Why do I look thinner in photos than in mirror?

klackey23
klackey23 Posts: 26
in Health and Weight Loss
I've always heard the old saying that the camera adds 10 pounds, but now that I've lost all this weight, when I see photos of myself or take a quick shot with my iPhone, I feel like I look thinner in the *photo* than when I am just looking in the mirror. Anyone else experience this? Is it some sort of weird body image thing?


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Replies

  • daydream_believer
    daydream_believer Posts: 332
    i feel the same way! i guess it all just comes down to the fact that we look in the mirror quite frequently and get used or dont notice the changes as much because they are small. we are often in photos less frequently then looking in a mirror so it reveals the changes (weightloss) over a longer time frame.. making it more evident. also looking at yourself through the mirror is a different (and much closer) perspective. hope that helps :)
  • nancycaregiver
    nancycaregiver Posts: 812 Member
    You need a new mirror! :laugh:
  • triinityz
    triinityz Posts: 146 Member
    Happens to me too... your mind/emotional self still thinks you are heavier than you are. Trust the camera/clothes and your mind will catch up at some point (still waiting on mine!)
  • kathleennf
    kathleennf Posts: 606 Member
    I noticed that too. And they say "the camera adds 10 pounds." Weird.
  • 1990sophia1990
    1990sophia1990 Posts: 225 Member
    I have this too it's so weird!
  • ashlinmarie
    ashlinmarie Posts: 1,263 Member
    I look fat in both :( But in my mind, I feel that I am thinner than I actually am.
  • foleyshirley
    foleyshirley Posts: 1,043 Member
    Happens to me too... your mind/emotional self still thinks you are heavier than you are. Trust the camera/clothes and your mind will catch up at some point (still waiting on mine!)

    This!
  • kodom_123
    kodom_123 Posts: 117 Member
    Hahahashahaha...i was just telling my friend that I think I have reverse body image disfunction, whatever lol.
    I told her "I see people, like on the bigest loser, that weight the same as me or less and I think 'I DO NOT look like that'..."
    I told her that I think my scale must be a filthy liar cuz I do not feel like I look like I weigh 240 lbs! lol
    She told me it was all about confidence and attitude...how you see yourself...
    I told her that I am not sure that's what I wanted to hear hahaha.
  • Neveone
    Neveone Posts: 8
    I have it the other way around. I am always shocked when I see pictures even though I thought I would look good in the mirror...
  • livitup85
    livitup85 Posts: 231 Member
    Maybe because when you're looking at yourself in the mirror you are fairly close to the mirror and in pictures you are further away?
  • DanaDark
    DanaDark Posts: 2,187 Member
    I have BDD. I am fat in everything. >.>

    Our minds play a lot of terrible tricks on us! Go my logic and reasoning rather than simply your own perception when it comes to some of these things.

    P.S. People will remember the photo, not you in the mirror.
  • cassienoe
    cassienoe Posts: 126 Member
    How funny I have noticed the same thing! I think in the mirror we have a preconceived criticism of ourselves, whereas in photos we're not expecting it so it catches us off guard. Honestly I have no idea...
  • piggydog
    piggydog Posts: 322
    Angles make up huge part of it....
  • TheNewDodge
    TheNewDodge Posts: 607 Member
    your mirror is a d1ck
  • LiftAllThePizzas
    LiftAllThePizzas Posts: 17,857 Member
    The mirror moves when you do as well as being at the same angle all the time.

    It may be some sort of self-recognition thing, where your mind overrides the input with its own internal image instead of using what's hitting your eyes. This is what many optical illusions are based on. Much of our perception is warped and not nearly as accurate as we think it is.

    I have always wondered, for people who have body image misperceptions, if covering or blocking out your face/head in the reflection or photo changes your perception of the "body" you are seeing. (Or if you otherwise make it so you don't immediately recognize yourself.)
  • sgv0918
    sgv0918 Posts: 851 Member
    i feel that way too. I think its a giant mindf*ck
  • brunetteavoxgirl
    brunetteavoxgirl Posts: 88 Member
    Angles make up huge part of it....
    I read this as "angels" at first.
    Anyway, I look thinner in photos because I stage it that way. haha.
  • meshashesha2012
    meshashesha2012 Posts: 8,329 Member
    break up with your mirror
  • CarlieeBear
    CarlieeBear Posts: 325 Member
    I tend to have the opposite problem...I agree that it's at least partly mental. However, it could also be the length of the lens and/or distance between you and the camera as well as the lighting and angle the pic was taken from.

    My BA is in photojournalism :-)
  • Otterluv
    Otterluv Posts: 9,083 Member
    Ha! I'm the reverse, I look better in the mirror, pictures are always a disappointment. Maybe I'm just an optimist. Or maybe my mirror is warped and makes me look thinner to myself.

    Anyway, just stop looking in the mirror (I stopped looking at photos, and that seems to be working just fine).
  • xjmcx
    xjmcx Posts: 27
    I have it the other way around. I am always shocked when I see pictures even though I thought I would look good in the mirror...

    THIS! I look in the mirror and think i look awesome, and then I see photos and I'm like WHOA! and absolutley hate them!
  • klackey23
    klackey23 Posts: 26
    Interesting to read all the responses. When I was heavy -- it was the opposite -- I would look in the mirror and be like 'I look OK' then I'd see myself in a photo and go, "WHAT I don't look that fat, do I?"

    I agree with one of the posters here -- I think my mind/emotional self has to catch up with my new weight.
  • ginchybird
    ginchybird Posts: 3 Member
    Mirrors are tricky devils. Not all mirrors are created equal. Some will make you look bigger while others make you look smaller. A lot of stores use mirrors in dressing rooms that makes you look thinner so you'll buy the clothes. I have 3 different mirrors in my house that I can look in for full body and all 3 of them are very different in how I look. I always use my iphone camera and camcorder to snap pics and videos of what I put on to see what it really looks like. I don't think the 10lb gain rule on camera is true for modern day photography/filming.
  • nxd10
    nxd10 Posts: 4,570 Member
    Maybe you see yourself more objectively?

    I always look way fatter in pictures than in the mirror.

    BUT my logitec camera for the computer makes me look thin. Regular digital cameras make me look fat. That's a lens issue.
  • Beautifulsoull
    Beautifulsoull Posts: 136
    Maybe cause you haven't came to relize that your getting smaller? I don't go by the mirror cause I still see problem areas everywhere that I want to fix right now but it doesn't happen like that. I like to take 10lb difference pictures and put it side by side so I can see the difference right there. If you use a before and during/after photo you see the difference clearier. Keep track of your measurements and go by clothes. I have " I feel fatter day then yesterday" all the time and that can be due to every day things, stress, bloating, water gain, etc.
  • OutsideCreativ
    OutsideCreativ Posts: 143 Member
    Take picture of yourself in the mirror... then repeat in one week... look a the pictures side by side, maybe you'll see a difference?
  • hkmurphy83
    hkmurphy83 Posts: 262 Member
    I guess I'm the opposite. I've been thinking I'm starting to look pretty good until I had my honey take some BEFORE pics (I'm starting Fluidity today) of me last night. I know I have a long ways to go but the pics were WAY worse that what I thought I was seeing in the mirror.

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