With the adoption of digital photography on a wide scale and advent of new technologies such as 3-D patient imaging, this is an area that is rapidly changing and of interest to both established and novice facial plastic surgeons. Most surgeons have limited experience with photography prior to starting a practice and need guidance in regard to selecting proper equipment, setting up a portrait studio, and obtaining high-quality standardized series of photos that can be used in presentations and publications. There are also a multitude of issues related to managing the vast amount of data that surgeons are now accumulating.

Topics in this publication include: Camera and lens selection; Setting up a medical portrait studio; Photography consent and related legal issues; Pre- and post-operative portrait photography/standardized photos for various procedures; Pitfalls of nonstandardized photography; Morphing images to demonstrate potential surgical outcomes; Photoshop tools and tricks every facial plastic surgeon should know; Intraoperative photography; Digital asset management; Objective facial photograph analysis using imaging software; Evaluating symmetry and facial motion using 3D videography; Research and clinical applications for 3D imaging.