Touching On Retouching

I have some very strong opinions about advertising.

Well, certain kinds of advertising.

As I was looking through a catalog today,

I was once again 

reminded of how "not real" the images I was looking at were.

It concerns me.

I'm afraid for my daughters

and my future granddaughters.

So many beautiful images.

So many beautiful people.

So little of it real.

My eyes have been pried wide open

since I became more interested in photography.

It's amazing to see what can be done 

to enhance a picture.

For example,

I took this picture today

of some beautiful ripe bananas sitting on my counter.

The only problem is,

this is what they really look like.

And that is with just a few minutes of retouching.

See what I mean?

Theodore Roosevelt once said:

COMPARISON IS THE 

THIEF OF JOY.

I really believe that.

I worry that young girls

(and not so young girls) everywhere

 are out there comparing themselves 

to images of other people that aren't even accurate.
Images that make them feel inferior.
Not pretty enough.
Not thin enough, etc.

It's a little disturbing, to be honest.

And so, I say to my daughters

and everyone else who might read this blog. . .

BE HAPPY WITH WHO YOU ARE. 
LET'S CELEBRATE OUR DIFFERENCES.
BE YOURSELF AND BE PROUD OF IT!
STOP COMPARING AND FIND YOUR JOY:)