Why Photos Can't Be Trusted
I was at an internet shop waiting for a friend check his email when I glanced over at the monitor besides his. The girl sitting next to him was tending to her account for a social network, and at the time had pictures of her at the screen. I barely looked at the screen, but I saw that the picture on the screen was cute. I don’t mean to be superficial, mean or condescending, but I need to mention in this article to make a point, that she wasn’t cute in person. The picture on the screen seemed cute mostly because of her pose on the photo and the angle the photo was taken and the style of the photo itself, but anyone enamored by that photo would have been disappointed if the only reason one would be attracted to her was that photo.
After seeing photos, and even videos of people whose faces I am quite familiar with, I have come to learn that what some people look like in photos and videos at times has differences with what they look like in person. By experience, I have come to know what being photogenic means. There are some people who look great in person, and you can’t take a bad picture of them. I even know someone who although is pretty in person, to say that she looks amazing in photos would be an understatement. Some translate very well in film, and some even look better in film than in person. Some celebrities look as nice as they do in person as they do in film, while with others, film doesn’t do them justice, as they look even better in person. However, this is not the case with all of us.
I am what I call alaingenic. (Yes, I can make up words too.) This means I look bad in person, but I look worse in pictures. Now you know why I don’t post pictures of myself in my websites. If you’ve never seen me in person, I could be joking, or I could be serious. Assume the worst. But to be serious, during the few times I have been on TV, people kept telling me that I look very different on TV than in person. I absolutely agree. During one time when an admirer asked to take a picture with me, I could imagine her disappointment once the photo got developed. It was hardly worth keeping. I like being the photographer, not only because I like photography, but also, if I’m holding the camera, it means I won’t be in any of the pictures to ruin them. It was so sad to see that I’ve ruined so many photos because I was in them.
I don’t post photos of myself on my websites not only because of what I look like, but also because I don’t think it should matter. My credibility nor the logic of my words is not affected by what I look like. People shouldn’t like or dislike someone merely because of what they look like; that’s superficial. And anyone using their looks to get more friends or to get ahead of life is so superficial. But that’s a whole other discussion. (See my other article, “Is it Important to Look Good”.)
Some people know what pose is best for them, some know which is their best angle, some just look great in photos. Then again, why should any of that matter? One person looks good in photos, should that be a quality that is to be admired, or is it just one of those things? I can understand why it would be an insult for a very admirable, successful, career woman to be relegated to “just a pretty face”. No wonder I am not a big fan of photo-sharing sites which mostly show the vanity (or superficiality) of the owner. You look good, so what? Another person looks bad, so what.
There’s an even more interesting reason to not trust photos.
I once got a photo with me on it where I loved how I looked. Just when I was wanting to get a softcopy, my I.T. coteacher, who was also on the picture, remarked that the photo had been photoshopped. She observed that we all had the same complexion, eventhough in real life others were fairer than the rest. After taking a closer look, I agreed with her conclusion. (Hey, I just found out how I can look good in pictures!)
Sarah of Diet.com did a very interesting report on the commonness of photoshopping pictures that are in magazines, billboards and whatnot, under the report titled “The Photoshop Effect.” Tim Lynch, a photographer and retoucher, demonstrated how easy it is to manipulate a person’s photo to make that person look whatever they want. Youtube is actually teeming with videos showing demonstrations of how one person’s photo can be photoshopped into something much more fabulous.
In Sarah’s report, she said that, “according to Newsweek magazine, the retouching of photos has become so mainstream, not only is it expected but demanded from publicists.” She says that magazine editors assume that magazine readers know that the photos are retouched. Tim Lynch says that celebrities have photo retouchers, and that they control what photos of them are officially released.
The problem with this, as also stated by Sarah, is that people get an unrealistic, idealistic view of other people, which is unattainable in real life, in effect causing depression on others, lowering their self esteem, while others develop an unrealistic expectation of others, such as men expecting near perfection on women. This produces unhealthy habits such as eating disorders, an unhealthy point of view or even obsession on exercise or dieting, or even medical treatments meant to gain the look that can be seen on magazines that was never real to begin with.
If ever you see a gorgeous picture, and imagine that you want a person like that, remember that you could just as well be wanting a cartoon character, invented by an artist. If ever you wanted to be someone like what you see on a magazine, remember that these people may not even look like that in real life. If they don’t even look like that in real life, how can anyone?
Photos can be manipulated. Makeup can change what a person looks like in a photo. So can the right light, angle, background and pose. But remember that they may not look like that in real life, at least not every second of the day, and most people are as unglamorous in real life as you and me. (Okay, maybe just me.)
Real life is better than pictures. If ever you’ve kissed a photograph, you know it’s not like kissing that person in real life. And when you talk to a photo, it doesn’t talk back.
