Photo Doctoring and Business Ethics
It is interesting how photography and technology have together grown exponentially over recent years. Together these two tools can be used to create something astonishing. The program used to create the images for this article was Adobe Photoshop. Photoshop is basically a one stop shop (for any graphic designer, photographer, home user, etc.) that allows a specific user to manipulate one or many images to create another image of interest.
For this project, Photoshop was used to demonstrate how a professional may choose to alter a photo of a person to make that overall image become more or less desirable. These altered images examples were not a reflection of any specific person’s thoughts or ideas on what beauty is or how beauty is defined.The goal was to simply give a sense of the possibility this program allows.
Similar techniques were all used within each photo to achieve the desired outcome for this project. Basic tool uses will be given. However, the reader must be aware that for every tool mentioned there are hundreds of different set ups and modifications to the tool in itself that allow for different outcomes.
The first technique and tool used was something Photoshop calls the “Liquify Filter.” The technology part behind this is that this tool within Photoshop allows you to manipulate an area of pixels within the photo to adjust the shape and size of objects and how they appear in a photo. This tool was used to re-establish necklines, jawbones, waist lines, breast size, and nose shape. By altering certain parts of the photo using this tool, the user can create a more desirable overall shape and image of a figure. For example, the girl with the Mozilla Firefox shirt now has a thinner waist, slimmer face, smaller breast, and a raised/reduced shoulder.
The next tool is crucial for every skin touch up. Photoshop calls it the “Clone Stamp.” The clone stamp tool allows a user to select a desired pixel and copy the pixel to a new location. This tool allows you to fix skin, move shadows, and create new objects like hair or add to an eyebrow. A good example of this tool in use is the photo where the women is seen wearing a bra. By viewing both the original and modified photo it is easily noticeable where the changes have occurred. The girl now has a smoother forehead, less shadows, no more bags under her eyes, a softer hairline, and an overall “better” complexion.
The next set of tools consists of the “Burn” and “Dodge” tools. These two either darken or lighten the image depending on which you select. The technique was taken from an older style of photography where the person developing the photos and taking the photos would use certain tools to give the image a desired look. This of course is now all done digitally instead of by hand during the time of the photo. These tools were brought in to darken the pupil of eyes, give a look of eye shadow, and lighten the white part of the eye. In two of the photos it is more apparent, but it shows you the possible effect you could have if you wanted to change the eye entirely.
The last technique was to change the color balance of a photo in its entirety, or to target a specific object or place within the photo to change the color. Photoshop allows you to select a region of the photo in many different ways. Once the targeted region is selected, you are allowed to drag the amounts of red, green, and yellow to add or change the color. This technique was used to change the entire image of myself. By first targeting my eyes, I added a little green within the iris of my eye. Then I selected the entire image, and added a green hue to the overall image. This brought out a brighter green in my shirt and made my eyes have a slight glow. In the Mozilla Firefox photo it is clear that the overall image has been adjusted to a warmer more friendly color. The pole the girl is leaning up against in the “Senior Photo” collection has turned from a bright blue color to a more outfit friendly dark brown. Lastly the color of the women’s bra was changed from a white to a red.
These techniques all take a matter of minutes to accomplish. Someone with little experience can come in and play with these and learn in a matter of moments. Professionals with an extended amount of experience with the program almost have a sort of God like creativity at their fingertips. They can alter and change any image or idea to the way they see fit.
The main thing I question is, “why the change?” Posting these photos online and having a few friends sit down for a viewing raised some questions. Showing everyone the altered image first usually brought up no reaction. Comments included,
“Yeah? So what?”… “What is the big deal, she is cute and she is just a girl.”
“Wow she has perfect skin, Wish I looked like that.”
The biggest reaction would come soon after showing the original image. Some were shocked at the changes, others even disgusted. Most of the guys would tend to agree the altered photo had a more attractive individual. Women said they were aware of things like this but never really thought about how their magazines doctor them up or have not spent the time to see the original.
If I was working for a clothing manufacturer and was in charge of coming up with some policies regarding customer perceptions and reactions I am not sure where I would start. I would hope the photo would have some sort of written notice that the image had been altered, perhaps even listing specific alterations. It would also be written in the policy that no object or product such as clothing was to be altered in any way. I believe changing the shape or appearance of your actual product would hinder the purchasing decision of the individual. I assume the main use of this technology would be aimed at making the clothing appear more fashionable and nicely fitting. However, photo doctoring should not be allowed to change the actual clothing in any way. If any changes were made to the image such as the person or appearance of their skin for example, should be listed at least in small print. Ethically it would probably be most fitting to use a policy that disapproves any use of photo doctoring at all. It should also commend the company for hiring outside modeling agencies that seek to reflect the “average” community look.
This was my first experience using Photoshop to alter the images of people. I was taken away by how much change could be achieved with such little effort and knowledge. I was taught a few techniques from a friend of mine and she can do this much faster and with much less care then I can. This leads me to believe that for a professional, changing images and altering the looks of reality can easily be achieved. This project has brought up my overall awareness with regards to this issue and its ethical implications. Doctoring photos and altering reality is a popular tool used by marketers and should be used wisely.