BLOG: Extreme Plastic Surgery, Photo Re-Touching & The Beauty Industry
Last Updated (Tuesday, 02 March 2010 11:04)
A 21 year old Chinese woman is seeking extensive plastic surgery to look like actress Jessica Alba; mainly because she hopes to win back her boyfriend who she said always wished she looked more like the Hollywood star.
I wanted to write a blog about this because I think it’s something we in the beauty industry should be talking about. Last week I posted an article from a plastic surgeon who pointed out the top 5 most digitally altered body parts. His point was that extreme forms of re-touching are giving women in this country unrealistic expectations about what their bodies should (or can) look like. We’re not talking about basic re-touching here, such as fixing some skin imperfections (which by the way, for the most part, I’m all for); the re-touching he was referring to was altering the parts of the body. We had an extraordinary amount of hits to this article and so many of you sent me private messages about this subject, but very few beauty professionals wanted to discuss this issue publicly.
My opinion on re-touching sways back and forth. As a magazine editor and hair and makeup agent, I appreciate some digital editing and if it’s just adjusting some lighting, fixing some skin issues, cleaning up the makeup slightly or removing a stray hair then I think it’s ok. However my opinion changes when makeup is completely changed or body parts are really altered. Small adjustments are ok with me (again, personal opinion) but if you are completely changing the artist’s work then it’s really not the artist's work anymore and if you are changing body parts, then it's not really the model anymore. There are a lot of variables that have to go right to get the perfect picture and re-touching is a technology that has just become a part of the industry. I find that people like me are not really supposed to talk about this subject much. So as the stubborn being that I am, I like to put it out there and talk about it.
As far as the plastic surgery issue, I wonder if this young woman’s expectation of what Jessica Alba truly looks like is accurate. I think Jessica Alba is gorgeous and I’m sure I’ve seen a few tabloid “stars without makeup” pictures of her, but are those the pictures that the patient is bringing into her surgeon? Who knows but I would be surprised if that was the case.
Speaking of unrealistic, we are talking about plastic surgery for someone who essentially is asking to change races. I find this whole thing to be very sad. The hospital did advise against the procedures and they don’t believe that she will be completely satisfied with the results if she truly is looking to be transformed into a Jessica Alba clone.
By the way, what happened to good old hair and makeup makeovers? Doesn’t this all seem a little extreme and does the beauty industry play any role in all of this? I believe feeling beautiful is super important for women. I have no objections to women getting plastic surgery. I of course embrace the beauty industry and all of the amazing products out there to help enhance our look. I even think re-touching pictures in some cases is acceptable. However, where do we draw the line? Or do we draw the line?
Those are just my thoughts and opinions on the issue. If you want to chat more about it, visit our Message Board.
WRITTEN BY: SANDIE TORRES (YBI EDITOR/FOUNDER)
To read the article "Women seeks Jessica Alba Makeover to win back lover" click HERE.
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