14 DAY TRIAL // Retouching the photo of a celebrity is now common practice. In fact, some argue, it has become such a cold, hard reality of our celebrity culture, that no one is even trying to hide it anymore. With stars speaking out loud about their airbrushed photo spreads and magazines admitting to the practice, Holly Madison is the only one to take a stand and simply say “no, thank you” to it.
The common stance in such cases is for stars to say something along the lines “yes, that photo of me is retouched – no one is perfect,” and for magazines to vaguely admit that artists worked on the picture before it came out in print. Holly of the Playboy and “Girls Next Door” fame says that she, for one, is not at all happy with the practice, therefore she has always tried really hard not to promote it, neither on her own photos nor on those of other girls she worked with.
“One of my pet peeves is too much Photoshop. When I worked at Playboy, I was always really strict that the Photoshop we used on the girls was minimal.” the star shares in an interview for E!’s Daily 10, as quoted by People magazine. Moreover, she sees retouching – and, implicitly, openly accepting it as normal – as society’s way of saying that imperfections should not exist, whereas it is them that make each of us special. Take for instance, Holly adds, Kim Kardashian’s case.
Late last week, Complex magazine mistakenly posted a photo of Kim without retouching it beforehand. Before it became aware of the slip, celebrity bloggers had already snatched it and then posted it next to the finished version, as a side-by-side comparison. The difference was, naturally, pretty big, especially since the original photo showed traces of cellulite on Kim’s legs and a much larger waistline than the final version. Accused of being a liar – and fat, in more or less these words – Kim took to her blog to set the record straight.
“So what: I have a little cellulite. How many people do you think are photoshopped? It happens all the time! I’m proud of my body and this picture coming out is probably helpful for everyone to see that just because I am on the cover of a magazine doesn’t mean I’m perfect.” Kardashian wrote on her blog. “This all motivates me to stay in the gym because my goal this year has been to get in better shape and tone up! Hard work pays off!” she added.
Madison agrees with Kim on the being-proud-of-one’s-body part. “Kim looks amazing.” Holly explains in the same interview. “She’s a gorgeous girl and she’s got nothing to hide.” the star believes.