This Video Might Make You Mad

The technology you’re about to see is kind of amazing, but the applications? Notsomuch. With software like this it’s just too easy to make pictures of people into complete visions of unreality. Want to have bigger boobs? Here ya go! Need the model in your ad to look taller and thinner? Here ya go! Need those legs to look longer? Yep, OK, here ya go!

DO NOT WANT.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3VLjmWorRWk]

6 Responses to This Video Might Make You Mad

  1. Deanna says:

    We must remind ourselves when we see pictures and are tempted to judge ourselves against them, that not even THEY look like that.

  2. Katie says:

    Yikes, I knew retouching techniques were good but THIS is RIDICULOUS.

  3. Veronica says:

    I couldn’t even finish that video! It made me want to cry.

  4. Heather says:

    Retouching doesn’t seem to bother me too much, as I think I’m quite aware of it in general. I don’t buy too much into the whole media as a cause of eating disorders mentality, and I think it helps me keep clear that it’s something about the inside and not the outside that I need to work on.

  5. Hi Sunny, It’s Amy, at your table in Jess’ Actionist network/L.A. When I saw this video it reminded me of the even more disturbing application of camera distortion into an actual consumer camera product itself.

    Recall a few years back (’06 I think?) when HP digital came out with the “slimming” feature that auto-reduced subjects with the push of a button? I’m not sure who owns what now, but I remember being slack-jawed at what was once an elite/expensive art process reserved for ad agency/photo retouchers (e.g. “we need a blue sky for that cruiseship, get rid of the clouds, strip ’em out!” being turned into an off-the shelf “option” for lies, deception and ‘makeover magic’ which has ramped up ad infinitum long sense then:

    http://www.buzzfeed.com/buzz/Slimming_Cameras

    Agree with Heather above that one can’t always connect the dots into ‘causality’ but the inclination to keep hammering away at psyches by upholding images that are fabrications and unachievable are doing damage deep inside young girls and teens. (Think “Inception” without the car chases and shoot ’em ups) 😉

    Great piece, keep up the good work. See you ’round the Twittersphere, Amy

    @Shaping Youth

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Sunny Sea Gold

About the Author

Sunny Sea Gold is a media-savvy advocate and commentator specializing in binge eating disorder, cultural obsessions around food and weight, and raising children who have a healthy body image.