Much Ado about photoshopping

Celebrities have been receiving a lot of flak for photoshopping their pictures. Meghan Trainor recently took down a video that was photoshopped without her consent, Khloe Kardashian had to justify making her legs look thinner in an Instagram post; even Beyonce has been known to alter her images. But, isn’t it hypocritical to call out celebrities when we ourselves make our images lighter and brighter with Instagram and Snapchat filters? In this day and age, you can bet that there are several other apps that allow you to make your eyes bigger, your skin smoother and even whiten your teeth in photographs — then, why this hullabaloo?

Aishvarrya Suresh, a model from Chennai, believes photoshopping a picture is no big deal. She says, “I haven’t figured out why editing your photos is such a big deal. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with it. You can’t make something that doesn’t look good, well… look good. You can only enhance the features for a better finish.” Talking about Instagram, she says, “Again, I don’t believe there’s anything wrong in adding a filter or two. It’s each to their own.”

Celebrity photographer Karthik Srinivasan doesn’t  like to go down the Photoshop route but believes that celebrities should be allowed to do what they want with their pictures. “If you see celebrity Instagrams, they won’t have as many filters as something they’re endorsing in ads. For me personally, 99 per cent of the photograph shoudld be real and one percent retouching.

Photoshopping is a bigger craze in India than in the US, because I think we enjoy these ideal images. Why should celebrities have to get negative comments for pictures while we keep altering our own photos? After all, they’re human too! They go through a hectic schedule and shoots at 4 am, of course they’ll be tired and want their photos to be perfect.” He adds, “There’s so much competition amongst photographers now too, that they believe whoever’s picture looks absolutely flawless is better than the rest. This could be one of the reasons for heavy photoshopping.”

Actress Shreya Gupta has a different take. “I don’t think we should photoshop our images at all. People follow celebrities and do what they do. So, actors and models should embrace their bodies the way they are and reject photoshopping. Seeing such ‘ideal’ images will give to rise to more body image issues in people who see it,” she says and adds, “To people who use apps to modify their photos, just love yourself and your body for the way it is.”

Fashion vlogger Sushmita Agarwal also has a different point of view on the new filters on photo-sharing social media. She iterates, “Retouching is pretty much a part of a lot of the images we see on a daily basis in magazines, advertisements, even ‘candid’ paparazzi photos. We’re looking for and consuming perfection no matter where we go. Snapchat is a safe space where I could send photos of chins upon chins upon chins and makeup-less mornings,” she says.  However, she has an issue with Snapchat’s retouching filter. “In a time when we’re promoting and working towards positive self image, why are we encouraging airbrushed and magazine-ideal images of ourselves? I’ve always disliked my big nose and small eyes, so I can’t decide if I’m happy that Snapchat has given me a chance to see myself the way I’ve always wanted, or mad that they have reassured me that my insecurities are completely legitimate,” she concludes.