Airbrush

In more cosmetic surgery news regarding historical figures, last week while performing a CAT scan on a bust of Nefertiti, researchers uncovered what appears to be the ancient equivalent of modern Photoshopping. Underneath the queen's bust, a second limestone representation of the queen was revealed.

"That statue is still very beautiful," TV historian Bettany Hughes told The Independent Woodstock Literary Festival, "but not as beautiful. It showed her nose was bent, and that she had wrinkles around her eyes. It's a real portrait of a real woman."

Nefertiti, an Egyptian queen who ruled over 3,000 years ago, is thought to have died between the ages of 29 and 38; her name means "the beautiful one has come." If you're planning a trip to Germany, head to the Neues Museum in Berlin to see the bust for yourself.

Source

Fans were pissed when Kelly Clarkson showed up on the cover of Self a few months ago clearly Photoshopped. She didn't mind though — Clarkson has said in several interviews that she's OK with her photos being retouched and that it's a reality of her job.

Self copped up to retouching the image, stating that it often adjusts lighting and color of photos, as well as altering its images to present the "best version" of the model to the audience. Self went on to state that the photos it chooses are about inspiring women to be their best.

Months later, Self editor Lucy Danziger still defends the cover, saying that retouched images are what women want and that heavier models would not sell magazines. Self is by no means the only magazine doing this, even Barbie needs a makeover according to the fashion industry.

Do you agree with Danziger— do you think it's OK for magazines to retouch photos of models and celebrities? Is it what you really want?

Picnik is a cool program for editing and aggregating photos online, especially if you don't have a copy of Photoshop handy. But recently, they introduced a lady-geared suite of features called Touch Up that has options like Sunless Tan, Highlights, Teeth Whitener, Blemish Fix, and my least favorite, Insta-Thin. (Because, you know, we girls always want to be thin.)

I decided to try it because I find the whole photo-editing thing dubious; I understand that this stuff's an accepted part of our culture, but I'm just saying that I don't think it's so great for our psyches to worry about "perfection." To find out what my experience was like, just read more