Why is there a difference between the way we see ourselves in a mirror and what we really look like to others?

Question

For the longest time I thought I looked the way I did in the mirror. Then I saw my senior pictures and realized how different I really looked to others. Why do our eyes see ourselves differently?

Answer 1

I believe that what we see in the mirror is our true reflection of ourselves, both from what is shown and how we feel about our own self image, the way others view this image of ourself could be based on thier own ideas of beauty...simply put..everyone has a different idea of what looks good and what doesn't.

Answer 2

I would think that u really look the way u look in a mirror it is the picture that is different; remember despite what’s been said and done our eyes still totally own every camera in existence. What u see in a mirror is the reflected light and thus optically it will be more correct on a picture which undergoes the additional step of absorbing and storing the image then having light hit it and reflect to ur eye producing an image. Also remember for seniors photos I think the pictures have all been edited to reduce blemish thus it is not a true representative of how u look (this may not necessary be true for ur school but for mine they told us that it has all been edited to look better). Finally when u look in a mirror ur usually a distance of 10~20 cm from urself which is definitely not true for a camera or other people who usually are at least 1 meter from u at all times and thus see u from a greater distance; distance counted! Most people look better from a distance. Incidentally there’s a report that state that this may be why we close our eyes when we kiss; it’s because we can’t stand to look at one another from a distance of less than 10 cm where u can see all the blemishes, pit and hole in the face of ur lover so we close our eyes and project an image of how they look from our usual perspective ie 1 meter or more away and also this may be why most people turn their light off when they’re getting busy in the sack…

Answer 3

the human mind is a very wierd and plastic thing in how it perceives the information passed to it by the eyes... it'll put it's own spin on things to make the more familiar and easier to work out. you get used to your own look so you tend to mentally tune out the bits you don't want to see... e.g. i only realise just how spherical my stomach is when there's a towel wrapped around it for some reason - if it were socially acceptable i'd go round wearing a towel all thru next summer as a guaranteed way to make the pounds fall off! (til then, most of the time, i only feel slightly overweight.... other people i know see me as anything between fairly normal, thru my own view, to quite podgy)

in the case of the photograph, there'll be a few things that are jarring you here...
1/ it's backwards to how you normally see yourself, in the left/right concern (try looking in the window of an electronics store that has a video camera on display and seeing if you "feel different" there too).
2/ the camera will have almost certainly captured the image at a totally different height/position and incident angle to the one you're usually used to viewing yourself at, with unfamiliar lighting.
3/ your clothes may well have been wierd - an academic gown or a snugly fitting suit, exhibiting different body contouring from your normal attire.
4/ there would almost certainly have been a few weeks gap between the picture being taken and the print arriving - even if only by a tiny degree, you will have aged since; have a different tone to your skin depending on ambient temperature, level of excitement etc; have longer (or shorter!) hair, maybe in a different style; etc.

particularly if you'd been made subconciously aware of these gradual changes by seeing your reflection regularly a good few times since, your internal filtering lobes will have all the wrong information in to apply the usual self-image tweaks to the image in front of you. what you get is, strangely enough, probably a more accurate representation of your real face than what comes from your own two eyes whilst staring at yourself over toothpaste and razor every day. unless you're a real wreck in the morning, or are in a depressive slump where you think you look like that bad even when you don't, it might not quite live up to expectations. I'm pretty sure my dad doesn't think his own belly is as large as it is and the rest of us see it, and is probably shocked every time he sees a photo of himself :)

plus... as it's generally a fair bit smaller... you get the whole effect at once. though you wouldn't even know it, your eyes only see one bit of you in the mirror in clear focus at any one time, and scan around quickly to complete the whole image - this could also be having an effect.

same effect as hearing yourself back on tape (or, i guess, mp3 / solid state dictaphone), except with less of a physical basis... in that case you've both got your internal voice (which comes up with what you want to say) that you sometimes hear as much as or more than your actual speech, and the resonant bones of your head / the distance and angle between your mouth and ears distorting the true sound of your voice into what you hear and THINK is your voice :)

Answer 4

we see ourselves "reversed" in a mirror for 1 thing.

Answer 5

I don't think our eyes have much to do with it. It's our brains. Perception and vision are too far apart to compare.

Answer 6

THIS IS BECAUSE YOUR IMAGE IS REFLECTED OF THE MIRROR