Models Morphed into Misrepresentation-My Experience with (extreme) Photo Manipulation
Having modeled for more than the past two decades, In recent years, I have started to witness a growing trend in the blatant disrespect to women (both those in and out of the industry). Heavy photo editing, aka, Photo Manipulation, has spiraled completely out of control, crossing far over any and all boundaries which would be considered healthy or respectful to the female gender. This relatively new image altering craze is not only female exploitation on behalf of the model but a grave disservice to all parties involved and I am certain that the consequences are much greater than these overzealous editors may care to realize.
Sure, adjusting lighting, contrast, saturation, even removing a scar or an unsightly mole is completely justifiable and understandable. Americans want to see beauty, we are drawn to it and the demand for beauty over the years has deemed it a necessity in the sale of nearly any product.
Is there a limit on how far are we willing to go to, how much altering and modifying will continue as the illusion of "true" beauty is designed, created and sold to the masses?
Judging from the massive amount of photo editing and manipulation that I see on a daily basis, the concept of perfect beauty is just that- Absolute Perfection, which absolutely, does not exist.
Imagine for a moment, the cover of any magazine geared towards women, I'm sure you can picture something generically familiar, as after a while, they all tend to resemble one another, right down to the articles inside. Are these images of perfection displayed on their covers selling for the right reasons? Are they generating positive emotions and actions or just generating sales as the readers promptly purchase the massive amount of recommended beauty products in each featured article?
It would seem that these falsified images would only do damage to the females in our society. On a daily basis these lies are being sold over and over again to young girls and women, influencing them with unrealistic expectations pertaining to their physical appearance, thereby creating a never ending, unhealthy and demoralizing pursuit to attain something that does not even exist.
I've often wondered if the use of this perfection facade is an intimidation tacit advertising wise, leading consumers by shaming them into believing that they need products A, B, C and D in order to be considered beautiful or desired. Whether intentional or not, in many cases, that is precisely what is happening.
Are we even considering the dire consequences of consistently making young girls, teens and adult women feel ashamed of their own bodies as they compare themselves to the airbrushed, painted pictures of the beautiful women on every magazine cover, every print ad, billboard, etc.?
With perfection being the "norm" in advertising, it would only make sense that we would eventually begin to expect and assume that it is the "norm" in our real lives as well. The bar is being raised to an insurmountable height in setting this standard of nonexistent perfection.
The headlines on women's magazines always tout: “How to be better at...” “Impress him with this new style” “How to lose weight” “How to have perfect hair”, “How to be sexier, funnier, more attractive” and the list goes on.... and it has been this way from the beginning of their print-
Why are we being made to believe that we are not good enough? Of course there is always room for improvement and we should always strive to do our best, but why aren't we being influenced to love, respect and accept ourselves in these magazines?
What is this never ending race to perfection, inside and out? I must address the superficiality of all of these improvement tips and techniques, as they are actually meant to please not the readers as much as they are meant to please others, Drawing in and attracting others with their newfound "sexier body, better bedroom skills, flirtier personality, chic summer hair style, trendier outfits" and so on.
On the other side of the coin, the models are suffering too, I hate to sound rude, but with the amount of photo manipulation applied these days , does a model even need to be attractive anymore? What kind of accolade is that coveted title these days, predominantly in the commercial print side of the industry? How insulting to be photographed and then morphed into someone else.
I recently experienced this and among other things, it was infuriating. After working with a well known and respected photographer, I received my final edited shots as I would after any shoot. Upon opening the files on the disc, I was shocked and appalled at the amount of photo-editing that had ruined the beautiful images I had been so excited about.
I sat in disbelief as I scrolled through, picture by picture, confused as to why this had been done and what the benefit was in doing it? I couldn't determine a single benefit as the photos did not resemble me in an honest fashion, and it felt really bad-like a slap in the face (or perhaps my ego).
I was angry, insulted and confused. I briefly questioned my own appearance, (I mean, why would someone need to edit & change so much about me? Wasn't I attractive enough without all of that? I'd thought so but I admit, I did have a moment of insecurity), After a quick pep talk with a close friend, I called and fired the photographer for the upcoming shoots we'd booked. How irritating and insulting to invest my time, energy, creativity, and talent, along with the mistake of signing the image rights away prematurely to the photographer.
Photography is not about how well you can edit a photo and morph it into your own projection of what beauty is- True photography is about capturing your object's essence, projected emotion and beauty.
True beauty is never perfect- I feel so sad for the countless women I see who've gone under the knife for nearly every surgical procedure in the book. To me they always look as if like they've lost something, perhaps their sense of identity? I'm not sure...but I will say, Imperfections are what make us beautiful!
Honestly, I cannot tell you how many times I have literally laughed when people told me this, thinking that they had no idea what they were talking about, due to the belief system that I had been force fed growing up and into my early twenties. Now, I get the picture and I've finally embrace my imperfections, I would never want to look like the distorted image of myself in bottom left picture, how boring, plastic (and a bit clownish), I cannot even identify with that photo. However, in the other photo on the right, there are no edits, only a touch of soft lighting and I feel that it is much more attractive than the other.
I do not wish to be responsible in any way for people judging themselves harshly, as I did for the majority of my life until now, striving for perfection. I love the chicken pox scar in the middle of my forehead, the tiny line of freckles across my nose that I earned as a lifeguard one summer and my broad forehead (my fivehead). Those things make me who I am and I wouldn't want to be any other way. I love my imperfections and I hope that you will embrace yours too <3
xoxo,
Christy
