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In Defense of Photoshop: Why Retouching Isnt As Evil As Everyone Thinks -- The Cut

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August 29, 2010 8:46 p.m.

In Defense of Photoshop: Why Retouching Isnt As Evil As

Everyone Thinks
By Am anda Fortini

Gil Elvgren's fantasy pin-up girls weren't that different from today's retouched wom en (like the Photoshopped
Ann Taylor m odel at left and center). Photo: Courtesy of Ann Taylor (left, center); "Beautiful Lady" illustration
courtesy of Gil Elvgren/K. Meisel Gallery
Is any one else w ear y of th e m edias h u nt for r etou ch ed im ages to r idicu le? A little m or e th an a w eek
ago, blogs were abuzz ov er u nr etou ch ed ph otos of Jennifer Aniston, ou ttakes fr om a 2 006 cov er
sh oot for Br itish Harpers Bazaar, in w h ich th e ev er -tan actr ess looked less su n-kissed th an su nabu sed, a m er e h u m an not y et bu ffed to a celebr ity gloss. Tw o w eeks ear lier , t he pressing issue
(h ttp://w w w .celebitch y .com /1 1 1 3 2 4 /jessica_sim pson_on_lu cky _m ag_ter r ible_ph otosh op_or _r efr esh ingly _cu r v y /)
w as w h eth er Jessica Sim pson w h ose car eer h as lately consisted of pu blic pr oclam ations of h er
new fou nd dtente w ith h er zaftig figu r e w as air br u sh ed to slim ness on th e Septem ber cov er of
Lucky. Specu lation also raged (h ttp://w w w .sty leite.com /m edia/katy -per r y -r olling-stoneph otosh op/) ov er Katy Per r y ; did sh e r eceiv e sim ilar digital liposu ction at th e h ands of Rolling Stone?
And lets not for get Ann Tay lor s r ecent Phot oshop debacles
(h ttp://ny m ag.com /daily /fash ion/2 01 0/08/ann_tay lor .h tm l) : On m or e th an one occasion,
im ages th at appear ed on th e com pany s w ebsite w er e of su ch bizar r ely inh u m an pr opor tions th at
th e m odels legs looked like Pixie Stix, and th eir w aists appear ed only sligh tly lar ger th an th eir
ar m s. [W]e agr ee ou r r etou ch ing h as been ov er zealou s a spokesper son fr om Ann Tay lor r eplied,
after th e w ebsite Jezebel slam m ed th e aber r ant im ages.
Th e issu e, m any cr itics of Ph otosh opping claim , is one of social eth ics and em otional sensitiv ity .
Retou ch ed ph otos set an u nr ealistic bar for su ggestible y ou ng gir ls, and th er efor e cr y ou t to be
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exposed. Jezebel editor -in-ch ief Jessica Coen recent ly argued (h ttp://jezebel.com /56 1 9 9 03 /w h y y ou -m u st-see-u nr etou ch ed-im ages-and-w h y -y ou -m u st-see-th em -r epeatedly ) th at th e sites
r elentless attention to m odified ph otos is m otiv ated by th e need to defend im pr essionable m inds: "
[E]v er y day a y ou ng w om an som ew h er e sees one of th ese ov er ly polish ed pictu r es for th e fir st tim e
and h as no idea th at th ey 'r e not r eal ... And m ay be sh e doesn't h av e som eone in h er life to point
ou t th at th is is com plete and u tter bu llsh it." (Th ou gh it seem s im pr obable th at th is y ou ng w om an
w ith no inkling th at fash ion m agazines ar e fake is also aw ar e of and h as access to Jezebel.) In Fr ance,
legislator s h av e pu sh ed for a law t hat would require a disclaimer
(h ttp://ny m ag.com /daily /fash ion/2 009 /1 2 /w ill_fr ances_pr oposed_ph otosh o.h tm l) for any
digitally enh anced ph otogr aph . Th e Au str alian gov er nm ent r ecently announced plans
(h ttp://ny m ag.com /daily /fash ion/2 01 0/06 /au str alia_attem pts_to_ban_th in.h tm l) for a sim ilar
footnoting policy , and Br itains equ alities m inister Ly nne Feath er stone called for a Kit emark,
(h ttp://ny m ag.com /daily /fash ion/2 01 0/07 /m inister _in_th e_u k_pu sh es_to_b.h tm l) or w ar ning
label of sor ts a pr oposal th at h as im pelled h u ndr eds of Gir l Gu ides (U.K.s Gir l Scou ts) to sign a
petition in su ppor t. "I am v er y keen th at ch ildr en and y ou ng w om en sh ou ld be infor m ed abou t
air br u sh ing, so th ey don't fall v ictim to looking at an im age and th inking th at any one can h av e a
tw elv e-inch w aist. It is so not possible," Feath er stone h as said.
Retou ch ed im ages also spike page v iew s, and not becau se of an attentiv e desir e on th e par t of r eader s
to pr otect v u lner able teens. Th e endless cav alcade of befor e-and-after sh ots is an ou tgr ow th of th e
v oy eu r ism , gossipm onger ing, and sch adenfr eu de th at fu el ou r celebr ity indu str ial com plex. People
w ant to see actr esses in all th eir w r inkled, fu ll-figu r ed glor y for th e sam e r eason th ey w ant to
pu r ch ase tabloids r eplete w ith pictu r es of A-list lov e h andles. Th ey w ant assu r ance th at star s ar e
ju st like u s, w h ich is to say im per fect. It's m aking m e less self-consciou s abou t th e lines on m y ow n
for eh ead, betw een m y ey es, ar ou nd m y m ou th , w r ote a Jezebel com m entator , bu oy ed u p by th e
su bpar Aniston im ages. Anoth er exclaim ed: Ah a! It now seem s th at sexy -m essy -sea-h air is also all
sm oke and m ir r or s. Ph ew . Now m y ow n sea-h air seem s a little less like a disastr ou s per sonal
affliction. And so, becau se h u m an natu r e dictates th at w h at inqu ir ing m inds r eally w ant to know
is th at star s ar e as u npr epossessing as th eir fans, m agazines and w ebsites continu e to tr affic in th ese
ph otos.

