Assessment of the reliability of a method for obtaining human facial dimensions from anthropological photographs

Abstract

Introduction. The possibility of using facial photographs as a replacement for direct anthropometric measurements is being considered. The application of traditional anthropometric measurement program is currently facing significant ethical and psychological difficulties, particularly in measurements of the head and face. As a result, anthropologists worldwide are increasingly substituting direct measurements with measurements obtained fr om photographic images. This transition has been significantly facilitated by the advancement of photographic technology. However, the methodology for utilizing photogrammetric data as a full replacement for direct measurements requires further development and a greater number of studies.

Materials and methods. The material for the research consisted of cephalometric data and anthropological photographs of Tuvans examined during the 2002 expedition under the leadership of V.A. Batsevich. The Tuvan sample consisted of 174 individuals, including 87 women and 87 men aged between 17 and 26 years. Statistical data analysis was carried out using the SPSS software package. Correlation analysis methods and regression equations were used to assess the comparability of dimensions obtained through direct anthropometric measurements and from portraits.

Results. A comparison was made between the dimensions obtained in field conditions and their counterparts obtained from photographs. Gender differences were identified in assessing the degree of comparability of facial dimensions obtained by two methods: through portraits and direct measurements. In the female part of the sample, the degree of correlation was higher and the standard error values were lower. It was found that for dimensions (facial height, nose height, upper lip height) that require points difficult to determine on a planar image, lower correlation values were observed. The unreliability of dimensions in this part of the face was confirmed by the results of constructing regression equations and the high standard error obtained for them.

Conclusion. Overall, the photogrammetry method is justified in conditions wh ere direct anthropometric measurements are not feasible. However, further research is needed to optimize the process of placing difficult-to-determine points on a portrait for certain dimensions. © 2025. This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 license

References

Abdushelishvili M.G., Pavlovskiy O.M. IIntegration of schematographic and photographic methods for generalizing facial images and using the resulting portrait as a source of anthropological information. Ethnographic review, 1979, 1, pp. 17-18. (In Russ.).

Bunak V.V. Photographic portraits as material for determining variations in the structure of the head and face. Soviet anthropology, 1959, 2, pp. 5. (In Russ.).

Butovskaya M.L, Veselovskaya E.V., Postnikova E.A. Facial symmetry and severity of gender dimorphism in its proportions in the isanzu people, traditional farmers of East Africa. Experimental psychology, 2015, 8 (4), pp. 77–90. (In Russ.). DOI: 10.17759/exppsy.2015080406.

Goncharova N.N., Castro Stepanova A.A. On the possibility of using anthropological photography to determine linear facial dimensions. Methodical article. Vestnik Moskovskogo universiteta. Serija XXIII. Antropologiya [Moscow University Anthropology Bulletin], 2021, 3, pp. 17-26 (In Russ.). DOI: 10.32521/2074-8132.2021.3.017-026.

Komarova A.V., Butovskaya, M. L., Maurer A.M. Assessment of the comparability of human facial dimensions obtained using direct anthropological measurements and photographs. Lomonosov Journal of Anthropology [Moscow University Anthropology Bulletin], 2024, 3, pp. 69–78. (In Russ). DOI: 10.55959/MSU2074-8132-24-3-6.

Maurer A.M., Batsevich V.A. The young generation of Tuvans in the first quarter of the 21^st century. Composite portraits of schoolchildren and students of Kyzyl. News from the Institute of Anthropology of Moscow State University. 2020. pp.109-116. Available at: http://www.antropos.msu.ru/Izvestya/Izvestya_08.pdf Accessed 05.05.2023

Negasheva M.A. Fundamentals of anthropometry: textbook Moscow, Ekon-Inform Publ., 2017. 216 p. (In Russ.).

Roginsky Ya.Ya., Levin M.G. Anthropology. Textbook. Moscow, Vysshaya Shkola Publ., 1978. 528 p. (In Russ.).

 Aksu M., Kaya D., Kocadereli I. Reliability of reference distances used in photogrammetry. The Angle Orthodontist, 2010, 80 (4), pp. 670-677. DOI: 10.2319/070309-372.1.

Allanson J.E., O'Hara P., Farkas L.G., Nair R.C. Anthropometric craniofacial pattern profiles in Down syndrome. Am. J. Med. Genet., 1993, 47, pp. 748-752.

Butovskaya M.L., Windhager S., Karelin D., Mezentseva A., Schaefer K. et al. Associations of physical strength with facial shape in an African pastoralist society, the Maasai of Northern Tanzania. PLoS ONE, 2018, 13 (5), e0197738.

Butovskaya M.L., Rostovtseva V.V., Mezentseva A.A. Facial and body sexual dimorphism are not interconnected in the Maasai. Journal of Physiological Anthropology, 2022, 41 (1), р.3.

Jones A.L., Jaeger B. Biological bases of beauty revisited: The effect of symmetry, averageness, and sexual dimorphism on female facial attractiveness. Symmetry, 2019, 11 (2), р. 279.

Kleisner K., Tureček P., Roberts S.C., Havlíček J., Valentova J.V. et al. How and why patterns of sexual dimorphism in human faces vary across the world. Scientific reports, 2021, 11 (1), 5978.

Naini F.B., Akram S., Kepinska J., Garagiola U., Mcdonald F. et al. Validation of a new three-dimensional imaging system using comparative craniotacial anthropometry. Maxillofac. Plast. Reconstr. Surg. 2017, 39, 23. DOI: 10.1186/s40902-017-0123-3.

Shaner D.J., Bamforth J.S., Peterson A.E., Beattie O.B. Technical note: Different techniques, different results—a comparison of photogrammetric and caliper-derived measurements. Am. J. Phys.Anthropol., 1998, 106, pp. 547-552. DOI: 10.1002/(SICI)1096-8644(199808)106:4<547::AID-AJPA9>3.0.CO;-F.

Skomina Z., Verdenik M., Hren, N. I. Effect of aging and body characteristics on facial sexual dimorphism in the Caucasian Population. PloS one, 2020, 15 (5), e0231983.

Villanueva-Bonilla S., Vergara-Núñez C., Saavedra-Layera L. Comparación de mediciones antropométricas directa y con sistema de imagen 3D, en adultos jovenes. Revista clinica de periodoncia, implantologia y rehabilitación oral., 2018, 11, pp. 16-19. DOI: 10.4067/S0719-01072018000100016.

Wen Y.F., Wong H.M., McGrath C.P. A longitudinal study of facial growth of Southern Chinese in Hong Kong: Comprehensive photogrammetric analyses. PLoS ONE, 2017, 12 (10), e0186598.

Yamada T., Mori Y., Minami K., Mishima K., Tsukamoto Y. Three-dimensional analysis of facial morphology in normal Japanese children as control data for cleft surgery. Cleft Palate-Craniofac. J., 2002, 39, pp. 517-526.

Zacharopoulos G., Manios A., Kau Ch., Velagrakis G., Tzanakakis G. et al. Anthropometric Analysis of the Face. J. Craniofacial Surg., 2016, 27 (1), pp. 71-75. DOI: 10.1097/SCS.0000000000002231.