the photoshop effect

Yes, yes, I know, digital photo manipulation is everywhere.  This isn't new information.  Still, I came across this video on my facebook news feed today, and what stopped me cold was a comment my friend (who posted it) wrote:  "My daughter asked me why no one else has arm hair."



Tim Lynch, the photographer featured in the video at one point says:  "If you trained full-time as a pro-athlete with trainers and ate the way you were supposed to eat, you could probably get close, but who has time? You know, so I do it for you." 

*Le deep, deep sigh.*

This is on the cusp of being funny; the kind of funny that jumps in to save you from feeling the horror of the reality in all of its rawness. I mean, really people? Does this make sense? Is this just the next step in our beauty standard trajectory? 

As a freelance makeup artist, I ask these questions with mixed feelings.  When beauty brand Make Up For Ever released their "first unretouched make up ad" earlier this year, the irony of the ad, which emphasized a lack of deception, only to underscore the advertised products' ability to deceive (after all, isn't that what we're doing with cosmetics/make up?) wasn't lost on me.  

I enjoy wearing make up in my own life, and  experimenting with different looks, so, on the one hand, I feel like a bit of a participant in the madness.  I fool the eye with cosmetic products on clients and on myself.  I "wake-up" my under eye area every day with a touch of the perfect concealer. 

On the other hand I also make sure to remove any makeup from my face at the end of each day.  And my favorite kind of makeup application to practice is one that doesn't take the face I'm working on too far away from its reality.  So I play with makeup, but I never forget it as the game it is.  And my goal on every job, as futile as it may be, is to accomplish a makeup application that warrants no photo retouching.  I get that, by this point, at least according to this video, that makes me one of the last few dreamers in that realm.  But what can I say?  A lady's gotta dream.

What do you think?  Did you know that photo retouching was so widespread?  Do you care?  Any feelings on the subject?  'Cause I'm at a bit of a loss ...