this post was submitted on 24 May 2025
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Anon reflects on a conundrum (sh.itjust.works)
submitted 1 week ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]
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[–] [email protected] 26 points 6 days ago (5 children)

This mirrored/asymmetrical stuff is mostly wrong. It can definitely cause an "uncanny" vibe but doesn't explain why you're a 7/10 in the mirror and a 3/10 in a photo.

You look different in the mirror versus photos because of the different focal length, different depth of field, and different angle.

I look pretty good to my own eye in the mirror but look like an absolute blumpkin in photos. However, you can take a pretty good selfie that looks like what you see in the mirror by placing the camera about 4 feet away from you and at a slightly elevated angle.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 6 days ago

i believe that being photogenic is definitely a thing. i don't know if it's bone structure that reflects light a certain way, or the stillness vs motion, or just attitude, but there is something about some people that makes them look way better or way worse in photos.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 6 days ago

Distance is 90% of it. Everyone looks better from typical conversation distance, and worse up close.

Focal length and depth of field only allow you to get good framing at different distances. There is no lens that makes a selfie at 2 feet look as good as a photo from 6 feet.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 6 days ago

Exactly. If anon is taking a selfie, the fish-eye effect of phone camera lenses can seriously distort your face. Especially when used up-close.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 5 days ago

also, it helps quite a bit to look at a point slightly above the camera lens when getting photographed - at least the photos of me became a lot better

[–] [email protected] 17 points 6 days ago* (last edited 6 days ago)

It's probably just an old low resolution mirror. Anon's ugliness is in the fine grain detail that the camera can better pick up

[–] [email protected] 19 points 6 days ago (2 children)

The part of yourself that's looking good is your vampire descent (everyone's 1/1000th vampire after all as vampires were landlords that fucked everything that moved back in the 13th century) and that's not visible on photo.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 5 days ago

I thought it was the opposite.

Ugly vampire spawn features not visible in mirror, but camera captures it?

[–] [email protected] 3 points 6 days ago

This is the most reasonable conclusion, thank you for telling me the truth!

[–] [email protected] 24 points 6 days ago (1 children)

Just take a picture of the mirror bro

[–] [email protected] 6 points 6 days ago

Yeah show it what it's like to be ridiculed

[–] [email protected] 7 points 6 days ago

The solution is to talk to women in person while you're a 7 instead of over the internet where you're a 3

[–] [email protected] 7 points 6 days ago (2 children)

The amount of people in the comments who don't immediately know this is because our faces are slightly asymmetrical and we're used to seeing them in the mirror is concerning.

Other people get the same effect when they see your face mirrored.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 6 days ago (1 children)

I knew this, I just disagree completely. Flipping the image doesn't help, but changing the focal length does. It's not the mirrored image, it's the lens distortion

[–] [email protected] 1 points 5 days ago

That too. Cameras have to be further away than a human to emulate what humans would experience at a certain distance.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 6 days ago (2 children)

so ... you could just "flip" photos and make them look good? Why didn't phone makers recognize this and build this into their apps?? I think you just revolutionized the mobile phone industry.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 6 days ago

They only look good to the person taking a photo. Anyone else thinks you look weird due to that effect.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 6 days ago

I think many used to, but any text in the background became unreadable

[–] [email protected] 91 points 1 week ago (6 children)

Short distance to subject and wide angle camera lens makes bad photos

[–] jwt 14 points 6 days ago

Yes, I think focal length and lighting are the main culprits:

[–] [email protected] -2 points 6 days ago

Not necessarily

[–] [email protected] 41 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Every cellphone camera is objectively terrible at capturing human features

[–] [email protected] 29 points 1 week ago

Helps if you angle the camera down slightly, actually funny story about AI... There was this site a few years ago that would give you a masculine/femanine score based on a selfie, I discovered all it was really checking was the angle of the face because men tend to take photos straight on and women know to take the photo with your face at an angle. (But NEVER an upward angle)

[–] [email protected] 18 points 1 week ago

In addition to this (the effects of which are far more pronounced than the 'mirror image' theory btw — flipping a camera shot doesn't tend to make a strong difference after all), a photo is just, well, a snapshot. It can't pick up the subtle movements in expressions that add to your visual personality. If we all went about with a static photo expression on our faces, we'd look weird as fuck.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 week ago

You said it better than me.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 week ago

Ooooooh.

