she is pleasant in all the five, the over-the-shoulder angle doesn’t portray her beauty completely.
The article “I know what flatters my face and its not what I see in the mirror” by Charles E. Gardner provides an excellent insight in to this phenomenon and provides a simple method to identify one’s sweet angle.

Further Reading

1. Facial Angles – A study
2. Posing For Portrait Photography
3. Gaze Angle in Portrait Photography