Tag cameras

Mirror Images

drstaceynaito Leave a comment

You might not have thought much about this, but your perception of your own face is different than what other people see. The most frequent view we have of ourselves is in a mirror, which is a flipped version of how we really look. However, since the image we see is inverted, we often feel more comfortable with how we look in a mirror, as opposed to photographs. We also have the option of looking at selfies, which are even worse, since they distort our features due to the wide-angle design of the camera lens.

The closest representation of how others see us is via photographs, but depending on the lens type used, even photos can present distortions which don’t accurately represent our faces. We may think the camera is capturing us exactly how others perceive us, but those lenses often make some features more prominent than others, and thus quite different from how we really look. Another big factor which comes into play with looking in a mirror or at a photograph is that both are two-dimensional images, so we can never truly appreciate our own faces as the dynamic, three-dimensional countenances which others see.

There is a concept called the True Mirror which enables us to regard our own faces exactly as others do. For a great TED lecture on face recognition which discusses the True Mirror, check out this link:

I Hate Taking Selfies

drstaceynaito Leave a comment

IMAG0894

Both of my parents used to put me in front of cameras all the time, which largely explains why I am so comfortable in front of them. I am very much at ease before a still camera, and am usually fine in front of a moving one, even if I have to improvise or read cold. I have never really shied away from the camera lens like some people tend to do, and am usually happy to join in a group picture when asked to do so.

All bets are off when I have to take a selfie. I have stubbornly remained on the Android boat and refuse to cross over to the iPhone world, and as a result I have to deal with a camera which, quite frankly, sucks, especially when in selfie mode. I have an oval face, but my phone camera wants to make me look like I have a long, weird horse face! My phone camera is also completely incapable of capturing ideal lighting conditions. Since I want people to see me in my natural, everyday state, and am very reluctant to use filters on my social media posts, I realize that many of my social media posts which feature a selfie don’t exactly make me look my best.

As if that wasn’t enough to discourage me from taking selfies, I also don’t enjoy the process of looking at myself and trying to line up a picture. When someone else is photographing or filming me, I allow myself to relax and trust the person who is capturing my likeness. When I take selfies with my phone, I become easily and quickly bored with the activity. It’s not like me to spend massive amounts of time in front of a mirror, fussing and primping, so I certainly don’t enjoy spending additional time taking pictures of myself.

Here’s my M.O. for taking selfies: I think of a good setup for the shot, then I take between two and eight selfies. I know you selfie experts are probably horrified by the paltry amount of selfies I take, and are ready to tell me, “No wonder you don’t get good selfies!” I know that the most dedicated Instagram selfie takers will often take over a hundred versions of a selfie and sift through them to find the most flattering images, but I don’t have that kind of time!

I have spoken with branding people who say that it is worth taking time to snap the perfect selfie, but I have careers and a life outside of social media, and in that real world, time is money. If I don’t get my work done, I don’t get paid. And no one will have sympathy for me if I tell them I need a couple of hours each day to take the perfect batch of selfies. Since I also apply a five-minute face each day (concealer, brow pencil, eyeliner, mascara, blush, translucent powder and lipstick…NO foundation, bronzer, eyeshadow, lipgloss for my daily look!), I am not prepping for selfies all the time.

Who else out there hates taking selfies? IMAG0893