Why some people always look bad in photographs

Three, two, one, click!

... ew. 

Do you hear this often? Is it coming out of your mouth, or perhaps those of people around you? If so then you might not be terribly photogenic, an unfortunate debilitation from which many suffer. And, unlike other disorders, this one may prove uncurable.

Some people just don't work in pictures. It's sad, really: they may be perfectly attractive or outstanding in real life, but once that camera comes in something always looks a bit off. And, in some cases, this may not be easy to fix.

There are many reasons why you may look bad in a photograph:

- First, your facial features may naturally cause shadows that lessen the quality of your pictures. A particularly large nose, for example, may constantly place a partial eclipse on your face that will make photographs less-than-desirable. There are ways around this one, though you'll need a lighting kit. Double chins also show up often in pictures, and though this may not bother others it will almost certainly annoy the subject.

- Second, you may have a propensity for posing yourself in odd ways that don't work for a photo. Let someone take a picture of you and make note of how you subconsciously position your body. Is there anything about the pose that may not work in a picture? The person behind the camera is in charge of quality control, so let them tell you what looks best.

- Third, along those same lines, it may be the fault of the photographer. Maybe you've just had a string of bad luck, constantly running into poor photographers. Or, perhaps you consistently use the same one, and they're ALWAYS bad. In either case you need to look for someone with a better sense of proportion and positioning.

- Fourth, the lighting where you get your pictures taken may be bad. This was touched on before, but lighting is important. Poor placement of shadows can age a person by a thousand years, no matter how beautiful they are, and at the same time overexposure of light will quickly ruin a face. There's a careful balance in lighting that must be preserved.

- Fifth, you may be camera shy. Those who don't want to be on camera will seldom arrange their faces in such a way that they'll look good. Their reluctance is all over their face, and often that reluctance does not a good picture make.

- And, sixth, you may simply be over-critical of yourself. Many people consistently dub their pictures worthless and trashy where others would consider them perfectly acceptable. Try to remove that harsh eye for a moment and look at yourself objectively. Really, do they look THAT bad?

There are many other reasons, as well, and in the end getting a good picture may require a lot of tweaking. Ultimately, however, you WILL produce a picture of yourself that you like - it's just a matter of finding the angle that best suits your particular look.