Facial symmetry is very interesting to me. Apparently humans detect facial symmetry subconsciously and make many quick decisions about that persons genetic fitness and general attractiveness. We all love perfect things, but no one is perfect. Models have a higher tendency towards symmetry but even then, the best models have a ‘good’ side and a ‘bad’ side to photograph. As a photographer we often photograph our subjects in a way that hides physical flaws.

I think there is a secondary aspect about facial symmetry when you reconstruct a face into two new symmetrical faces: I think you see two sides of that persons psyche. That is my theory at least. I really beleive most people have a duel nature and I want to explore this.

My project consists of first finding willing subjects (harder than it sounds lately…out of five random attempts at recruiting people for pictures these last two days I have had only one success!) I am most interested in people who may consider themselves average or ugly. Or ‘very interesting looking’….and especially, and this will be tricky, people with personality disorders.

I will photography my subjects with a 4×5.

Color or BW? Not sure yet.

The most important part of this process (which I didn’t do to well for my own portrait,) is to get no initial lens distortion, probably using a normal to portrait length lens, and to align the face as perfectly along an even axis as possible.

I don’t want to bias the final result towards one side or the other.

As you can see in my pic above my head was probably tilted a bit to one side. However I looked at myself in the mirror after finishing this and found that one of my ears really does stick out further….actually my whole head sticks out a tiny bit further on one side. In a strange way both composite faces are me. If I look at one long enough it looks normal. Then when I see the other face that one looks normal. When I see them all together the two composite faces look freakish.

Anyways I think it will be worth working out a system and getting this project started.

Kirk