Fashion Frankensteining
Monday, November 30, 2009 at 8:15AM 
Ok, I wasn't going to mention anything about the conspiracy theory that Demi Moore's W Magazine cover is not her body, and that her head was allegedly photoshopped onto the model who was wearing the same outfit from the Balmain runway show, but after watching "The September Issue" this weekend, it reiterates what I and many others in the industry already know - photoshop is a tool of the trade. While it does appear that something was done to Demi's photo, I'm not in total agreement that it was as extreme as decapitation.
The documentary got me thinking about this again because there is a point in the movie where fashion photographer Mario Testino is trying to figure out with the powers that be at Vogue which of 2 photos of Sienna Miller should be the cover of "The Septmember Issue". In one photo of Ms. Miller they like the line of her neck best, however in the other photo they prefer her face more. What to do, what to do? Well what they do is cut, paste, and smudge in photoshop to make the wanted image out of both photos for the perfect cover! Is this what happened with Demi's W cover?
I've worked on many photoshoots, and guess what people, as soon as that pic is snapped and loaded onto the photographers laptop, there is airbrushing/photoshopping/edititing/manipulation/ whatever you want to call it being done. Why are people so shocked by this? It's part of what this industry does to accomplish the perfect image, and it's not just in fashion. It's done to just about every photo in print that lands in a magazine, on a billboard, packaging, etc., be it human, car, house, beverage, etc.
This Dove Evolution commercial showcases the process well.
While this is common place in the industry, it has been taken too far at times. Recently the Ralph Lauren people did just that and recieved tons of criticsim when they widdled a model down to a stick figure for a ad campaign. This had many up in arms, but we must all be reminded that like not always believing what you see or hear on TV or read in a paper or online, the same goes for fashion and advertising. What you see is not always what you get, right or wrong.
How do you feel about these distorted images used for consumer marketing? Please post your comments below.
Balmain, Demi Moore, Dove, Mario Testino, The September Issue, W 
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Reader Comments (7)
All I can say is that I wouldn't want to be a female teenager in this day and age! A false standard would be demoralizing!
I think that it is right and necessary to use working tools for to have the perfection in your job ..but " the Ralph Lauren cover" is not so perfect, it seems the distortion of the reality...it's the demonstration that not all knows how to use tools and how to do its job, so who produce this kind of work must be ready to accept criticism...
Reality is what it is. I've done photo shoots for fun (usually in a faerie costume) & I've done one for a local band I dance for. Oh yea those photos were photoshopped. Now on the other hand nothing to make me look skinner or better looking face, etc. I love the ending of the Dove commerical. Hey I was the teenage girl looking at all the beautiful models in magazines & wishing I could be like them; even actresses. It's nothing new except the technology. Sadly though I would watch my sisters go on whack diets & whack workouts (nothing planned & well balanced) because they both loved Sarah Jessica Parker in Sex in the City as Carrie Bradshaw. Back then I'd grab my bowl of ice cream & walk off. I just take better care of myself. However had I stayed a teacher or if I was a mom, I'd be disgusted if my daughter was looking & wanting to be what is unrealistic. I was watching TV ages and ages ago & I think it was geared towards teens & young women. I learned of a model named Emme. She was a plus sized model but absolutely gorgeous. I read up on her & found out she grew up with a father who would take a marker to her body & point out all the bad spots & let her know how fat she was. Her sister is similar too. Some women are just full figured & can be the healthiest eaters & have a daily exercise routine. Like the Dove ad....what's wrong with showing the world natural beauty & teaching young girls about it? Scary? Big whoop. Scarier when the percentage rate increases of young girls (and age range lowers as well) who have anorexia, bulemia or both. Thank my lucky stars I never went that direction to be that way. Sure it's going to happen right after the photos are uploaded but does it have to be so dramatic?
Almost reminds me of bits & pieces of the movie 13 Going On 30.
Ok down off my soap box. It's just that people need to, for once, get off their high horses & realize the wide variety of beauty. Sadly no popular magazine would put me on their cover unless I did something fabulous. No one would want me for an ad unless I weighed 90 pounds & was tall.
Ok ok off the soapbox again....
I wonder how the models themselves feel about being visually manipulated? That must do a world of hurt for their own egos. Its a shame that now, no matter what we see in a photo, we have to ask if it has been "photo shopped".
It's not only too sad that natural beauty isn't shown anymore. It's also a shame. I really wonder who started this? Who decided that a face or a body has to be perfect to be shown on a magazine cover? Who decided that only perfect is beautiful? Who decided what a perfect face or body is in the first place?
I have a teenage daughter and her opinion on who of the people she sees every day is beautiful and who is not is really weird and a result of those distorted pictures everywhere.
Photoshop is our friend - all of us. It's not like photos are really real, anyway - lighting, makeup, the way someone looks that particular day - it's all an abstraction of reality. No one would claim that a fashion photo is documenting unaltered reality - it's an image, so why not make it look as appealing as possible?
The body on Demi's photo is not the same body as the model's.Look at the drape across the hips and skirt. Different and not photoshopped. Decapitation makes a good headline and gee aren't we all staring at Demi's body right now? Just like when Ashton tweeted the bikini bottom shot supposedly unbeknownst to her, while she was bent over. It's called marketing and keeps Demi's name (and body) out there in the spotlight, and that is, after all, what it's all about in H town, no? There's some sort of irony here also in that didn't Demi spend copious amounts of money to "photoshop" her body via plastic surgery?
On the flip side, people don't seem to believe a girl can be superskinny and be healthy. I have firsthand experience with this and I've always found it interesting what people's images of themselves compared to others is.
If we want teenage girls confident in their own bodies, instead of wanting to emulate supermodels or celebrities, we need to start with their mothers.
Great blog Johanna.