Are you wondering why you look better in a mirror than in a photo? Then you have a lot to learn about mirror selfies and grasp some relevant tips to take your photography to the next level. If you are curious, stay tuned and find out everything in our article.
Social media platforms have taken another level since the inception of the pandemic. People join media for socializing, entertainment, and even education. But, when it comes to the photo angels as well as reflections on the social media platforms, each means something different.
While mirror selfies might have started like a flash-heavy self-portrait taken informed of a mirror in a bathroom or somewhere else, they have also advanced and are now on another level.
Therefore, due to the advanced technology and innovations seen daily, mirror selfies can be taken with the camera mirror facing your front, which is very simple to turn on by toggling the front camera mirror button.
When the modern user term toggling the mirror front camera option as a mirror selfie, the professional photographer means something else. They tend to refer to it traditionally. That is, a picture snapped with the help of mirror reflection while rear-facing the camera. If this sounds awkward, then continue reading. We have rounded up everything you need to know about mirror selfies and how to take a perfect mirror selfie. Get the tips and up your selfie game today.
The History of Mirror Selfie
Since photographers bases their definition on the history of mirror selfies, it is worth going back to it. You might think that maybe the mirror selfies were discovered by a self-obsessed teenager who had no a friend to help take a selfie. That is not the case.
The person behind the mirror selfie is General Thomas Baker from Australia, according to the information from Redditor dipset33.
The recent snaps are different from the photos taken back in 1918. By then, the black and white graininess added an air of class. The military uniform Baker looked far more conservative than any photo-worthy ensembles that followed. looking closely at General Baker's subtle pout and sideways gaze, you can spot two classic features found in the modern selfies.
Thus, General Baker paved the way for retaining facebook memories, whereas Gizmodod then used the features to bring out the sense of what we now call mirror selfies. Another professional photographer whose work today is felt in modern photography is F.Holland Day.
How do You Take a Selfie in Mirror Mode?
When using the latest iOS devices, such as iOS 14 and 15, you must first turn on the feature. This is because default settings disable the mirror selfie. Thus, follow the below procedure to turn it on.
Step 1: Launch the Settings application
Step 2: And from the menu, select Camera.
Step 3: Under the composition, make sure you toggle Mirror Front Camera and keep them on.
Step 4: Then go back and launch the Camera application and turn it to face you
Step 5: Once facing the camera, snap the selfie. When you access the saved snaps, you will realize that they appear exactly how you look in a mirror, but it is flipped.
Thus front camera is set to mirror the front camera viewfinder automatically. Hence the settings only interfere with the snaps you save.
And from here, you can notice the side-by-side comparison of a typical selfie, and one snapped with the mirror front you took with the front photo toggled on. If you want to turn it off back to default settings, you can still follow the same procedure.
How to Take a Mirror Selfie?
Mirror selfies give you complete control and are simple than other snaps. Only perfect outfits are not the only thing to take your snapping to a higher level. However, we have gathered some of the relevant tips to help you obtain the perfect mirror selfie:
Lighting and Angle
When you want to take an ideal selfie mirror, make sure you understand the angle. So, use an angle that makes you feel great while snapping the photo. Then pair it with good lighting, where natural lighting is best for a fabulous image.
However, it might take your time just to find the relevant angle. But after that, you will be acceptable to move ahead when you see the spot. This coupled with the perfect background and good lighting, helps you achieve excellent results. Therefore, the bigger your mirror is, the better you can obtain a fab image since you have space to strike a perfect pose.
Nothing can beat natural lighting. And it is also recommended that after sunrise and some minutes before sunset gives the perfect results. Professional photographer refers to these as the golden hours to obtain contemporary lighting magic. If not, you can also use the flash while taking mirror selfies. However, it would help if you also learned how to position the flash.
Excellent Phone Placement
This majorly depends on your needs. But, it is essential to consider a perfect phone placement position. What dictates this is the angle of the phone and the kind of selfie you want the top to achieve in the long run.
Some pro tips suggest holding the phone slightly downward angle on your face when you want to appear leaner. The higher you place the phone, the taller you will appear in a snap.
