Direct wrist shot from a distance:




Mirror wrist shot from same distance:



Why do watches look smaller in the mirror relative to wrist size ?

I feel like I'm going to learn something today

 

You forgot to add, "neither in focus."

 

To prove the "novice" point

 

As to your question -

not a clue, aspect ratio maybe?

 

I think what you call "same distance" is double the distance in terms of photography, unless you get close to the mirror in the second shot. You are not focusing on the mirror, you are focusing on the same watch through the mirror.

 

Good point. But still why do you see more skin in the mirror?

 

Daughter's answer-

Mirror shot, light has to travel further even though distance is the same.

 

photography
noun
pho·tog·ra·phy fə-ˈtä-grə-fē

: the art or process of producing images by the action of radiant energy and especially light on a sensitive surface (such as film or an optical sensor)

 

That's defining, not explaining

 

Yep, explains exactly what photography is.
Now, how to take good watch shots? Practice, practice, and a steady hand.

 

Maybe the angle of your arm is subtly different. Take a pen and draw the outline of your Speedy on to your wrist, and that can help us to gauge whether you have the identical line-up in the mirror and the irl shots.

 

Smart scientific approach. I like it

 

Don't know about the mirror ( well maybe) but explaining photography, its a bit like that boat you own where you just throw money off the end of the wharf.

 

@Nobel Prize is a photographer


But you have a real rabbit hole in photography.

Also if you want photography explained in less than 3 books.
Good luck…..

 

I'm assuming these were taken with a smartphone. I think it has to do with the wide angle lens on phone cameras that gives the "fisheye" effect. This is what makes watches look so much bigger in wrist shots. The mirror increases the distance and reduces the effect. #science

 

I think that has to do with the change in the focal length and the lens on your phone. To complicate things even further, the phone you are using could also be changing to a different lens between the two shots.

I’m a novice, too. But I read some about photography years ago when I got my first DSLR.

 

It's starting to make sense. When light refracts on the mirror surface, does it reduce the fisheye effect or cancels it out altogether ?

 

The standard camera on most cellphones has an equivalent focal length to that of a 28mm lens. (Equivalent to 35mm format aka full frame). The new iPhone I believe is 24mm. Both 24mm and 28mm lenses are a wide perspective and with that comes distortion. You’ll see less distortion the tighter the focal length becomes IE 35mm, 50mm, and so on. With a 24/28mm lens, a wrist shot will have a fish eye effect making the watch look much bigger than it is. With a mirror shot, the subject is further away from the lens where distortion has less of an effect, which is why the watch looks smaller.

Take these two images of mine as an example. Same wrist, same watch, taken seconds apart but at different distances.

 

Oh boy, now you've done it. This is about to get mildly complicated. This is about relative distance (but possibly also about how your cell phone camera does it's thing - some have multiple lenses designed for different focal lengths). If your watch is 10" from the camera lens and the rest of your arm is 12" away, your arm is effectively 20% further away. When you take a picture of something further away, that ratio diminishes. So, the apparent size of the watch relative to your wrist diminishes. It's the same reason why people's faces appear different in proportion based on the camera's distance for the subject.