IS THIS REAL LIFE? . . . left, unedited picture taken straight on with hair off face and with an Instagram ‘Lark’ filter and right, cheek bones raised, blemishes banished, face slimmed, nose narrowed, eyelashes edited, eyebrows filled in, eye colour altered and skin whitened using ‘perfect 365’
Is there anything more ego boosting than a flattering picture taken from the right angle, in the right light with your hair and make-up on point?
But where selfies are concerned, are what you see and what you get the same?
A few months ago I was cornered in the toilets of my local pub by what seemed like an over-friendly toilet user. On and on she rambled while I smiled and eyed the exit and after a few minutes she laughed and said: “Amanda don’t you recognise me?”
Um no, no I didn’t.
It turned out we had been separated by just a few years at school and though we might have been friends on Facebook and it’s possible I like her pictures and statuses from time to time, I would never have realised she was the same person as in her selfies.
Not that she wasn’t a pretty girl in person and in picture, she was, but the two were just not the same.
It made me worry – am I guilty of being a bit too generous with the filters? Is maybe picking the best out of 15 pictures of myself not really very reflective of how I truly look? Do people see me in a picture vs in the supermarket doing the weekly shop and not recognise me?
BEFORE . . . picture taken with hair pushed back and visible eyebags that make-up just won’t cover
As far as selfies go, I’m guilty of taking multiplies and even running them through an Instagram filter, but I’m yet to dabble in full on picture editing.
The preferred app to the stars is (allegedly) ‘perfect 365’, so I decided to give it a try and see just how picture perfect it would make me look.
Looking at the results – do I look better, worse or just a bit inhuman? Does anyone’s skin really look that even? Would anyone actually believe that’s me au natural (well with make-up) or do people not care if a picture is so blatantly edited and far removed from the original product?
Whatever the answer and however the masses might feel, I for one can’t help but feel a bit ridiculous trying to claim I’m something I’m clearly not.
AFTER . . . a picture so edited I look like I am made of plastic and would frighten children and small animals not to mention a lot of men on a night out
So it’s a yay to filters (I love you Instagram), but a nay to full out editing from me.
