COM 210 - Has Photoshop Destroyed Body Image in America?

Photoshop is something we see everywhere. We look at an advertisement of these flawless models and celebrities with their perfect hair and bodies and at some time or another or all the time have wished we could look like them. As advertisements continue to use Photoshop to change their own original photos to what is believed to be “beautiful” in American society, the question of body image issues come up. Has Photoshop destroyed body image in America? First, we must look at what Photoshop is. Photoshop is a product of Adobe Systems, which is used to edit graphics whether the graphics are taken with a professional camera or created within the program itself. Photoshop has many tools to help define and enhance the graph such as a healing brush to fix blemishes as well as a blurring tool to blur images you don’t want the focus on. The art of Photoshop is called photoshopping. The next question we ask is, have photographers abused their art of photoshopping causing America to see unrealistic human beings modeled on their favorite magazine or website?

As stated by Huffingtonpost contributor, Vivian Diller writes most people and celebrities dream of magically removing the extra pounds and their annoying wrinkles; more people are seeing Photoshop as dangerous territory. Actress Kate Winslet is among many celebrities who think Photoshop has gone to far with it’s editing and the American Medical Association (AMA) is beginning to agree with this. Winslet was one of the first to break ground when she took action against GQ magazine for digitally altering her body in its photographs by making her unrealistically thin. The AMA has announced its stand against image manipulation in advertising, declaring that modifications made through the art of using Photoshop can contribute to unrealistic body image expectations, eating disorders, and other emotional problems for younger audiences. This has gotten mixed reviews and reactions from the professionals who Photoshop and the public who view it.

There are two sides of this Photoshop argument, the ones who believe Photoshop isn’t the problem and the ones who believe it is. Elizabeth Perle, a HuffingtonPost writer, believes that Photoshop isn’t the evil one in this situation. She believes that it is the media are the ones who influence photographers and magazines to alter their pictures. Photoshop was created with the soul purpose of bringing objects into focus and not creating pieces of deception. The media has used this program to create an unreachable form of “beauty”.  The other side of the argument is that Photoshop helps contribute to the media instead of being the one being manipulated. Younger audiences who see the images plastered all over their magazines and favorite websites will more likely try to resemble the models. The AMA wants to raise awareness to show younger audiences that the models they see aren’t the same in real life as they are in the magazines. This begins argument brings up the question of is it ethical to be showcasing unrealistic and unreachable attributes to American audiences.

The use of Photoshop should be used for small fixes such as fixing minor things like undereye circles or blemishes but should not be used to make models skinnier or have more muscles. These extreme photoshopped images give younger audiences and even older audiences the wrong idea. They may cause the viewer to extreme diet to try to reach the unreal weight of the model. If a younger person does this extreme diet, this may affect their development not only physically but mentally as well.  The child might develop a serious eating or mental disorder due to this unobtainable “beauty” made by Photoshop.  Many companies are seeing the ethical impact of the issue of over photoshopping their images and are doing something about it. Aerie, a lingerie store from American Eagle, decided in the spring of 2014 to not retouch their models and allow everything to be real. It is proven from multiple surveys that young women's sense of body confidence is mostly influenced by the images of female beauty they see in media. While one ad campaign won't solve the complicated relationship between young women's self-esteems and images of women in media, it can certainly helps for women to see a brand shows off its cute bras and undies on bodies with real rolls, lines and curves.

Sources:

·      http://www.huffingtonpost.com/elizabeth-perle/photoshop-isnt-evil-there_b_888169.html

·      http://www.huffingtonpost.com/vivian-diller-phd/photoshop-body-image_b_891095.html