Advanced Portrait Study: Left, Right, Front / Read, Shoot, Write

Your next assignment is another exercise in portrait photography and this time we are testing a theory that a persons left side of their face shows more emotion that the right side of the face, and that viewers find the left side more aesthetically pleasing. Read through the 2 links below. Take your portraits and write a 2-3 paragraph summary about your findings. Do you agree with the theory proposed? If not why? What are your personal findings and thoughts?

Does the left side of the face show more emotion? 

Links for required reading:

 - Science Daily: Your left side is your best side

 - Petapixel: Photograph the left side of peoples faces to capture more emotion

Assignment Details:

• Pick 1 person (doesn't have to be the same model from part A) and create 3 portraits of them each showing their face from the right, the left and straight on.
• Take multiple shots (like a professional!!!) and choose your best example to show the left, side and front portraits.
• Images must be portraits that have a high face ratio... frame your subjects face to fill the frame.
• Post your 3 images to our flickr page when complete, post processing is encouraged to enhance your portraits, try B&W, cross-processing or basic color enhancement.
• Write a 1 paragraph summary of your findings. Do you agree with the theory proposed? If not why? What are your personal findings and thoughts on this theory?
• When complete, post your images and attach your essay to your favorite portrait.

Student Work Example:

 Studies have consistently shown that the left side of the face not only tends to be more aesthetically pleasing, but displays more emotion than the right. As for the model I chose to use for this assignment, I would agree that this theory, in part, remains true. While the left side of my models face may present more emotion, I would argue that the right side of my models face, contrary to common belief, is more aesthetically pleasing. The reason for this is that the jaw is much more accentuated on his right side creating a sharp and intense- but not particularly emotional-look. In the photograph displaying the left side, his features appear much softer. Interestingly, I tried this again with three other people (including myself) and found that both parts of the theory applied. While this generalization may not apply to everyone (as many do not), I do agree that there is truth behind it.

                                                      - Veronica Madrid

 - Mr.W

 This project is due Friday. - Mr.W