Today
I want to discuss digital editing limits.
Before
we get deep into the issue and I run the risk of this becoming a
rant, I'd like to make my thoughts on the topic very clear; I
believe that who we are is not just how we look. That
may be why it is a little difficult for me as a photographer when
clients want to look twenty years younger and three stone** lighter. I
believe there is a limit to what is reasonable, and there is a line
that I will not cross with my editing. In this rare case, the client
is not going to always be pleased by my feelings. It is a risk, but
one I am willing to admit to and take the full consequences like a
big girl.
In
the interest of full disclosure, I do indeed lightly edit some images
of myself. I am proud of the fact that I have laugh lines at just
twenty-seven... they are my proof of a life well lived. That said,
there are parts of my body I am less proud of showing off. I am on a
diet and exercise plan to loose the weight I gained while pregnant,
and so I am not as happy with shots showing the squishy belly that my
son left behind. This means that I pose to hide much of that, choose
clothes to help mask my less attractive curves, and sometimes edit
things a little if there is an offending muffin top when I bend or
move in my post-pregnancy jeans.
I
am not saying that there should never be any editing done. Marketing
requires editing for images, though what they try not to tell you is
that it often adds as much to the figure as it subjects. I can
assure you that many of those models in your favorite lingerie
advertisements do not actually have gravity defying anatomy of that
proportion. But I can tell you that the web is full of videos on how
to use some impressive visual math and give anyone a model figure
with creative addition and subtraction.
To
see where the general consensus on the topic would land, I posted a
pole to the fans and friends on my facebook page. This gives me the
chance to understand what people think, while also offering a little
advertising as it goes viral. It has also given me the chance to see
that a little bit of editing appears to go a long way for many
people, something that makes me happy. There are some common editing
points I would like to suggest that every photographer learn as they
take new clients with higher expectations through the wonders of
“photoshop”.
Those
points will be the subject of tomorrows visual update (I'm fighting
with the formatting tonight). Until then, think about what you like
or dislike about your own face or photos and remember to check back
to see if this is covered by our quick fixes.
** In an effort to help expand the world's vocabulary, I used a less common British term and have included a link here for those not familiar with that word.
