Influencers are known for posting highly edited photos on social media and have been caught for several photoshop fails. Even though this is common knowledge, it creates unrealistic standards for the rest of us, which makes us question our self-worth. On a larger scale, social media has transformed society’s perception of beauty and is affecting people of all ages and all walks of life.
Social media is known to be linked to increased depression, anxiety, poor body image, and loneliness, which I believe have to do with these unrealistic standards put on by the media. When we see a photo of a beautiful, photoshopped model, we want to be like them because society tells us we do. It’s interesting because social media was created to bring people together, but is instead causing high rates of loneliness. I think this is because people are only posting their “best selves” on social media, and others think they have perfect lives. In reality, everyone has bad days and struggles, but no one posts about that on their socials.
Many brands have started campaigns showcasing real beauty; pimples, freckles, stretch marks, you name it. Some of these are the Aerie Real Campaign, the Dove Real Beauty Campaign, and my personal favorite, a swimwear brand called Kitty and Vibe that only uses “real” models on their platforms.
I don’t think editing photos is bad, but there has to be a line. Editing the lighting, saturation, etc. of a photo is fine, but I don’t think we should be changing major features of a person that they can’t change in real life. Whatever your insecurities are, there is someone else out there that has the same ones. Who knows? You might start posting your unedited photos and inspire others to do the same. We have to start somewhere, so why not start with us?