Judging the appearance of a potential online mate, soley from photos, can be nerve-racking. No matter how many photos a woman has on her profile, I always find myself with my nose about half-an-inch from the screen looking out for subtleties I may have missed at first glance: does she have a giant chin? stubby oompa-loompa arms? a lazy eye? Yeah, I’ve met a few surprises in my day, and yes, I think looks are important. If you’re going to be motivated enough to get to know this cutie, she better be – well – a cutie.

So, what have I learned to look out for in my many experiences of transitioning from 2D to 3?

1. No photos, or just one or two. When I first started meeting women online, you were really lucky if you could find one who had a scanned-in photo to share. Now, there is no excuse for not having at least three photos on a profile, with one straight-on face shot and one shot that gives you a good idea of her body type. If she doesn’t have enough photos – well, asking for more can be a sticky situation, so you may want to move on.
2. Old photos. Admittedly, this is a tough one to figure out, but you may notice she looks alot younger in the body shot than in some of the other shots. Also, if there is a big sign that says “Senior prom ’97″ in the background, that’s another clue.
3. No body shot. Is body type important to you? Probably. Is honesty important, too? I hope so. So if the “body type” field says “slender,” and the lone top-of-the-shoulder you see in the few photos she has up hints otherwise, don’t hesitate to pass this one up.
4. Too good to be true. There doesn’t seem to be alot of spammers on Match.com, but on occassion you’ll run into a profile that consists of photos that are a bit too “professional” (like something out of the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition, except probably not that obvious). Give that “girl” your personal e-mail address, and you’ll be getting e-mails with addresses to ”her” ”webcam” for the rest of your life.
5. Watch out for “The Angles.” This is the most important thing to look out for (thus the title of the post). Sure, she may look pretty cute, on the left side of her, from way above. Be weary of anyone who seems to have avoided putting any straight-on face shot on their profile. If you notice the exact same pose in a number of photos - unless there’s some other really compelling reason you’re into her – run!

For more information on the topic of “The Angles,” refer to this movie:

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