How come I look different?

[Anonymous]

depending on the phone i look like a diff person when taking selfies. sometimes less desirable sometimes more

[MrOracle]

Front-facing cameras use a very wide-angle lens - almost a fish-eye lens - which means you're going to get barrel distortion - which means anything in the center of the frame is going to be bigger than it really is and anything on the edges of the frame are going to be smaller. For most people, this is not ideal, which is why it is best to avoid selfies and instead find someone ELSE to take your picture for you, using the BACK camera and standing farther away. This will help flatten out your face and you'll look more natural.

The shorter the focal length of the lens (the smaller the mm measurement), the wider-angle the lens is and the more barrel distortion you get. Notice on the 24mm lens picture, the girl's nose is huge and the edges of her face seem to wrap around the back of her head - that's what barrel distortion does. And as you use lenses with longer focal lengths, you get a flatter and flatter image (less and less barrel distortion), which gives a more "normal" looking image.

The selfie camera is going to be the widest-angle lens on your phone, and is going to have the worst barrel distortion, so don't use it. At LEAST get a stand and use the timer on your phone and take timered "selfies" with the back camera. Better, have someone else take the picture, and for BEST results, have someone else take a picture with a REAL camera instead of a smartphone.

Then there's the issue of lighting. Many people take "mirror selfies" in the bathroom, but most bathrooms have a light that is only up above the person, and this results in harsh shadows in your eye sockets, under your nose, maybe your cheeks, and under your chin, that make you look terrible. Ideally, you want a LOT of DIFFUSED light that cancels nearly all of the shadows - which is why professional portraits use several lights with umbrella reflectors that scatter light in all directions and cancel out the shadows. A camera is merely a device that records light, so good lighting is CRITICAL for good photography. Hell, for movies, there's an entire DEPARTMENT of people whose entire job is to work on the lighting of each scene and camera angle, because it's THAT important.

It really doesn't take THAT much time or THAT much work to vastly improve your pictures of yourself - but you DO have to make SOME effort. Use the best camera you can with the longest lens you can, and make sure the lighting is good (meaning it's diffused and coming from below as well as above).

[Asker]

But the difference is really drastic. Especially with cheaper ones. I become an ogre! iPhone - bombshell

[MrOracle]

Sure. Premium phones do lots of post-processing on photos - which is one of the reasons they cost more. This post-processing requires more CPU/GPU power and more programming, and that programming is very sophisticated and there are only a couple dozen people on the planet who do it well, and their services cost a lot of money. Less expensive phones have to save money anywhere they can, and doing minimal post-processing of photos is an easy area to save money on.

Which is why I said: use the best camera you can, with the longest lens you can, and the best lighting you can.

[Asker]

i recently tried taking pics at night with Pixel 6 and iPhone 15 respectively. they are DIFFERENT. i guess one could still tell this is the same person, but the difference is really significant.

[Oliverlogan263]

Ugh sis I feel you, it's so annoying how phone cameras can totally change your look sometimes! One minute you're feelin yourself taking selfies then you see the pic and you're like who is that?

It's cuz different cameras have different lenses and settings. Like on Snapchat I look straight busted compared to my actual face. But then sometimes my friend will take pictures of me on her iPhone and I'm like dang who is that baddie.

I think it has to do with like pixel sizes and lighting and all that tech stuff I don't really get. But your features can look sharper or softer depending on the lens quality. And of course the dreaded front camera versus the main one is always a gamble of how it distorts your face a little.

My advice is play around with natural lighting to get the best shots. And don't stress too much girl, we all have those unflattering phone pics, that's just life. As long as you feel confident in your own skin that's all that matters! Screw what any phone thinks you look like.

[Asker]

so what is my ACTUAL face?

[Oliverlogan263]

Ah man, it's tough to say what your actual face really looks like from just selfies. Cameras can distort things so much sometimes. I think the best thing is to try not to focus too much on the little details that cameras might exaggerate.

Honestly, most people probably see you differently in real life than any photo could ever capture. When someone meets you in person, they see your whole vibe, energy and personality - not just some still images. Plus little things like how your face moves when you smile, laugh or talk can't really be shown the same way.

I'm sure your actual face is beautiful! Don't stress too much about tiny camera flaws. As long as you feel good about yourself, that's what will come across to others the most. Guys aren't sitting around analyzing every pixel of your selfies anyway. We notice the whole package.

Just try to enjoy photos for what they are - little snapshots, not perfect representations. Your real face in motion is way better than any picture! So don't overthink it. Just be yourself and radiate that confidence, 'cause that's what makes someone truly attractive.