TYPES OF FACE, AND RULES FOR LIGHTING.
The sitter should be carefully and tact fully studied before determining on the pose and method of lighting to be adopted. yearly every person has one side of his or her face more pleasing than the other, and that side should obviously be given the chief prominence. Generally speaking, a three-quarter face is the most satisfactory, but some features look best in profile or perhaps in full face. If the camera is placed above the level of the sitter's head, and pointing downward, the forehead will be given more Prominence, and the lower part of the face will seem less important. This should, plainly, never be done in the case of those with heavy foreheads or insignificant chins. On the other hand, if the lens is below the level of the sitter's head, the chin receives more importance and the fore head less ; the nose also appears shorter. Fat, plump features should never be taken full face, nor, as a rule, should a thin bony countenance be taken from the side. Where the nose is slightly twisted the face should be turned to the side opposite the direction in which that feature is bent ; it is thus frequently possible to entirely avoid any suggestion of the defect in the photograph. Persons with a squint will generally look best in profile, or nearly so. By slightly tilting the sitter's head up or down, greater or lesser prominence may he given to either the lower or upper part of the face as de sired ; while if it is borne in mind that the well lit portions of the countenance will be brought forward and attract atten tion, while those in shadow will be, as it were, made to assume quite a secondary importance, it will be in the operator's power to still further augment the effect of good features, and atone for or sup press bad ones, by judicious manipulation of the lighting.
Posn'a..
The pose of the head and figure is of supreme importance. The slightest de esree of clumsiness or ungratefulness will be exaggerated by the camera and will quite spoil the effect of an otherwise suc cessful portrait. It is difficult to formu late any rules on this subject. Much will be learned by the observation and com parison of good photographs, paintings, haps even he practicable to make the ex posure without his or her knowledge. At the most, only a few gentle touches here and there, or a word or two of direction, should be necessary. The old style of anxiously arranging and rearranging the model till both parties are thoroughly weary of the whole thing is now entirely abandoned by all the best workers.