We've all been there: scrolling through Instagram (most likely procrastinating) and then we stumble upon a photo of our friend who looks absolutely amazing. Their hair, face, body, clothes are on point and you like that up! And then, after closer examination, you realize that this photo is so doctored that it does not resemble the true beauty radiated from your friend in real life. The lighting, color, and, most importantly, her body look significantly different from the reality. Her legs or ams may be substantially skinnier and her abs are more defined. Maybe you even find yourself in the large population of users who edit your pictures to provide this facade to your followers. Editing pictures of your body on Instagram is detrimental on so many levels, which is why I do not have a single "pic editing" app on my phone.
While there is nothing wrong with wanting to enhance your appearance in a photo, editing your body to the point that you no longer resemble the photos you post is not conductive to a healthy body image and instills the idea that anything less of perfection is inexcusable. This is problematic because it unravels all of the hard work our generation has devoted to challenging unrealistic body standards. Unfortunately, Instagram is not the most genuine app and the sad reality is that the majority of the photos posted by celebrities and popular accounts are edited in some way. This teaches young girls that they are not good enough and, in order to get a certain amount of likes, they have to dedicate valuable time to tucking, slimming, and enhancing their already beautiful photos.
Not only is editing your photos a form of lying, it demonstrates to the world that you are not comfortable in your own skin. If you see someone in real life and their photos on Instagram make them appear 15 pounds lighter, chances are, they do not think they are good enough in real life. This mentality is the exact opposite of crafting a healthy self-image and needs to be rejected in order for any progress to occur in our society. This mentality is how the majority of eating disorders are initiated and tell young girls that they need to change is they don't look like X.
While photo editing apps may make you feel like a professional photographer being able to enhance that photo of a sunset you took at the beach, they also have the potential to institute the message that the photo of you and your squad is not good enough unless you make your legs look more toned and get rid of a zit on your forehead. Newsflash! Instagram is not a magazine editorial and nobody expects your iPhone 6 to produce the same quality. This is why I encourage all of you, next time you post a picture on Instagram, to merely take it from your library and put a filter like Valencia (if you want) on it and call it a day.
I have a dream that social media will be used to share life moments with friends/family instead of causing girls to envy others because of how "perfect" she looks in a photo. I wish that Instagram would reflect life: imperfect, messy, and realistic. You are beautiful just the way you are and do not need any app to help you prove that to others.
Next time you upload a photo to Instagram, liberate yourself and skip the photoshop. Feel confident posting that unaltered picture of you and your bestie sans editing apps. What will you do with all that extra time you save not having to nip and tuck at a photo endlessly? Have a dance party!