There are more important things than what we can see. What is essential is invisible to the eye.
- A. L. E. –
Last sentence from The Little Prince, by Antoine de Saint Exupery, as translated from French by Katherine Woods.
(Originally written: 2009, April 23, 11:45 pm)
After seeing photos, and even videos of people whose faces I am quite familiar with, I have come to learn that what some people look like in photos and videos at times has differences with what they look like in person. By experience, I have come to know what being photogenic means. There are some people who look great in person, and you can’t take a bad picture of them. I even know someone who although is pretty in person, to say that she looks amazing in photos would be an understatement. Some translate very well in film, and some even look better in film than in person. Some celebrities look as nice as they do in person as they do in film, while with others, film doesn’t do them justice, as they look even better in person. However, this is not the case with all of us.
I am what I call alaingenic. (Yes, I can make up words too.) This means I look bad in person, but I look worse in pictures. Now you know why I don’t post pictures of myself in my websites. If you’ve never seen me in person, I could be joking, or I could be serious. Assume the worst. But to be serious, during the few times I have been on TV, people kept telling me that I look very different on TV than in person. I absolutely agree. During one time when an admirer asked to take a picture with me, I could imagine her disappointment once the photo got developed. It was hardly worth keeping. I like being the photographer, not only because I like photography, but also, if I’m holding the camera, it means I won’t be in any of the pictures to ruin them. It was so sad to see that I’ve ruined so many photos because I was in them.
I don’t post photos of myself on my websites not only because of what I look like, but also because I don’t think it should matter. My credibility nor the logic of my words is not affected by what I look like. People shouldn’t like or dislike someone merely because of what they look like; that’s superficial. And anyone using their looks to get more friends or to get ahead of life is so superficial. But that’s a whole other discussion. (See my other article, “Is it Important to Look Good”.)
Some people know what pose is best for them, some know which is their best angle, some just look great in photos. Then again, why should any of that matter? One person looks good in photos, should that be a quality that is to be admired, or is it just one of those things? I can understand why it would be an insult for a very admirable, successful, career woman to be relegated to “just a pretty face”. No wonder I am not a big fan of photo-sharing sites which mostly show the vanity (or superficiality) of the owner. You look good, so what? Another person looks bad, so what.
There’s an even more interesting reason to not trust photos.
I once got a photo with me on it where I loved how I looked. Just when I was wanting to get a softcopy, my I.T. coteacher, who was also on the picture, remarked that the photo had been photoshopped. She observed that we all had the same complexion, eventhough in real life others were fairer than the rest. After taking a closer look, I agreed with her conclusion. (Hey, I just found out how I can look good in pictures!)
Sarah of Diet.com did a very interesting report on the commonness of photoshopping pictures that are in magazines, billboards and whatnot, under the report titled “The Photoshop Effect.” Tim Lynch, a photographer and retoucher, demonstrated how easy it is to manipulate a person’s photo to make that person look whatever they want. Youtube is actually teeming with videos showing demonstrations of how one person’s photo can be photoshopped into something much more fabulous.
In Sarah’s report, she said that, “according to Newsweek magazine, the retouching of photos has become so mainstream, not only is it expected but demanded from publicists.” She says that magazine editors assume that magazine readers know that the photos are retouched. Tim Lynch says that celebrities have photo retouchers, and that they control what photos of them are officially released.
The problem with this, as also stated by Sarah, is that people get an unrealistic, idealistic view of other people, which is unattainable in real life, in effect causing depression on others, lowering their self esteem, while others develop an unrealistic expectation of others, such as men expecting near perfection on women. This produces unhealthy habits such as eating disorders, an unhealthy point of view or even obsession on exercise or dieting, or even medical treatments meant to gain the look that can be seen on magazines that was never real to begin with.
If ever you see a gorgeous picture, and imagine that you want a person like that, remember that you could just as well be wanting a cartoon character, invented by an artist. If ever you wanted to be someone like what you see on a magazine, remember that these people may not even look like that in real life. If they don’t even look like that in real life, how can anyone?
Photos can be manipulated. Makeup can change what a person looks like in a photo. So can the right light, angle, background and pose. But remember that they may not look like that in real life, at least not every second of the day, and most people are as unglamorous in real life as you and me. (Okay, maybe just me.)
Real life is better than pictures. If ever you’ve kissed a photograph, you know it’s not like kissing that person in real life. And when you talk to a photo, it doesn’t talk back.
There are more important things than what we can see. What is essential is invisible to the eye.
- A. L. E. –
Last sentence from The Little Prince, by Antoine de Saint Exupery, as translated from French by Katherine Woods.
(Originally written: 2009, April 23, 11:45 pm)
