How to find the best side of your face for photos

If American pop star Ariana Grande had her way, we would only ever witness one side of her face.

During her Australian visit last week, the Bang Bang singer made headlines for her seriously diva-like demands – including her blanket ban on interview questions about Justin Bieber and Mariah Carey.

But what really fascinated us was Ariana’s stipulation that photographers were only allowed to snap the left side of her face. As you can see from her Instagram selfies, she really does have a formula going on:

At first the reports made us scoff. How vain! How ridiculous!

And yet, anyone who takes a lot of selfies will probably discover very quickly that a slight tilt of the head this way or that can make all the difference. Human faces are all a little asymmetrical so figures that one side might be more photogenic than the other.

So how do you figure out which side is a winner?

This is what to do, according to Lifehacker:

Fold a piece of paper vertically over one side of your face, then the other, says Ian Spanier, a photographer in New York City. Your better side is the one with more upturned features—for example, the corners of your eyes and lips.

If that move doesn’t provide any enlightenment, research suggests your best bet is to follow Beyonce’s hallowed words and direct the lens ‘to the left, to the left’… side of your face, that is. The left side tends to be more upturned, and therefor more attractive in pictures.

So, it seems 21-year-old Ariana isn’t so crazy after all. One of our writers has a friend who has only shown one side of her face in photos for years. Another admitted to pre-planning her position in group photos, or switching places mid-shot, to get the best result.

After finding our best side – we might do the same.

So. Which is your best side? 

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