With a camera on every modern mobile phone and with social media broadcasting our photographs to the world at the tap of a button, looking good on camera is a daily worry for many.
But the answer to shining in snaps, according to nearly half of women polled in a new survey, is making sure we always display our more flattering side.
According to the poll, women deemed their right-hand side the more attractive...but the question is,which one do you support?...scroll for more after the cut
And it seems that the stars including Kylie Minogue, Angelina Jolie, Cara Delevingne, Kylie Jenner, Kim Kardashian and Cheryl Fernandez-Versini all agree.
Women said they generally preferred one side over the other because of their hairstyle or parting, the profile of their nose or to avoid a mole or scar.
The survey of 1,000 women, commissioned by an online dating company, found that 23 per cent said their right side was their best, compared to 18 per cent for the left.
Of the real women polled, only 16 per cent boasted that both sides were ‘great’ and 43 per cent said they did not consider an advantage from either side
The marginal preference for the right-hand side, however, might be ill advised.
A 2012 study by American psychologists at Wake Forest University in North Carolina, found that people tend to find the left-side of a face more attractive.
Even when an original photograph is digitally mirror-reversed, the original left-hand profile of both men and women was favoured.
Ariana Grande might be on to something: the star is amongst the famous left-side lovers and according to showbiz blogger Perez Hilton demands to be photographed and filmed only from the left at all times.
The researchers in that study found that not only did more people state that they preferred the look of left-hand cheeks, they also had larger pupil sizes when looking at them, signifying pleasure.
The psychologists said the bias towards the left might be linked to the division of the brain. The right-hand side of the brain, which is linked to emotion, controls the left-hand side of the face.
It means that the left-hand side of the face is more likely to display emotions.
The US psychologists said at the time: ‘Our results suggest that posers’ left cheeks tend to exhibit a greater intensity of emotion, which observers find more aesthetically pleasing.’
But whichever side is a better bet, the latest research indicates that the boom in social media has made people far more anxious about photographs.
The poll was commissioned by Fuzzy Banter, a new dating app service which blurs users’ profile photos until they feel comfortable enough with their communication to reveal them.
It found that a third of women have become more anxious about having their photo taken since the advent of social media.
A spokesman for the company said: ‘To be visible online these days we need all kinds of photos of ourselves.
‘From the pics we use on social platforms such as Instagram and Twitter, to business profiles like LinkedIn, we always have to consider how we’re presenting ourselves online.
‘But it can be to our detriment - judging too quickly on photos could get in the way of making a real connection with somebody.
‘Online dating in particular tends to rely heavily on display photos, which is a real shame.’
Their report showed that the ‘selfie’ culture has exerted more pressure on women to look attractive in photos, with over half admitting they panic when a photo captures them off-guard.
Rehearsed posing, they said, was key. And four in 10 women said they have practised a full-body pose for whenever a camera is present.
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