Comfortability in Front of the Mirror
this is one of the vital things worth attention to. You must keep yourself comfortable while taking a selfie. This means you must take the snap with the outfit you are satisfied with and any situation when you feel happy.
Take Multiple Selfies with Different Angels and Poses
now one needs to be reminded of this and avoid taking a few snaps assuming it is a perfect one. Make sure you take multiple photos under different angles and poses. In the long run, you will at least identify a few that you like. You have numerous options to select from, and this way, burst mode is what can give you a perfect result.
Use Cool Backdrop
avoid using a messy backdrop. It can easily ruin your mirror selfie in this case. Go for the pleasing backdrop and some of the fantastic locations of the bathroom or shop. With a perfect backdrop, you can level up your game.
Select the Correct Aspect Ratio
This depends on where you want to post the selfie after snapping. And we covered more on the aspect ratio in the previous article. But just to brush through, iPhone offers you three aspect ratios of 16:9, 1:1, and 4:3, where 4:3 guarantees high resolution for the landscaped photo.
But once you have selected the proper aspect ratio, kindly make sure you have locked the focus and exposure before taking the mirror selfie. The best thing is to utilize the AE or AF option to lock while keeping the selfie subject through the photoshoot.
Mirror Selfie Caption
The struggle for snapping a perfect mirror selfie doe not just stop when you finish taking the snap but also continues when you post on social media platforms. Therefore, when you post the photo, the caption also matters.
You should make sure you couple your good mirror selfie with a creative caption to look more mysterious. There are many samples of captions, but it all depends on the target and the kind of mirror selfie you are posting.
Why Do I Look Better in the Mirror?
You might realize the contrast between the typical mirror selfie and how you look in the mirror is different. When you look at yourself in the mirror, you might realize that your appearance is so perfect and ready to take a mirror selfie, but you are crushing down your confidence in the long run.
Therefore, if this is the case and you need to know why you look better in the mirror, then we are here to sort you settle the doubts. Consider these facts and relate keenly to find out:-
- Familiarity with the mirror
You must understand that the most concrete thing about the mirror is that a photo in the mirror is simply a reflection of the actual subject under study. Be familiar with this fast at the fingertip. And the same applies even when you do various activities such as brushing your teeth, combing your hair, or even applying makeup to the body to be ready to face the day.
Because most people are used to seeing the image in the mirror daily, and you tend to depend on confidence with it, the moment you spot the face, but in a reversed mode on the mirror selfie, you find yourself uncomfortable.
- Mirror, mirror on the wall
The fact remains that when you see an image through the mirror, you tend to perceive it as your original reflection in the long run. Thus, you develop a better looking at your mirror image instead of the selfie. This means that when you face a snap of your face, you find it unique and might not admit the real you since it is reversed than in real mirror cases in which you are sued to it.
Because of this, most people feel that they are the least photogenic when taking group photos because everybody's face is simply as you see them in real life as opposed to your face. The other aspect that comes to play is photo asymmetry.
This is also vital where the reflection or the mirror dials downwards. The only exception is when you were born with a symmetrical face. Otherwise, there are high chances that you will always hate the mirror selfie for turning out the candids looking wonky.
- Camera angle
There is absolutely a reason you must often click multiple times and then only snap a single photo before you finish photoshoot sessions. Then you can have various options to select, remove the unwanted mirror selfies and upload the pleasing one of the social media platforms or platforms you wish to share with. Mirror selfies are real-life photos in daily life but put in the two dimensions.
Thus, images are often flattened, which is the pictures are distorted based on the camera angles. Photo keeps everything and every moment, and so when you make unwanted movements during the session and you snap without noticing, you will capture them for anyone you share with to see.
A perfect mirror selfie or typical photo combines the above pro tips and good lighting, pose, and angle. Using the harsh light from the phone device can help you highlight every subject that you do not even find unique in real life. We highly recommend sticking to natural lighting to obtain incredible and flattering photos.
Conclusion
mirror selfies have been around for a while and are still trending because of the advancement in apple products. However, to bring the best out of yourself and take photography to the next level, you need to learn the above tricks and tips and how to turn it on. Otherwise, we have shared a detailed guide, and together with your determination, you can obtain a spectacular mirror selfie and share it with your social media audience.
