#NoFilter #NoMakeup
I look back through my camera roll on my phone, scrolling past the 100 pictures I have just taken. There has to be at least one picture worthy enough to post. The lighting has to be perfect, the picture has to be clear and at an angle where I know it will look the best. I delete the ones that are less than perfect and my 100 pictures have been narrowed down to one. Now, the editing process begins. The lighting is altered, the image is sharpened, and the contrast is increased. The photo is already looking a little better…but I’m not done. From here, I move on to the filters. Do I want Luna or Perpetua? Decisions…decisions. Ten minutes and 15% of my phone battery later, my picture is perfect, polished, and ready to post.
This process is applicable to mainly my food pictures, but sometimes selfies too. I think its safe to say that we have all gone a little crazy at times with editing our photos.
I’ve talked on the subject of filtering photos before on my blog, but its something that pops up for all of us on a day-to-day basis. There is nothing wrong with editing our pictures, but I’ve realized that very rarely is a picture sent out or posted without it being altered or edited in some way.
Recently, I heard about this app where you can slim your features, smooth wrinkles, whiten your teeth, etc. Basically, it can do most things that a professional photoshop program can do with just the swipe of a finger. Photoshopping our photos does not boost our confidence; in fact, I believe it does the opposite. When you are over-editing pictures, you are focusing on the features you like the least. You are altering the areas where you feel most self-conscious.
I don’t think any of us are pulling any Kim Kardashians, but if we compare the original photos with what we just edited, we can almost pinpoint the areas where we feel most self-conscious. So, on social media, instead of seeing someone’s picture as unrealistic and perfect, we can now see the areas where people feel most vulnerable. If you see someone’s doctored photo with teeth as white as Paula Deen’s or skin as glossed over as Beyonce’s, to me it highlights the area where they might feel most insecure. Sometimes, when I look at a before and after photo that I’ve added a filter to or edited, it sort of makes me mad at myself that I feel the urge to make everything “perfect.”
I have never used this slimming app or any photoshop programs to digitally alter my photos that I post. I only use the typical filters and other tools to enhance photos and make them look more professional. But, I have realized that even just adding filters can have a similar effect as using a photoshop app. Don’t get me wrong, I love editing pictures. I think its fun and the tools are there for us to use, so why not? It’s just when I start I realize that I am focusing more on my insecurities than the whole reason why I took the photo to begin with. This is when I feel an obligation to cover up what I don’t like about myself and where these apps could start causing self-esteem issues. We begin to believe that we are not good enough without being edited in some way.
I saw this video the other day where women are given a slimming app for the first time to edit their photos. Their reactions and comments show that instead of feeling better about themselves after editing, they start realizing the areas where they feel most self-conscious. One woman in the video said something that really stood out to me. She said that by using the app, it made her feel like she was validating that her body wasn’t good enough without being slimmed and polished.
One thing that I love and miss about modeling is that I never wore makeup. Not that I wear that much now, but it was nice to just wash my face and go. We had to show every designer and casting director a “blank canvas, ” a Polaroid, and that was good enough. I always felt more confident after having them taken because there was nothing to hide. I was unedited and I simply was who I was.
[polaroid from NYC]
Again, I am not bashing filters; I use them with all of my photos. Nothing makes a green pineapple smoothie look better than a good filter. But if you are considering using one of these photoshop apps that change what you look like, remember that you are more than a photo. If you have a zit on your face, instead of erasing it, remember that the majority of people have them too. No one is perfect; we all have flaws. We need to embrace our imperfections and stop covering up what is real.