Hmm. I'm a little dense, Wade, what you're saying doesn't make much sense to me. I understand what you mean by negative space, but "angle on the head?" "Broken by the nose?" Not getting it.
I can certainly get rid of that border. Not today, but next time I dink around with PS.
Buff-
You can use a tool in photoshop that "dumps a bucket" of color into an area. Looks like a little paint bucket icon. However, most times when I get a black backdrop like that, it is simply an ill-lit background, and employing a flash to light the subject. Or, adjusting the contrast and brightness levels can do the same thing.
HD