[–] [email protected] 58 points 1 week ago (2 children)

take a picture of the mirror, dumbass

[–] [email protected] 13 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Confirmed, fixes the issue

I'm 99% sure it's me noticing flaws because I recognise it's mine but it's very different due to mirroring

Like, damn, my face is slanted as fuck when mirrored...

[–] [email protected] 11 points 6 days ago (2 children)

Not really, it’s the distance, mirror doubles it. Selfies of most people look horrible, even if flipped, due to the camera’s distortion from the short distance.

Any time I had professional photos taken for work, the photographer stood at least 3 meters (10 feet) away, maybe even more.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 6 days ago (1 children)

Aw, does this mean that spy satellites exist to create the sexiest possible pictures of everyone on earth? Thank you Big Brother

[–] [email protected] 2 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago)

Absolutely, just lay down on a beach or by a pool in a bathing suit posing like Salma Hayek / Jack Black for a while, then just send in a request for your photos to NASA with the timeframe and coordinates.

They will reduce the resolution a little and do some filtering as to not reveal the exact capabilities of their optics.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 6 days ago (1 children)

does ... does that mean that people would look weird if you creep very close to them irl too?

[–] [email protected] 3 points 5 days ago (1 children)

Why would you creep, and not just walk up to them and go "Hey, sorry, I just need to see if you look weird." like a normal person?

[–] [email protected] 1 points 5 days ago (1 children)

it was a joke ^^

[–] [email protected] 1 points 5 days ago (1 children)

Ahhh, sie sind Deutch.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago) (1 children)

Ja.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 5 days ago

Herzliches Beileid...

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 week ago

Ok done.

Now what?

[–] [email protected] 37 points 1 week ago (1 children)

You're used to seeing your mirror image. You aren't perfectly symmetrical, so your reflection looks slightly different than your image in a camera.

[–] [email protected] 10 points 1 week ago (1 children)

I remember seeing a study saying the most attractive people had somewhat asymmetrical faces but there's a sweet spot for it. Attractiveness reduces again if the face is too asymmetrical.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (2 children)

Are you sure it said asymmetrical?

I read something on the topic (though, awhile ago now) and it talked about symmetry being attractive, and even gave Denzel Washington as an example because he had a remarkably symmetrical face.

Wud be really interesting if asymmetry is found attractive now!

[–] [email protected] 2 points 6 days ago (1 children)

Exhibit A:

[–] [email protected] 1 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago)

For Exhibit B, look at Natalie Dormer. I can never get images to link right, so look her up.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 6 days ago (1 children)

Slightly asymmetrical, with emphasis on the slightly. Which is the reason women often drew fake moles on their cheeks in the past, or drew over existing ones to make them bigger (eg Monroe). It's kinda making a comeback lately, I've seen some "influencers" picking the habit back up.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 6 days ago

I noticed kpop idols put on fake moles as part of their look for performances.

[–] [email protected] 19 points 1 week ago

A mirror is a lot easier to use than a camera

[–] [email protected] 9 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

Lmaoa, I remember reading about this.

If I recall correctly, a picture shows how you appear to others whereas the mirror shows you a 'mirrored' image of yourself (e.g., your left side is the reflection's right side).

We are used to seeing our reflection, which then makes pictures of ourselves look strange.

I think selfie cameras intentionally take a mirrored image to avoid this effect. But I've never taken one because I hate looking at myself.

There's a similar phenomenon with hearing ourselves in recordings vs. as we speak.

Edit: as @[email protected] already explained!

[–] andybytes 3 points 1 week ago

I love eating tofu and beef.