Buzzfeed proves that with the support of a photoshop expert anyone can be “cover girl” material. So they took 5 women who they deem “average” and enlisted Francesca Ling, an L.A.-based photo retoucher and owner of True You to do her magic and make them into cover girls! I think the best thing about this experiment is that they asked the women what they thought about their doctored images and their responses are the most moving part…
Kirstin Orininal
How Kristin felt about her original photo her confession:
I hate smiling with teeth. I have really high and pronounced cheekbones, so I feel like whenever I smile, my eyes get swallowed up into my face. But IRL I laugh so much. I think if you can imagine me also making some weird over-the-top hand and arm gestures, this is pretty representative of what I look like.
Kristin Retouched :Slimmer arms and body, neck, and face. Smoothed skin on arms and neck, erased lines, erased scars on neck. Reshaped lips, made fuller, and added some color. Slight teeth whitening. Minor reshape of nose, less shine. Bigger eyes, brighter, added eye lashes, added eye shadow. Filled in and shaped brows. Added blush. Hair smoothed, more volume, and reshaped. Smoothed skin on kneecap.
Kristin’s reaction to her retouched photo:
The lightning bolt scar on my neck has been erased. HOW WILL VOLDEMORT KNOW WHERE HIS LAST HORCRUX IS NOW?! This is like looking into an alternate universe where I am a real estate agent on a bus ad. I know that aesthetically I look much better, but to me I look like an animal that has been stuffed by a taxidermist. Like, it’s technically my (beautified) face — but it doesn’t feel to me like Kristin is actually in there. Also, my kneecap skin was apparently smoothed? What was wrong with my kneecaps?! That said, retouched Kristin has a lovely three-bedroom bungalow in Beverly Hills that just went on the market that she thinks you would just adore.
Allison’s Original Photo
How Allison felt about her original photo:
It’s not my favorite photo of me, but I definitely don’t hate it. I tend to prefer photos where I’m goofing around or pulling a face. But yeah, this looks like me and that’s cool.
What was retouched on Allison: Reshaped torso to hourglass shape and contoured camera-right breast. Slimmed arms, removed hair, and smoothed the skin. Took away some creases on hands. Lowered shoulders. Slight thigh reshape. Smoothed skin on neck and chest. Made the neck less wide on camera-right side. Smoothed skin on face and eliminated most lines/wrinkles. Narrowed face and jaw, smaller chin. Plumped lips. Fixed chipped teeth, whitened. Narrowed bridge and tip of nose. Larger, brighter, more even eyes. Added eyelashes. Evened and filled in brows. Gave hair more volume, smoothed, and reshaped.
Allison’s reaction to her retouched photo:
UM WUT. Who is this person? She’s so smooth and hairless and freckle-free. Kinda looks like a sex doll! It’s like someone else made a decision for me about what plastic surgery I should get and it’s way more intense than I could’ve ever imagined. I enjoy my chipped teeth and weird dimples. Without that stuff I look less human and my smile definitely doesn’t look as genuine. Overwhelmingly, though, I think it’s time I invested in some teeth-whitening products.
Lara’s Original Photo
How Lara felt about her original photo:
It’s certainly not my favorite picture in the world, but overall, it looks like me. I’m kind of an awkward person and usually don’t know what to do with my hands. If you looked up “Lara” in the dictionary, a picture similar to this would appear.
What was retouched on Lara: Reshaped thighs, hips, hip bone, and waist into a smoother hour glassshape. I brought the camera-right side of upper torso closer to center to make her body smaller. Smaller, lower shoulder. Also moved in cleavage accordingly. Smoothed skin on arms, eliminated shadow on forearm across her waist. Smoothed skin on neck, erased all lines. Smoothed skin on face. Reshape of jaw to be a little more pointed. Adjustment of nostril shape. Gave top lip more of a heart shape. Eyes brighter, added eyelashes. Filled in and shaped brows. Hair has more volume and shape. Took away clothing wrinkles. Minimized skin/fat at the crook of arm between arm and breast camera-right by adding some fabric and eliminating shadows.
Lara’s reaction to her retouched photo:
HOLY SHIT, who is that? Because it sure as hell isn’t me. What happened to my face? Where is my swollen stomach? Whose nose is that? HOW DID MY EYEBROWS GET SO FIERCE? A huge part of me wants to say that it makes me appreciate my body more — but I’m going to be honest, it’s hard to look at this retouched photo and not yearn for some of the aspects of it.I just want to get to the place where I can look in the mirror and love every damn inch of my body. I’m not there yet, but I’m a hell of a lot closer than I was yesterday. But also — I’m going to have nightmares about Lara 2.0 for weeks. She looks a bit CRAZY.
Sheridan’s Original Photo
How Sheridan felt about her original photo:
Shine bright like a diamond who sweats easily. I can see some beautiful zits that decided today was the best day to wreak havoc on my face. But I don’t think I look half bad, actually. I mean, this photo isn’t profile pic material, but it isn’t disastrous.
What was retouched on Sheridan: Body: Slimmed waist and thighs, slimmer arms, shoulders smaller and lower. Face less round. Smoothed skin on arms and hands, removed hair, and erased hair ties on wrist. Fixed collar of shirt. Erased lines on neck, smoothed skin, erased mole. Plumped and evened lips. Reshaped jaw to minimize double chin. Cleaned and smoothed skin on face, less shine. Narrower neck. Bigger eyes, added eyelashes, brighter, evened brows. Smoothed hair and gave more volume.
Sheridan’s reaction to her retouched photo:
LOL. Man, my skin hasn’t looked this good since I was 8 years old. It’s weird, I look at this picture and I know it’s supposed to be me, but something’s not connecting. It’s like I’m looking at someone who I’m supposed to be. This new Sheridan seems effortlessly flawless, like those girls in middle school who never got acne and somehow pulled off blue braces. Also, who the fuck has arms that hairless and smooth? I remember growing up and seeing photos of women and asking myself why I don’t look like that. Well, now I know, because I would have to skin a baby supermodel to have a face this smooth and flawless.
I think that I relate to Sheridan’s reaction the most, because it encapsulates how most of us feel when we see magazine covers or advertisements. Before photo retouching was common knowledge we actually thought that the women gracing the covers of our favorite fashion mags REALLY looked like that!! Now that we know the truth!!! And even though we are privy, as we look at those images part of us feels like Lara, yearning for that “perfection” even when we know that it doesn’t truly exist…
So what have we learned?
We are all cover girls, and none of us are average, we are all singularly FABULOUS!!!
To check out the other 2 women’s photos click to JUMP
Creating a healthier body image through Acceptance, Appreciation and Respect
