"To photograph is to place the head, the eye and the heart on the same axis." (Henri Cartier-Bresson)
What is photographic portrait?
The portrait can show the person as they are, although it can also completely distort them.
Look at your passport photo. Do you recognize yourself? Now, ask your family or friends to show you their passport. Do you feel like you don't recognize them either?
Why do people look so bad in DNI photos? It's very simple, the photographer fails to capture the person.
My way of photographing portraits is unique, I rarely use the flash. On this page specifically there are only 3 photographs in which I have used the flash, the rest I all use the light of the place where I am.