I've logged onto Facebook once since I got back from five weeks away in China and at camp. I don't want to log in again because I'll see all the new photos that I've been tagged in, which are hideous. I used to feel like I was an average looking person, but looking at all these photos, I see myself as horribly unattractive. I have freaky facial expressions in all of them and I have a terrible haircut that's taking forever to grow back. I try to laugh at myself, but there's a limit. All of my friends look perfectly normal, even beautiful, next to me, which makes me feel worse. I miss believing myself to be decent looking.
maybe you dont even look that bad but it is normal to be more critical with your self than with others. It sometimes happens to me, but then when you look at the pics some months later you might see theyre not that bad (although some simply will be bad forever ) and also remember the camera doesnt always do you justice, so if you look bad in the picture it doesnt mean you look bad in real life
Yeah looking at photos of yourself is a really hard thing to do. Why? My guess is that it is probably because we don't ever see ourselves like that. The closest we ever get is seeing ourselves in a mirror--and that is just a reflection of ourselves. Anyways, if the haircut is what is wrong with the photo just don't get that style ever again. Usually, and speaking from my own personal experience, the reason why, in 95% of photos taken of me, I look so weird is cause I wasn't comfortable in the situation and in my own skin. Forced smiles and all that don't translate well for me. Travel photos are sorta the same as well--less sleep, change in diet, funky overhead weather, and clothes that seem to cling to the worst possible places--but those are the banes for getting a great experience. Yet, despite all my advice I still think I am cursed with bad photo luck--I am always mid chew or one eye is like semi closed, or my clothes are hanging weird, or I am in a weird situation, or any of another hundred possible stupid situations will happen to me when I am taking the photos. So, my take is - if everyone else is smiling about the photos than so should I.
I have a terrible time with photos. I may be grinning maniacally, looking all stern and severe, looking like a serial killer, or something else, but I rarely look good in them. But there's two things to keep in mind: I don't normally look like that, I just have trouble keeping my face properly frozen for pictures, and, more importantly, I judge my appearance much more harshly than anyone else does. Most people, when they look at you, probably aren't making much a value judgment. On your hair, maybe, but that grows out. Unless you're stunningly beautiful or seriously ugly, most people don't really pay attention to others' appearances.
I agree with Skyfire13 - it's a shock to see yourself in photos, because you always look utterly different to what you think you look like However, your friends are likely used to how you look, so I daresay they don't think anything bad about you. Also, if you only ever have terrible photos - well, wear that like a badge of weirdness; never get caught with the same freaky expression twice I get where you're coming from - I loathe having photos taken of me, because I hate how I look in them.
I know that my perception of what is attractive has changed drastically over time. What you see as attractive isn't necessarily what others see. That one great "flaw" that you see in yourself may be the one thing that others love about the way you look. Also, since you are so young, your body is still changing and it may be jarring to see new features and facial characteristics emerge. I remember when I stopped looking like a kid and started looking more like an adult, I thought that I was developing physical imperfections, but really I was just growing into my adult self. We all change at different rates and 17 is a particularly interesting age because some 17 year olds still look like they did when they were 14 and others have approached full physical maturity.
I used to not be able to stand looking at myself in photos. Even now, as soon as someone takes my picture, I immediately have to ask them to see it. I would always think I didn't like my hair, my neck, my nose was too big, etc. Everyone constantly compares themselves to a set image in their head of what they consider "beautiful" and they get upset if it doesn't quite match. I spent a lot of time in the city this summer for a few weeks at an art academy, and I realized something amazing--everyone looked different as possible, but I could think of all of them as beautiful in their own way, shape, and form. After seeing so many people, I started to not worry about my hair, which is now in a style that finally suits me, and I learned that my nose isn't big at all, it's just shaped a little bit differently from my ideal nose. But I'm still pretty to myself because I accepted the way I look and feel comfortable with myself now. I think everyone feels less glamorous/good-looking than everyone else at some point, but everyone can still feel good about themselves.
Yeah.. to ME I always look different in photos, and I seriously do, which I hate. Even mirrors, it depends on how bright the place is. But I'm going to start the "I look ok" thing in the mirror everyday, coz I have always been negative all my life, I need a change!