Bu t h ow m any adu lt w om en actu ally take th e im ages in fash ion m agazines ar tificial as th ey ar e,
feats of m akeu p and ligh ting and cam er a angles, ev en w ith ou t r etou ch ing at face v alu e? Ou r
r eader s ar e not idiots, Ch r istine Leir itz, editor of Fr ench Marie Claire, told th e New Yor k Times last
y ear , especially w h en th ey see th ose celebr ities w h o ar e 50 and look 2 3 . Most of u s w h o r ead
fash ion m agazines dont feel w er e confr onting r eality w h en w e see a ph otogr aph of a gr ow n w om an
w ith pr eteen th igh s. (We cer tainly see enou gh cou nter v ailing tabloid sh ots to know exactly w h at
celebr ity th igh s look like.) If su ch ph otos enr age u s, and often th ey do, its not becau se th ey dam age
ou r self-esteem , nor lets be h onest becau se w er e constantly fr etting, like som e ear nest
psy ch ologist or cr u sading politician, abou t th e em otional r eper cu ssions for adolescent gir ls. Ou r
inter est in alter ed im ages is not pu r ely m or al; its also aesth etic. We believ e th at a pictu r e sh ou ld
conv ey , objectiv ely , w ith ou t u ndu e inter v ention, w h at th e lens or iginally captu r ed. Bu t th ese
day s, com e to a fash ion, consu m er , or celebr ity m agazine w ith th is qu aint pu r itanical notion in
m ind, and y ou r e bou nd to be disappointed: Many contem por ar y im ages ar e illu str ations
m asqu er ading as ph otogr aph s, car toons com posed w ith a com pu ter r ath er th an a pen.
Wh ats galling is th e patent disingenu ou sness of th e w h ole m u r ky enter pr ise. Only w h en an im age
h as been egr egiou sly botch ed as w ith th at Ralph Lauren ad last y ear
(h ttp://ny m ag.com /daily /fash ion/2 009 /1 0/w as_r alph _lau r ens_m agically _em .h tm l) , in w h ich
m odel Filippa Ham ilton r esem bled a sh r u nken apple-h ead doll, h er face far too am ple for h er
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em aciated body is th er e any adm ission, often in th e for m of a su spiciou sly fu lsom e apology , th at a
blatantly r enov ated im age is not au naturel. Magazines and adv er tiser s w ant it both w ay s: Th ey
w ant th e cr edibility affor ded by seem ingly docu m entar y ph otogr aph s, bu t th ey also w ant th e sexy ,
bu zzy au r a of a sty lized illu str ation. Th ey w ant to h av e th eir ph oto, so to speak, and Ph otosh op it,
too.
And w h y sh ou ldnt th ey ? Th e age-old gam e of glam ou r cr eation, fr om Renaissance por tr aitu r e to
Playboy center folds, h as alw ay s been one of fr ank enh ancem ent. Retou ch ed pictu r es sim ply claim
th e tr aditional pr er ogativ es of illu str ations: to exagger ate, accentu ate, and im pr ov e u pon th eir
su bjects basically , to lie. For m u ch of th e last centu r y , m odels and m ov ie star s in fash ion
m agazines and adv er tisem ents w er e often r ender ed as dr aw ings or paintings. In The Girl on the
Magazine Cover, jou r nalism pr ofessor Car oly n Kitch explains th at m agazines w er e dealing in ideals
r ath er th an r eality , and th e v agu er contou r s of an illu str ation cou ld r epr esent both a specific ty pe
of fem ale beau ty , as w ell as m or e gener al m odel attr ibu tes, like y ou th , innocence,
soph istication, m oder nity , u pw ar d m obility , etc. Of cou r se, illu str ations also appealed to th eir v ain
su bjects, w h o w er e u su ally por tr ay ed as idealized v er sions of th em selv es. In th e ads of illu str ator Gil
Elv gr en, for exam ple, th e w om en ar e libidinou s fantasies a bu sty gir l-next-door sedu ctiv ely r ides
a car ou sel to sell Coca-Cola; anoth er , for w h om bu sty is an u nder statem ent, sh ills for a Cer ta
m attr ess. His pinu ps w er e ev en m or e ou tlandish in th eir h om ogenized w ell-endow edness. Not
su r pr isingly , Holly w ood star lets w er e eager for Elv gr en to elev ate th em w ith h is m agic paintbr u sh .
Sim ilar ly , Alber to V ar gas, th e fam ou s cr eator of Esquires V ar gas gir l and nu m er ou s Playboy
illu str ations, w as fav or ed by m any Golden Age m ov ie star s (Betty Gr able Jane Ru ssell, Av a
Gar dner ) of h is day . Th e m elon-br easted, sm all-w aisted sam eness of h is im ages inv ented som eth ing
of a new pu lp genr e: ph y siological science fiction.

