← Tillbaka till Improveme Bloggarkiv

Meet Dana Suchow, the Fashion Blogger Who Decided to Come Clean About Photoshopping

av

I Photoshopped the images in the first place because that’s what you do—that’s what bloggers do; that’s what fashion does. When I first started the blog, I thought, ‘I want to make so much money, I’m going to become a famous fashion blogger, I’m going to go to all the fashion weeks.’ Now that’s not what I want to do.

But no one’s going to want to advertise on a girl who has acne, or a fupa. That’s not the ideal body. So [I thought] unless I have an ideal body, my blog is not going to make money, not going to attract readership, and I’m not going to have 10,000 Instagram followers liking my selfie. Then, when my ideals and values started shifting towards why I wanted to do the blog in the first place and what message I wanted to put out, Photoshopping my body to make me look different was not in line with what I wanted to do.

I’ve gone in the direction of having my blog be more of a place for women–even in the comments section—to air out the things that they’re feeling about their bodies. One thing that I’ve noticed with my readers is that they’re very open with me. And someone had commented on an old post saying something like, ‘You’re so beautiful,’ and I thought, even if it’s a two inch line [I’ve retouched], I still don’t feel like I was 100 percent honest.

It took me a few months to actually put this post out—I had to gain the courage to do it. I’ve said before to other people, my skin and my stomach are huge insecurities for me. I’ve had acne all my life—even having people see me in the morning without makeup is scary, let alone the whole world seeing me without Photoshop. But I felt like I had to do it and be honest with my readers—and better late than never.

Also, I was tired. If I was going to shoot for the blog on a Saturday, I would spend three hours at the gym on Friday night trying to work out, pushing myself to exhaustion, so that I would look good for a shoot the next day. I finally thought, ’I can’t have this ruining my life anymore.’ It’s scary to be putting myself out there, but if this is what I’m doing, if I’m killing myself and getting injuries at the gym, just for this blog, then the blog isn’t worth it.

The response has been overwhelming, but I’ve just been trying to stay above water and all the positive responses have been keeping me going. The craziest thing I’ve received is e-mails from parents saying that their daughters are depressed, and they don’t have any tools to show them about body image. So they’re like, ’Thank you for putting yourself out there, I’m showing this to my daughter.’ So [going forward], I have to be honest now—I can’t lie to these people who trust me.

Before this all went viral, it was a little more personal—just comments from the people who “know me” or know what I’m about online. So it was 100% supportive. I cried when I read some of the responses—I had friends texting me, telling me they could really relate to it and that they were proud of me. A lot of people said they were really proud of me, and that meant a lot.

Since it’s gone viral, I’ve been trying not to read too many of the comments. A lot of people say it’s just a skinny girl or a perfect girl trying to show us how perfect she is without Photoshop. If they only knew how upset I was about my body when I saw the un-Photopped photos on those posts. You know, in one of them I was in tears, thinking, ’I can’t believe my stomach bulges out that much, I’m hideous, I have to retouch this.’ I just wish people would know the insecurity I felt and how common it is with women. I want these people in the end to realize they’re attacking the very thing that I’m trying to say don’t attack.

I’m doing this because I wish that when I was going through the worst parts of my self-esteem issues, I had something like this to look at.

[Photoshoping] is the norm—and it’s crazy because I’m getting these e-mails from readers saying ‘I had no idea.’ It’s not common knowledge at all—which I think is why my story has been so big, even though my Photoshopping isn’t that drastic. I think it’s like, ‘Oh my god these people who claim they’re regular people don’t really look like that?’ They’re setting the bar so high that even regular people can’t look regular.

I think that fashion bloggers are the end result—I’m not going to shame a blogger for Photoshopping him or herself. I think that we have to look at the bigger picture of why they’re doing it—why they feel the need to do it. There’s so much pressure in society for people to be perfect—especially online—any sort of celebrity or public persona. I’ve actually had a couple fashion bloggers respond to me saying, ’Hey, we want to work on a project together or raise awareness for this or if we Photoshop our photos, including a disclaimer—being more transparent.’ It’s really inspiring.

I’m not shaming models or skinny women, I’m just saying there’s a whole spectrum of people on this planet who aren’t being utilized or shown to the public. It’s a very narrow view of what is perfect. It’s in all the magazine and advertisements and it’s scary—and even scarier when I get these e-mails from parents saying their kids don’t fit into that norm. It just breaks my heart.

I’m not saying that fashion is wrong or that Photoshop is a terrible program. I’m just saying nothing is real—nothing that you see in an advertisement or on TV is real. Your body is real. So all that energy you’re spending [worrying]—all those hours I spent at the gym on Friday nights, I could have written a novel. But I’m so thankful that I’m now at the point where I’ve realized it and I’ve come out a stronger person.

219 svar på ”Meet Dana Suchow, the Fashion Blogger Who Decided to Come Clean About Photoshopping”

  26. Your style is really unique in comparison to other folks I ave read stuff from. Thank you for posting when you have the opportunity, Guess I will just bookmark this page.

  34. Supreme Group Supreme Group Supreme Group Supreme Group Supreme Group Supreme Group Supreme Group Supreme Group Supreme Group Supreme Group

  42. Whoa! This blog Whoa! This blog looks just like my old one! It as on a totally different subject but it has pretty much the same layout and design. Outstanding choice of colors!

  122. I was suggested this website by my cousin. I am not sure whether this post is written by him as no one else know such detailed about my problem. You are amazing! Thanks!

  123. This awesome blog is without a doubt entertaining as well as informative. I have chosen helluva interesting stuff out of this amazing blog. I ad love to visit it again and again. Thanks!

  147. This awesome blog is without a doubt awesome and besides amusing. I have picked up a bunch of helpful advices out of this amazing blog. I ad love to return again soon. Thanks a bunch!

  154. You could certainly see your skills in the work you write. The sector hopes for even more passionate writers such as you who are not afraid to say how they believe. Always go after your heart.

  158. Normally I do not learn article on blogs, however I wish to say that this write-up very forced me to try and do so! Your writing style has been amazed me. Thank you, very great article.

  168. It as really very complex in this full of activity life to listen news on TV, thus I simply use the web for that reason, and obtain the newest news.

  180. The Silent Shard This could almost certainly be quite useful for a few of the employment I decide to you should not only with my blog site but

  191. You can certainly see your enthusiasm in the work you write. The arena hopes for even more passionate writers such as you who are not afraid to say how they believe. At all times follow your heart.

  192. You made some good points there. I looked on the web to learn more about the issue and found most individuals will go along with your views on this web site.

  195. This is really interesting, You are a very skilled blogger. I have joined your feed and look forward to seeking more of your fantastic post. Also, I ave shared your site in my social networks!

  197. This is very interesting, You are a very skilled blogger. I have joined your feed and look forward to seeking more of your magnificent post. Also, I ave shared your web site in my social networks!

Kommentarer är stängda.

Detta är ett arkiv. Nya bloggar och registreringar accepteras inte längre. | Integritetspolicy

Drift & teknik: Adminor.net