Why do I Look Better in the Mirror Than in Photos?
Are you a person who feels like you look great in the mirror, but find that you don’t take very good photos? You’re not alone! It’s a fairly common occurrence. You get yourself ready to take a picture and you think you look great, but when the picture comes out, somehow things seem a little bit… off.
For many people it is a very, very simple answer, and something that can be done right here in iPiccy. You just have to flip the image! People are often drawn to the familiar, and what most people familiar or comfortable with is the image they see most often. In this case, it would be people seeing themselves in the mirror, this is the image you’ve grown accustomed to seeing.
Which one do you prefer?
For example, many people are familiar with the actor Heath Ledger’s take on the famous villain The Joker. He had a very distinct look, and everyone who has seen the movie The Dark Knight can probably create an image of him in their head. So let’s do that, create what you think he looks like in your head. Now look at these images:
Which one do you prefer? I’m guessing the right image, as it is the one that you’ve likely grown familiar with. It’s a huge difference to see his hair parted to the other side, and his scars flipped isn’t it?
Let’s try this example with an even more famous image that most anyone in the world has probably come across at least once in their life time. The Mona Lisa.
Which do you think looks better? I’m going to take a wild guess, and assume that you prefer the left image. As we’ve previously mentioned, it’s the image you’ve seen repeatedly over time, and the image most similar to the one you have in your memory. Compare this to you seeing yourself every day in the mirror, and there is obviously an image you’ve been conditioned to expect.
Think of it this way – nobody has a truly symmetrical face, correct? Everyone has probably become fairly familiar with their own unique features. Whether it’s that your nose is a little bit crooked, one eyelid hangs a little bit lower, or your smile pulls up more on one side, these are completely normal things. However, when you see your smile pull to the opposite side you’re used to it becomes very jarring.
How you can fix your photo
What can you do about this? It’s simple! The next time you take a picture, upload it to iPiccy, and simply hit “Rotate & Flip” in the editor tab and then horizontally flip your picture, and you will likely notice that the image is much more similar to the one you’re used to seeing in the mirror!