With the rise of technological advancements, people have used it to their advantage in order to gain attention and fame. One of the biggest perks of technology is having the ability to enhance photographs and edit them to make them more aesthetically pleasing.
However, many people have abused these advancements and used them to deceive other people, especially in social media.
How photos are easily manipulated
Posting photos with their perfect bodies and flawless faces and being the object of envy and insecurities of other people, social media influencers always seem to be living the dream. However, in a recent revelation, two supposed Chinese Social Media influencers revealed that their perfect lives and photos were not done by a fairy godmother but merely by the magic of Photoshop.
In a post by Today Headline, the said influencers posted a series of perfect photos and then posted the truth behind the illusion.
They also revealed how what was seen in the photos was very different from what is reality.
In the initial photos that they posted, it was what is normally seen by their followers, the two stars with their fair skin and skinny bodies posing in beautiful spots. However, after revealing the raw photos before they were post-processed, it showed that the two altered their faces and made themselves look thinner.
In a report by News Lagoon, the photos of the influencers who seemingly catfished their followers went viral not only in China but also globally after the Facebook user "Ex Treme" posted the truth-revealing photos on his page. The post was shared 18 thousand times and was liked by more than 5.6 thousand Facebook users.
科技...進步 Posted by Ex Treme on Thursday, May 21, 2020
According to New York Post, one of the influencers who was identified as Coeyyy said that after knowing that she was secretly photographed and that raw pictures of their photoshoot were posted online, she was not at her best mood, thus they did not post the photos on their accounts.
How people reacted to the truth
The photos of Coeyy and her friend shocked many people who immediately called them out for the deception. Many were disappointed that the people that they have been following and have been looking up to were only hiding behind the power of technology.
Some of their followers were outraged saying that the two have hoodwinked them and made them believe in what was all a lie.
Meanwhile, there were also others who praised their ability in using Photoshop and other image enhancing software which made them totally unrecognizable in the post-processed photos.
However, there are still many who do not believe that the photos were indeed of the same people.
According to them, it could be part of another ploy to lure in followers by having different people wear the same clothes and have them take pictures of the same poses. Some do not believe that photoshop will be able to make such enhancements.
With technology being able to do many things, some people use it for the better while some may use it to lie and deceive. Thus, people should always be aware that not everything we see on social media or in the internet is real.