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 p.1 #17 · Identical Twins, How to keep track | |
1) Just resist the urge to dress them identically and only ever change one diaper at a time 
2) If you can't tell the difference does it really matter how the photos are labeled?
While they are identical, as Rob001 pointed out they are mirror images of each other not exact copies. Its unlikely that the right and left sides of each one is perfectly symmetrical. Few faces are. So try this:
Shoot a full face version of each one. Open each photo in Photoshop, select half the face, copy, paste then edit transform horizontal. Do that on both sides of the face and you will wind up with three layers. By moving and then toggling the two upper layers you can view the right side mirrored, then the left side mirror. It will reveal any asymmetry in each face and if there are any minor differences you can't spot by eye looking at them normally. My guess is that the right side mirrored on one will match the left side mirrored on the other, and vis a versa. Once you spot any differences between them in the mirrored versions it will be easier to spot the specific difference when looking at them in person or photos.
When shooting portraits most photographers will not notice slight asymmetry in a face that could be hidden with the simple expedient of shooting an oblique view from the opposite sides. Our brains do very interesting stuff with facial recognition. The more familiar a face becomes the less we actually rely on looking at it carefully to indentify it. Instead we just recognizing the person from shape or body language and that triggers a stored memory of what the person looks like. The same is true for objects. Ever look in vain for your car keys only to find them right under your nose but turned at some odd angle? Your eyes saw the keys, but your brain didn't associate the pattern with your stored memory of what the the keys looked like. So the more familiar the face, the less critically you will tend to actually look at it. Because your brain tells you they are perfectly identical the less you will be inclined to notice the differences than a stranger seeing their photos and not knowing they were twins (if they are not dressed identically). A stranger will look at the faces more critically, trying to decide if they are identical twins or not.
I've trained my eye to look for asymmetry when I evaluate a face prior to shooting or when critiquing a photo because it is the key element in finding the most flattering camera angle. I suggest that mirroring exercise in my tutorials as a way to train the eye to spot asymmetry. There are several sets of twins in my wife's extended family and after studying their faces I have no trouble telling them apart based on asymmetry and the fact they are mirror images not replicants. Most in the family gave up long ago and just call them Kalua (twin in Visayan).
Chuck
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To make things a bit harder, were staying at the in-laws so my main computer is at home, preventing downloads of the pics and organizing them while it's still fresh in my memory.
