A
photogenic subject (generally a person), is a subject that usually appears
physically attractivePhysical attractiveness is the perception of the physical traits of an individual human person as aesthetically pleasing or beautiful, and can include various implications such as sexual attractiveness and physique...
or striking in
photographA photograph is an image created by light falling on a light-sensitive surface, usually photographic film or an electronic imager such as a CCD or a CMOS chip. Most photographs are created using a camera, which uses a lens to focus the scene's visible wavelengths of light into a reproduction of...
s. Photogenic drawing, coined by
William Fox TalbotWilliam Henry Fox Talbot was the inventor of the negative / positive photographic process, the precursor to most photographic processes of the 19th and 20th centuries. He was also a noted photographer who made major contributions to the development of photography as an artistic medium...
, also describes the earliest method for recording camera images.
The state of being photogenic may or may not necessarily be related to one's physical attractiveness in
real lifeReal life is a term that has different meanings, depending on the context in which it is used, but generally denotes a broader notion of reality than what would be assumed in the current context.-Usage online and in fiction:...
.
Modelsthumb|200px|Alesya Nazarova modeling a dress by [[bebe stores|bebe]]A model , sometimes called a mannequin, is a person who is employed for the purpose of displaying and promoting fashion clothing or other products and for advertising or promotional purposes or who poses for works of art.Modeling...
are usually described as photogenic. The bone structure of their faces may represent something that is not generally pretty or may be even unattractive or frail looking, but when photographed, their features can turn into something that is
physically attractivePhysical attractiveness is the perception of the physical traits of an individual human person as aesthetically pleasing or beautiful, and can include various implications such as sexual attractiveness and physique...
.
There are a few different possible causes for this.
A
photogenic subject (generally a person), is a subject that usually appears
physically attractivePhysical attractiveness is the perception of the physical traits of an individual human person as aesthetically pleasing or beautiful, and can include various implications such as sexual attractiveness and physique...
or striking in
photographA photograph is an image created by light falling on a light-sensitive surface, usually photographic film or an electronic imager such as a CCD or a CMOS chip. Most photographs are created using a camera, which uses a lens to focus the scene's visible wavelengths of light into a reproduction of...
s. Photogenic drawing, coined by
William Fox TalbotWilliam Henry Fox Talbot was the inventor of the negative / positive photographic process, the precursor to most photographic processes of the 19th and 20th centuries. He was also a noted photographer who made major contributions to the development of photography as an artistic medium...
, also describes the earliest method for recording camera images.
The state of being photogenic may or may not necessarily be related to one's physical attractiveness in
real lifeReal life is a term that has different meanings, depending on the context in which it is used, but generally denotes a broader notion of reality than what would be assumed in the current context.-Usage online and in fiction:...
.
Modelsthumb|200px|Alesya Nazarova modeling a dress by [[bebe stores|bebe]]A model , sometimes called a mannequin, is a person who is employed for the purpose of displaying and promoting fashion clothing or other products and for advertising or promotional purposes or who poses for works of art.Modeling...
are usually described as photogenic. The bone structure of their faces may represent something that is not generally pretty or may be even unattractive or frail looking, but when photographed, their features can turn into something that is
physically attractivePhysical attractiveness is the perception of the physical traits of an individual human person as aesthetically pleasing or beautiful, and can include various implications such as sexual attractiveness and physique...
.
There are a few different possible causes for this. First, it's important to understand the difference between looking at someone with two eyes and through a single camera lens. With two eyes, the human brain is able to see the three dimensional aspects of someone's face, even when viewed directly from the front, and it gives much more information than most cameras. With a camera, the subject is viewed through a single lens, and thus much of the three dimensional qualities of the face are lost, and the face may seem narrower, less full, or with different proportions, especially when viewed at a close proximity. An interesting effect can be seen if one compares a close up picture of someone's face to a picture taken from twenty feet away from the same angle (particularly while directly facing the camera). The face will appear different in each picture, and the farther shot will give a better representation of the person's true three dimensional appearance. A more detailed explanation of this concept can be found in the US patent document for the "imaginograph".
Another explanation for the fact that attractive people are not always photogenic is that part of their attractiveness may be due to the
charismaThe word charisma refers to a trait found in persons whose personalities are characterized by a personal charm and magnetism , along with innate and powerfully sophisticated abilities of interpersonal communication and persuasion...
they bear in real life due to the way they move, express, and carry themselves. While this will positively influence the
subjectiveSubjectivity refers to a person's perspective or opinion, particular feelings, beliefs, and desires. It is often used casually to refer to unsubstantiated personal opinions, in contrast to knowledge and fact-based beliefs. In philosophy, the term is often contrasted with...
appearance of that person in real life, a still photograph usually fails to reproduce these attributes, possibly rendering a picture of the person less attractive than the real-life
perceptionIn philosophy, psychology, and the cognitive sciences, perception is the process of attaining awareness or understanding of sensory information. It is a task far more complex than was imagined in the 1950s and 1960s, when it was predicted that building perceiving machines would take about a decade,...
and contributing to classify that person as less photogenic.
The lighting when the shot is taken can also have a large effect on a person's perceived attractiveness. Also a person's face may look different depending on the angle and intensity of the light being reflected off the face. This effect is magnified when a flash camera is used and may cause undesirable features, such as ridges or bumps to appear more pronounced then they otherwise would. Also lighter skin tones and features may appear washed out when taken from a flash camera.
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