DSD Photo Protocol

Frontal Picture Smiling:

*All pictures should be taken with good lighting (LED light or flash/softbox)

  • 1 meter away from the patient (to prevent distortion).
  • Camera at the patient’s eye level.
  • Phone/camera straight (tripod devices help).
  • Make sure that you can see the same amount of both ears to ensure that the face is not rotated horizontally.
  • Make sure the patient does not lift their chin up or down when smiling (very common!).
  • Make sure the incisal edges are not covered by the lower lip.
  • Maximum smile with the arches at least slightly separated
  • Patient should be looking at the camera.
  • Make sure you put the focus on the patient’s mouth, this way it will be the sharpest area of the picture.

Frontal Picture at Rest:

*All pictures should be taken with good lighting (LED light or flash/softbox)

  • 1 meter away from the patient (to prevent distortion).
  • Camera at the patient’s eye level.
  • Phone/camera straight (tripod devices help).
  • Make sure that you can see the same amount of both ears to ensure that the face is not rotated horizontally.
  • Make sure the patient does not lift their chin up or down.
  • Ask the patient to make a prolonged ‘m’ sound with ‘lazy’ lips to get the best position.
  • Some patients will struggle to get this position correct. You can record a video of them making this sound and then take a screenshot.
  • Patient should be looking at the camera.
  • Make sure you put the focus on the patient’s mouth, this way it will be the sharpest area of the picture.

Profile Picture Smiling:

*All pictures should be taken with good lighting (LED light or flash/softbox)

  • 1 meter away from the patient (to prevent distortion).
  • Camera at the patient’s eye level.
  • Phone/camera straight (tripod devices help).
  • Right profile (always!).
  • Patient should be looking at the horizon.
  • Make sure the patient does not lift their chin up or down when smiling (very common!).
  • Make sure the incisal edges are not covered by the lower lip.
  • Maximum smile with the arches at least slightly separated.
  • Make sure you put the focus on the patient’s mouth, this way it will be the sharpest area of the picture.

Profile Picture at Rest:

*All pictures should be taken with good lighting (LED light or flash/softbox)

  • 1 meter away from the patient (to prevent distortion).
  • Camera at the patient’s eye level.
  • Phone/camera straight (tripod devices help).
  • Right profile (always!).
  • Patient should be looking at the horizon.
  • Make sure the patient does not lift their chin up or down .
  • Ask the patient to make a prolonged ‘m’ sound with ‘lazy’ lips to get the best position.
  • Some patients will struggle to get this position correct. You can record a video of them making this sound and then take a screenshot.
  • Make sure you put the focus on the patient’s mouth, this way it will be the sharpest area of the picture.

Frontal 12 o’clock Picture:

*All pictures should be taken with good lighting (LED light or flash/softbox)

  • Camera: take this photo with the patient lying down in the dental chair and you standing behind.
  • Phone: take this photo with the patient sitting on a chair or standing. Ask the patient to place their chin near to their chest.
  • Patient should be looking at the camera.
  • Make sure that you can see the same amount of both ears to ensure that the face is not rotated horizontally.
  • Maximum smile.
  • Make sure the incisal edges are not covered by the lower lip.
  • If the patient has wear, short teeth or long lip and incisal edges are not shown: ask the patient to lift their lip with their fingers in the smile direction until you are able to see tooth structure.
  • At least the incisal edges from canine to canine should be shown.
  • How do we know when we have a good 12 o’clock position? The tip of the nose should be at the beginning of the upper lip in this view and not cover the teeth.
  • Make sure you put the focus on the patient’s mouth, this way it will be the sharpest area of the picture.

Video:

*All pictures should be taken with good lighting (LED light or flash/softbox)

  • Repeat the whole protocol in case you need to take some screenshots of any position. This is also important to evaluate dynamics, function and esthetics.
  • Make sure you record a short interview with the patient, talking about their wishes and expectations.
  • Always ask positive questions! (What do you like about your smile? What makes a beautiful smile for you?).

STL models in occlusion:

  • Make sure you do a good quality scan of all tooth structure and as much soft tissue as possible. Make sure the occlusion is the right one before you scan.
  • When you are scanning the upper, it’s also important to scan the palatal area in order to work with the files.
For Further Information on The 6 Key DSD Photos
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