lots of white on the head and face usually just means that it's a male "ladybird". I'll have to check Gordon's ref to confirm for this specific species, but it's a good rule for much of the family. Males of some species may also have more white/pale on the pronotum, often connecting the two lateral pale areas along the apical margin.

nice photo!

you've officially entered the land of liliputian ladybeetles :) I'd say you're dead on, I've discovered that color is really variable and that the pattern is the most useful in identification, especially on the thorax and head which don't seem to exhibit the same amount of phenotypic variance as the elytral markings. Great shot of a tiny lady