16/01/15 - POLITICS PROJ. (Experimenting with Image Manipulation)

Original Image from 'Blanc' editorial - Caroline Wong

During the process of creating my final images for my editorial, I had to think about how to ensure my images related to my concept. I realised that whilst I liked my photography, I hadn't quite managed to make a statement about my feelings towards plastic surgery.

To make a start, I looked into Chris Scarborough, an artist who manipulates his images so that his subjects appear anime-like. As anime characters generally portray an extreme version of Asian beauty standards, I used a Chinese photo editing app on my phone to enlarge my model's eyes. The resulting images were creepy to say the least and had negative reviews when I asked around about whether or not the original or the new version was preferred.

To take it even further, I referenced back to my finalised concept board and decided I would pixelate out the face of my model. This was done in a bid to remove the beauty of the model so that it could no longer be the focus of the photo. Again when I asked around, the reactions were negative only this time I didn't mind this. I thought about why I had also originally preferred the first images and I realised that it was because of the beauty standards subconsciously engrained into my mind. I've always liked the idea of having power over what others can see and by pixelating my model's face, I was able to control what was being shown in my editorial.

I'm very glad to have been pushed to explore my concept further as I am much happier with my results. By being asked to really think about the message I'm trying to portray, I believe I will now be able to style shoots better in a way that tells stories or speaks for me and my opinions more effectively.