A remark on how the geometry of photographs doesn't echo the eye's geometry

This photo exemplifies a phenomenon I've experienced many times. Look at that white statue, a bust that we're observing from the side, in the middle just to the left of center. It appears relatively small in relation to the size of the entire image. It appeared considerably larger than that to my eye when I took the photo, that is, larger in relation to the whole field of view. The eye/brain's optical system appears to magnify objects at the center of the field of view. I've observed this with countless photographs, and yet it still surprises me.