When you look in the mirror, do you accept how you look?
This question is THE most important one when we measure our self esteem & confidence levels. This post is going to dive deep into social media, filters & how the original "selfie" has become the REVERSE "selfie".
Filter: something that has the effect of a filter (as by holding back elements or modifying the appearance of something)
Lighting, background & hair was altered. I went from bad lighting in my kitchen to looking glam in paradise. While this might be fun, I recognize this is NOT the real me!
Photo editing has become an open secret in the land of social media. Applications like Instagram, FaceTune & FaceApp have made it so easy for us to change the way we look ― through filters, retouching or a combination of both ― that it’s becoming harder to determine what’s real and what’s not. I would also argue the point that these apps are enabling us to perpetuate a fused blended expression of beauty, as opposed to celebrating raw, authentic individuality. Dove has launched #NoDigitalDistortion - This is a representation of how far retouching apps can distort beauty. #NoDigitalDistortion is Dove's movement to help build confidence and positive body image on social media.
90% of young women reported using filters or editing their photos to appear as if they had whiter teeth, weighed less, had a different nose, or other physical changes. (University of London's Gender and Sexualities Research Centre)
Just about everything is altered in this professional photo. Scroll down to see before/after. Photo Credit: ET Images
CAUSE?
They’re fun!
They allow us to hide what we feel are imperfections.
Note: I personally love to embrace imperfections. We are not perfect so it seems quite natural and real. Deep thought question: Who decides what “perfect” means anyway? If every girl was “perfect” life would be very boring.
They enhance lighting because most of us don’t walk around with a camera crew! One of my favorite reasons to use a filter!
EFFECT?
Constantly editing our photos and videos can slowly lead to feeling insecure when we look in the mirror. The less we see realistic images, the more reality becomes distorted when we see our image reflected to us in the mirror.
CHANGE?
My goal is not to blame apps like FaceTune and Instagram or the people who create them. Instead, I want to raise awareness that these apps exist and people are using them to alter their faces to fit an ideal that has morphed into “reverse selfies”. Do we really want to look like clones of each other? The future of social media could potentially shift the selfie game in a negative way if we fail to acknowledge and celebrate the very things we are filtering out and what make us unique. My Girls Above Society GIRL TALK Curriculums are designed to give girls the tools needed to be confident, kind & cyber-smart. Social media and body image are issues discussed that spark crucial face-to-face convos. Today's young girls are tomorrow's leaders!
If you find yourself constantly feeling the need to alter your appearance through filters or apps, think about this. Being the best version of yourself has never been about looking like someone else. And being able to so easily change the makeup of your face or the makeup ON your face to look like somebody else or like a beauty norm or ideal, seems like a really toxic way of approaching who you are as a human being.
You are a human being, not a filter or application. Authentic is refreshing and REAL! When we meet someone in person, we do not have the ability to pop up a filter. We are without falsities, which is exactly how we should be.
Filters and face/body changing apps won’t change, however, when they are used with the right mindset, we as girls can stay confident, support each other and celebrate our awesome freckles, skin color, the shape and everything about our face and body. Filters filter out our authenticity. Our authentic Girl Power and effect on others when we support each other is more powerful than any filter ever created!
XOXO Lauren
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