Enhancing images to make models look… fatter
April 15th, 2008Thanks to digital image manipulation techniques, models and actresses can have perfect bodies, no cellulite and flawless complexions when they are depicted in magazines. According to a recent article in the UK telegraph, the same techniques are now being used in reverse to make gaunt models look fuller-figured. Apparently “Fashion magazines are manipulating images of skinny models to make them look “fatter” than they really are”.
According to a representative from one of the popular retouching agencies:
“It is now deemed just as negative to be too thin as too fat. Everyone is scared of being highlighted as the magazine or label that promotes very thin girls, so they are being a lot more careful about the images they present.”
But Susan Ringwood, who is chief executive of eating disorder charity “Beat”, responded negatively to this practice, saying that it acknowledges the issues associated with projecting the images of very thin models, but misses the point: “They should be using naturally healthy models in the first instance, instead of having to make them look that way.”
I’d love to see a magazine filled with pictures of models and actors that have not been retouched at all. How do you feel about digital photo enhancement in magazines?
Ps. The celebrity gossip site Jossip has some hilarious reporting on the use of Photoshop to alter our favorite celebrities in print.
April 15th, 2008 at 6:54 am
I like the concept in the ads in Ophra Winfrey magazine. You can tell they are normal people. This is the same with age. They don’t panic showing some wrinkles!
April 15th, 2008 at 7:14 am
First of all, that Jossip site is dangerous. I clicked on the link you have, and spent waaaay too much time.
On the positive side, it sounds like the fashion industry is paying attention to consumers who find too-thin models unattractive, if not down-right disturbing. On the negative side, I find it troubling that they would try to fix the problem by airbrushing on weight, rather than just finding healthy models in the first place.
April 15th, 2008 at 7:53 am
More proof that what I always say is true: today’s definition of “beautiful” or “sexy” is a fake woman. If you want to look great you have to put on fake eyelashes and three coats of mascara, have the top few layers of your skin removed to get rid of blemishes, bleach any remaining blemishes, wear expensive makeup but still look like a natural beauty, have all fat melted away with lipo selection, add a big bust with breast implants (that have to be periodically replaced), use body makeup, get a fake tan, remove all unwanted hair with expensive and repeated laser treatments, and then Photoshop away any faults that remain. No thanks. I’ll just be plain old ugly me.
April 15th, 2008 at 8:23 am
I think it’s out of control. How are we supposed to help women and young girls accept their not quite perfect bodies if all they see are perfection. ???
April 15th, 2008 at 9:04 am
http://www.physorg.com/news127475038.html
The image of this ramp model is mind blowing. I think it was her that stared off the skinny model controversy last year.
April 15th, 2008 at 9:23 am
I’ve actually noticed this. For example, I’ve seen photo of Giselle playing in a bikini naturally, and then seen photos of her taken professionally from the same time, and in the professional photos they make her look curvier w/bigger breasts and a less “six-pack” like stomach.
April 15th, 2008 at 9:25 am
Ha! Well said, Sarah! Even celebrities are really just moderately more attractive “normal” people in most cases, they just have a whole slew of clothing stylists and make up artists and hair stylists who look after them. I think that anyone can look amazing when they have 15 people whose sole purpose is to make that person look fabulous all the time.
I love the Dove ads that feature real women of all sizes and shapes and heights. Have you all seen this ad? I think it’s brilliant:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SNFpoAt5PkA
April 15th, 2008 at 12:05 pm
My mom and I have a guilty pleasure of watching Indian serials, but it always strikes me how natural the actresses are. Their makeup is quite heavy, but their weight is always just right–not too fat, not to thin. Many of them are former models although they would be “fat” by American standards. So I’m going to share a different cultual perspective that I think many ladies here would find refreshing
Divya’s hips would vanish if this were an American publication (she’s on the left):
http://media.santabanta.com/ga.....ards/2.jpg
All dolled up:
http://aycu17.webshots.com/ima.....035_rs.jpg
But wait, what happened here?:
http://maxupload.com/img/B37B9E4C.jpg
This would have been on every tabloid in town in the US, but in India, everyone was raving about how beautiful she looked because she did!
http://www.radiosargam.com/gal.....2/t071.jpg
http://www.radiosargam.com/gal.....2/t054.jpg
Again, no airbrushing, and this is at an awards ceremony.
http://i16.tinypic.com/73fd507.jpg
Not even any makeup this time (though her outfit isnt the greatest)
http://i18.tinypic.com/85061b8.jpg
This is what she’s like with just some foundation, eyeliner, and mascara:
http://i31.tinypic.com/v2r0cz.jpg
When I first saw a lot of these pictures, I couldn’t believe my eyes. I thought they weren’t really pretty at all. Then my eyes adjusted and I realized that I have gotten so used to seeing phony pictures all these years that I could no longer see natural beauty. That was a real wakeup call for me. I’m actually a bit disturbed when I see these Photoshopped disasters now.
April 15th, 2008 at 3:27 pm
Answer to Ronni - we have to be accepting of our own bodies for our children to accept theirs. If we are constantly being self-critical, they learn to be self-critical. This is such a difficult habit to break - and it is a habit. I wish I had learned this lesson years ago, but I didn’t. Better late than never.
April 15th, 2008 at 4:59 pm
That picture in that link you included, Angie, is disturbing. No wonder models always look so crabby! I once read an article in my local paper about the runway shows in NY, and the lady reported that the models were back stage eating Kleenex because they were so hungry! It would be very refreshing if they started using normal-sized women for these things and quit using skeletons. Let’s hope sanity returns to the industry.
April 15th, 2008 at 6:07 pm
I spent my childhood in a fragile home enviorment because of an older sister who had a severe eating disorder. From the time she was 11 until adulthood she battled bulemia and anorexia and had been hospitalized half a dozen times. At her lowest weight, she was 67 pounds and comatose for 3 days. I don’t know if her disease was a direct result of celebrity thinness. I think it was more of a control issue for her. But, as a mother of an 11 year old girl, I am afraid that the images she sees on television and in magazines will make her feel that she is somehow not normal. I think the best approach with our daughters is to point out the abnormalcy of celebrity thinness. I will probably remove my bathroom scale if she starts weighing herself.
I have a lot of issues with how clothing companies chose to sell their items. Many stores will use regular size women to model plus size clothing. Or 14 year old girls to model sexy lingerie.
I think the practice of making women look curvier than they are will have the same effect on women’s self confidence. It’s a modern day, technological way of corsetting women, binding feet, and removing lower ribs.
April 16th, 2008 at 7:06 am
These are great perspectives. My preference would be to see photos that are NOT digitally enhanced. Remember that they are every time you page through an editorial.
I love the links to the Bollywood celebs, Maya. Thanks for sharing them. Those women are beautiful. Very refreshing.
The key is to be accepting of our bodies. This is hard to do. We can all run our bodies into the ground. This is indeed a difficult habit to break. Men seem to be less critical of women’s bodies than women. This has been my experience, anyway. Would you agree?
Dress for the body you are in today. “Beauty is not the key to happiness; strive instead for elegance, grace and style” (Coco Chanel).
April 25th, 2008 at 6:37 am
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