Mu ch like ou r latter -day Ph otosh op h u m anoids, th e ar tw or k of Elv gr en, V ar gas, and th eir peer s r ely
on elem ents of car icatu r e, fixating on er otic body par ts, th e br easts and h ips, as w ell as on secondar y
sexu al ch ar acter istics big ey es, sm ooth skin, all th e allu r ing ph y sical accessor ies. Th ese
illu str ations obv iou sly am plified and em ended th e actu al w om en w h o m odeled for th em . Wer e th ey ,
h ow ev er , ph otogr aph s th at h ad been digitally m anipu lated, th eir distor tions w ou ld r ankle and
disconcer t. Looking at th em , one cant h elp w onder w h y w e r esist accepting, or ev en celebr ating, a
r etou ch ed ph oto for w h at it is: an open fiction, a candid fantasy . If w e cou ld ditch th e idea th at th ese
im ages bear any r esem blance to r eality , v iew er s m igh t not feel conned or play ed for fools.
Seen and appr eciated for w h at th ey ar e, m agazine im ages m igh t gain in ar tistic v ibr ancy w h at
th ey lose in ev er y day au th or ity . Th e tr u th is th at m ost r etou ch ed ph otos fail as aesth etic objects,
not becau se th ey r e deceptiv e, bu t becau se th ey r e tim id, feeble, and inh ibited. Constr ained by th eir
or igins as ph otogr aph s, th ey stop sh or t of em br acing fu ll sty lization. Th ey for ce th em selv es to w alk a
v er y fine line: r om anticize w ith ou t being pr eposter ou s, im pr ov e u pon natu r e w ith ou t gr ossly
m isr epr esenting a fam ou s ph y siqu e w ith w h ich v iew er s ar e fam iliar . Wh en an appar ently h ipless
Dem i Moor e gr aced th e cov er of W last y ear , r eader s blanch ed. Likew ise w h en Gw y neth s Paltr ow s
h ead appear ed oddly detach ed fr om h er body on th e May 2 008 cov er of Vogue, giv ing h er an
u psetting alien-fr om -ou ter -space v ibe. Wh at w er e th e editor s th inking? Th at w e w ou ldnt notice?
And y et per v er sely , ar tificial as th ese im ages ar e, th ey r e actu ally not ar tificial enou gh . It w ou ld be
better , per h aps, if ar t dir ector s ju st w ent all th e w ay , pu blish ing, w ith ou t apologies, pictu r es of
incar nate Betty Boops or Jessica Rabbits. Too m any m agazine im ages now aday s ar e neith er fish nor
fow l, neith er ph otogr aph s of integr ity nor illu str ations of potency . Th ey r e w eir d in-betw een
cr eatu r es, annoy ing and u nsettling.
Its u nlikely th at m agazines w ill take u p ov er t illu str ation again any tim e soon. And its ev en less
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likely th at Holly w ood, giv en its path ological obsession w ith y ou th and its despotic pu blicity
appar atu s, w ill deny itself th e option of tou ch -u ps. So lets get r eal ou r selv es, as v iew er s. Look
ar ou nd. We know per fectly w ell w h at w om en look like. We know w h en im ages ar e spu r iou s no
pater nalistic for m al disclaim er needed. Lets cope w ith ou r im age-dr ench ed env ir onm ent (by som e
cou nts, 3 ,000 ads accost u s ev er y day ) by teach ing y ou ng w om en (and m en) to cu ltiv ate th e sam e
cr itical skills w e u r ge th em to exer cise w h en r eading, a m or e com plex task th an pointing gleefu l
finger s at gr aph ic m isdem eanor s. Th e pr oblem isnt alter ed ph otogr aph s; its ou r failu r e to alter ou r
expectations of th em .

2015, New York Media LLC. Vie w all trade m ark s

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