‘Breaking News’ Pictures With Photo Manipulation

Several images are altered to create the impact for breaking news to the public every morning. Now that most readers know it is photo manipulation at work, how far can an agency go with it? Deliberately tweaked pictures can be made to look horrible or beautiful. The current trends of advertising reflect in the campaigns. It is hard to know how much a model has been retouched. How many times have you hated the mirror because it never lies? It does not smoothens the wrinkles, does not hide a stand of grey hair. It makes one face one’s real face. On the other hand everyone loves photographs, especially if they are Photoshop manipulated. The reasons- they preserve memories, they conserve beauty and lastly they deceive. To imbibe realty is not an easy task. It often hurts -so why not garb it under cover of beauty. Photoshop manipulation does exactly the same. And where there is beauty, beast must be nearby.

Like a coin, Photoshop Manipulation has two faces.

First the good side

The positive ripples of image manipulation can be felt at several spheres. Be it in self- expression, commercial communication, historical facts and figures, scientific requirements, artistic purposes, the magic of Photoshop is omnipresent. In its early days, Photoshop was used for simple photo editing needs. But, with fast development, it can now be used to for extensive purposes. The next time one raves about the ravishing beauty of a supermodel on a print ad or a magazine cover, search for traces of Photoshop manipulation. Before one actually gets into doing so, note that no such traces can be found. It depletes the distinction between realism and idealism. When the viewers gush out in admiration at the artworks of renowned photographers, the man knows the truth. Had it not bee
Photoshop manipulation, many precious old photographs would have been lost due to lack of retouching. With this tool, they can be easily restored to their original glory. Not only images, but also this software allows artists to play with words as well. Lastly, how can one forget that Photoshop Manipulation is the source of bread and butter of many professionals?

The reverse face

It cannot be denied that if images persuade, they deceive as well. If they sing of glory of self-expression, it can also derogate an event. If it tells stories, it can also distort historical facts. If it preserves beauty, it also adds to malpractices like morphing faces. Photoshop manipulation has been used to implant false faces on bodies. From dishonoring posters to sexual scams, they have manipulated images massively. This is why the technology has come under fire from the moral police time and again. And it has been ‘breaking news’ often.

It is thus, that the fine line ethics and morality is dishonored. But it remains a matter of individual judgment to respect ethics or to violate them. No technology is either good or bad; it is way it is used matters the most.