Why does it seem that people dislike recordings of their voice more than photos of themselves?

reddig33 , 4 months ago

It’s easier to change your hairstyle or makeup than it is your voice. Most people also hear their voice about an octave lower in their head. It resonates differently internally than it does out in the air. A recording of your voice is like looking in a mirror and seeing something different than what you see most of the time.

Fudoshin , 4 months ago

I think I sound reasonable talking. On recordings I sound like the gayest, campest homo in the fucking universe.

Even though I'm gay it's still cringe af.

It's fucking hilarious to think I went years denying being gay but when I listen to my voice it's like "WTF - it's SO fuckign obvious!"

Riven , 4 months ago

Dude same but with my Mexican accent. I know I have a tad of an accent but it's not bad in my head, the moment I hear my voice in a recording it's like I'm listening to fucking speedy Gonzales or whatever his cousin slow rat was.

volvoxvsmarla , 4 months ago

I once heard that the mirror thing is why we tend to dislike photos of ourselves - it's because we are not mirrored there and this unconsciously looks odd to us.

Fittingly to this theory, I know a lot of people who think they only look good in selfies and no one else can make a good picture of them. Maybe that's connected.

Gigan , 4 months ago

People see themselves in the mirror pretty often, so they have a general idea of how they appear to other people. But they don't hear their own voice regularly unless they record themselves and listen to it, so it's more of a surprise when they do hear their own voice.