Picture Perfect?
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| Credit: Peter Ruter via Shutterstock |
Notable American author Susan Sontag once wrote, �One of the tasks of photography is to disclose, and shape our sense of, the variety of the world� The camera shows us many worlds, and the point is that all the images are valid.� However, how valid is a picture if it has been altered? Experts point to selfie culture as a major factor in the rise in plastic surgery among Americans under 30 (58%). Now wait, let�s go back a step, you're probably wondering what could lead to such extreme actions. Well, one of the main culprits are selfie-help apps. In most cases, selfie-help apps have negatively affected relationships and the way people perceive themselves and others. Let�s consider these questions: Do selfie-help apps encourage unattainable perfection? Will they continue to blur the line between fact and fiction in social media?
�Cameras add additional weight to photos and when you�re taking a selfie you�re also dealing with bad lighting, angles, close-ups and a lot of other factors that make people complain that the photo isn�t an accurate representation of themselves,� said Susan Green, co-founder of the Phoenix-based company, Pretty Smart Women, that created the app.
I certainly believe some pictures can add a pound or two but SkinneePix, for iPhone and Android devices, can trim from 5 to 15 pounds from a head shot photo. The app was originally designed to assist overweight adults to promote a skinnier version of themselves. Robin J. Phillips, the other co-founder, claims the app can also motivate people to lose weight. �It�s a good reminder to get off the couch, turn the TV off, and go for a walk,� she said. In reality, some critics fear the $1.99 app could encourage an unhealthy body image. This refers to the social norm and stereotype of a girl�s image. Lauren Dickson, a social worker in the eating disorders and addiction clinic at the Center of Addiction and Mental Health in Toronto, explains the app (one in many factors) could contribute to a young adult developing an eating disorder. In the last financial year, ChildLine charity received more than 10,500 calls and online inquiries from young individuals struggling with food and weight-related anxiety. Dickson also adds that �The majority of young girls wouldn�t develop an eating disorder because of an app like this, but some might be more vulnerable and it could contribute.� As quoted from the SkinneePix app description, "SkinneePix makes your pictures look thinner. It�s not complicated. No one needs to know. It�s our little secret." Not only does the app present an unhealthy body image but it also promotes selfiers to deceive others about their true natural features.
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| SkinneePix Image |
Skinneepix isn�t the only selfie-help app that�s been promoting an unhealthy body image. Apps like Perfect365 have been making modifications in subtle ways that don't tip off the viewer that the photo has been edited. By doing so, it further promotes an unrealistic idea of how people look in everyday life. The app allows users to whiten teeth, reduce weight, get rid of wrinkles, and to accomplish perfect skin. According to the Huffington Post, Perfect365 has been downloaded nearly 17 million times. Not only has the app been overly produced and used, but the cost went from $1.99 to $49.99 today. "Unlike the previous generation of portrait-editing apps, which left figures with the two-dimensional masks of anime characters, these apps, like the best plastic surgeon, leave few obvious marks," the Huffington Post reports. Like Photoshop, Perfect365 can be used to change human beings beyond recognition like in this video:
Triana Lavey is an example of someone who let social media control her appearance. Even when using photo-editing apps like Perfect365, she still felt self-conscious about how she looked on social media. So, what can one possibly do to make their features even more flawless? The answer�s surgery. �I look like myself, but photoshopped,� she said. " It�s a legitimate form of promoting yourself.� She added, �Not everyone is born beautiful, and if you can get a little help from an app or a nip-tuck then more power to you.�
This begs the question how changing yourself, because you're dissatisfied with yourself, is actually promoting yourself. Much of an individual's reputation comes from media but when you change yourself beyond recognition, then who are you really? Because you're certainly not the person that was naturally brought into the world, your changed. It�s almost lying to others about your true identity because no one individual is flawless, there will always be something to fix. So finally I ask, How have we evolved into a society in which self-consciences and manipulation are so valued and even supported?
This begs the question how changing yourself, because you're dissatisfied with yourself, is actually promoting yourself. Much of an individual's reputation comes from media but when you change yourself beyond recognition, then who are you really? Because you're certainly not the person that was naturally brought into the world, your changed. It�s almost lying to others about your true identity because no one individual is flawless, there will always be something to fix. So finally I ask, How have we evolved into a society in which self-consciences and manipulation are so valued and even supported?
Bibliography Bibliography
conclusion updated 5/29/14
After a week of reading others post on my website, I was happy to find my topic was highly discussed. I was expecting some people to argue against my opinion, but since none did, my opinion about selfie-help apps hasn�t changed. When I started the article, I hadn�t known much about photo filter programs. It wasn�t untill I read my second source that I discovered almost all the articles online were against the filters. That made me curious, why do people use them if so many people think they�re a negaitve influence? As I kept digging, I soon found that even though individuals may petition against them, the vast number of consumers are attracted to them, which controls their popularity. The importance of appearance is a big problem today. People are judged and labled based on their hairut, makeup, clothes, and worst of all: natural beauty. However, natural beauty isn�t something you can just change without a price. Now when I say price, I litterly mean thousands of dollars. It�s crazy, but more and more people are choosing to get plastic surgery in order to maintain perfect beauty. In my opinion, selfie-help apps are the fist step before surgery. In many cases, the filters create a feeling of inadequacy in their users. The image they produce makes users question their real features vs. the �desired� facial features. Those that support the filters, think they produce an ego boost, but is this a healthy way to percieve these tools? Honestly, I don�t think so. In conclusion, I think filters reinforce low self-esteme that has impacted our society so badly and led to eating disorders, unnecessary surgery and social mental illness.
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