Prevalence of Photoshop in Marketing Materials

Contributor: Crystal Karges, MS, RDN, IBCLC, Director of Content and Social Media at Eating Disorder Hope/Addiction Hope

By the time an image has landed in a magazine, newspaper, TV/movie advertisement, and the like, it has likely been digitally altered beyond recognition from its original version. On average, we are exposed to over 3,000 advertisements per day, whether on our social media feeds, on the blogs or new sites we visit on a daily basis, magazines, television commercials and more.

The majority of these ads are digitally retouched to create an image that is desirable to the consumer. Whether we believe we are impacted by these images or not, the reality is that subtle messages are created by the mainstream media culture, messages that we gradually take in over time and come to perceive as truth.

The Role of Photoshop in Advertising

The difficult aspect about photoshop is the little transparency that is used alongside this method. When a consumer is looking at an image that has been retouched by photoshop, this image is taken in as reality. This includes countless images of men and women that have been retouched to demonstrate an unrealistic body image and proportions, including flawless skin, muscle tone, and more.

We have come to accept that flawlessness is the ideal, and a damaged one at that. For no matter how hard we try or strive, this unreasonable standard cannot be achieved. It leaves many of us in a rat race that pursues endless products, dieting trends and the like to recreate the false images that are circulated by the media. While many lawmakers, celebrities, professionals and experts are advocating for more transparency in advertising and in consumer markets, photoshop continues to be a widely utilized tool for many marketers.

Taking a Step Toward Change

With greater awareness of eating disorders and campaigns advocating for those dealing with poor body image, there have been strides toward change in the marketing industries. Some companies and organizations have openly shared their intent to refuse to photoshop images used for marketing, such as the Aerie clothing line, Modcloth, and Darling magazine.

While these are steps in the right direction, there continues to be work to be done in this area. Be mindful of what you are viewing and keep the perspective of the reality of what is done to marketing materials in order to convince the consumer to purchase a product. This can be helpful in a world that is saturated with digitally retouched images.

Community Discussion – Share your thoughts here!

What do you think can be done to help regulate the marketing industry when it comes to photoshop use?

About the Author: Crystal is a Masters-level Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (RDN) with a specialty focus in eating disorders, maternal/child health and wellness, and intuitive eating. Combining clinical experience with a love of social media and writing, Crystal serves as the Special Projects Coordinator for Eating Disorder Hope/Addiction Hope, where her passion to help others find recovery and healing is integrated into each part of her work.

As a Certified Intuitive Eating Counselor, Crystal has dedicated her career to helping others establish a healthy relationship with food and body through her work with EDH/AH and nutrition private practice.

The opinions and views of our guest contributors are shared to provide a broad perspective of eating disorders. These are not necessarily the views of Eating Disorder Hope, but an effort to offer discussion of various issues by different concerned individuals.

We at Eating Disorder Hope understand that eating disorders result from a combination of environmental and genetic factors. If you or a loved one are suffering from an eating disorder, please know that there is hope for you, and seek immediate professional help.

Last Updated & Reviewed By: Jacquelyn Ekern, MS, LPC on October 18, 2016
Published on EatingDisorderHope.com