Christopher Burning
English 101-5:30
Dr. Sonia Begert
11/26/15
Photoshop, the Power of God in
Your Hands: For Good or for Evil?
Advances in technology in the recent years have given people the power to
transform the way people look to their desire. Initially it wasn’t something to
be too concerned about. However, as people have learned these programs and as
they have advanced more is now possible than before with Photoshop.
Transformations to models on magazines are now so unobtainable with this
program that it’s causing more harm than good, both mentally and physically.
So, is Photoshop for the better or for the worse in this day and age?
Images have always been altered, well before Photoshop. Whether it was through
the use of angles, lighting or exposure, image altering has existed for a long
time. Though as technology has developed so has different kinds of software:
one of those being Photoshop. The problem with it is that the use of Photoshop
on models has now gone to the extreme. I surveyed ten of my good friends and
family through Facebook and asked, “Do you believe that the Photoshoping of
models on magazine covers accurately represents what is obtainable or do you
think they're outlandish”? Every single one of the people who responded thought
that the use of Photoshop as it is today, is outlandish and too extreme.
Furthering onto the idea that Photoshop has been taken to the extreme Vivian
Diller, Ph.D, wrote an article in the Huffington Post and quoted The American
Medical Association saying, “alterations made through processes like Photoshop
can contribute to unrealistic body image expectations, eating disorders and
other emotional problems”. So considering it can cause a slew of physical and
mental disorders and it being completely outlandish, what’s the positivity of
it?
Well according to Alice Chen, for the use of Photoshop, in HerCampus website,
the author states, “As an editorial publication, a magazine strives to meet its
standards of perfection. In the same way that an article passes through the
hands of multiple editors, a photo experiences a meticulous retouching process
in order to represent the best version of itself. And like the words in a
written piece may change during the process, the colors, textures, shapes and
other details of a photo may be altered without losing what that image is at
its core”. However, consider the amount of altering a photo can go through for
an ad, not even a magazine cover but just an ad. The ways in which an image can
be altered is astounding. They can change the skin color, lip color, eye color,
remove blemishes, extend the length of the persons’ body, change breast size,
eye size, hip and waist size including many more not listed. So if all of those
things are changed has the image really kept what it is at its core? Why should
a photo have to go through retouching to represent the best version of itself?
If an image is to really represent itself, let it represent reality and not a
fantasy that Photoshop force feeds you. Another argument that is argued is that
if Photoshop wasn’t allowed to be used on models or in magazines or in ads that
it would put many people out of jobs. Yes, that would be true, many people
would lose their jobs, but with the marketing being the way it is, instantly
there would a large demand in photographers or makeup artists so, yes, it would
destroy jobs but at the same time it would create the same amount that were
lost, if not more. Another point that comes from opposing side is that without
the use of Photoshop makeup sales would drop or anything that uses enhanced
images to sell their product. However, as mentioned earlier Photographs have
always been altered, with the use of angles, lighting or exposure, so even
before Photoshop beauty products still sold. If Photoshop was no longer used to
sell products it wouldn’t impact sales greatly, if at all.
Similarly to Vivian Diller, Harper Yi agrees that Photoshopping of models
shouldn’t be considered fiction, stating from HerCampus
website, “Our ideas about our bodies are not solely based on real-life
experiences, but the messages we consume every day and the patterns we see in
the media. Say all you want about how magazines aren’t made to be a reflection
on reality, but magazines are not considered fiction and it’s time we
recognized that the bodies of women and girls should not fall under that
category either”.
Works Cited:
Yi, Harper. "Op-Ed: Why I Am Against the Photoshopping of Women's
Bodies." Her Campus. Style, 3 Aug. 2012. Web. 01 Dec. 2015.
Chen, Alice. "Op-Ed: In Defense of Photoshop: Why Magazines Should
Photoshop Their Models." Her Campus. Style, 2 Aug. 2012. Web. 19 Nov. 2015.
Wilson, Eric. "Smile and Say ‘No Photoshop’." The New York Times. The
New York Times, 27 May 2009. Web. 19 Nov. 2015.
Diller, Ph.D. Vivian. "Is Photoshop Destroying America's Body Image?"
The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 7 Aug. 2011. Web. 19 Nov. 2015.
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