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This column is for self-study or classroom use and gives guided help with reading the wide variety of writing styles and topics that appear as feature articles in the Bangkok Post. The lessons include background information, skill-building practice and vocabulary explanations. January 28, 2003 Don’t believe everything you see INTRODUCTION
The story for you to read today is only part of a much longer article about the pictures we see in fashion magazines. What do you think when you look at those pictures? Do you think, "she is so gorgeous, I’ll never be successful because I don’t look like that"; or "what a beautiful woman, I wish my girlfriend looked that good"; or "she’s so tall and thin, if I don’t eat dinner and exercise a lot more, I’ll look like that, too"? Or do you say to yourself, "that can’t possibly be true, no one looks that perfect!" If you are one of those who makes the last comment, you probably already know much of what you will read in the story here. You are probably also familiar with computer programs like Photoshop. Those allow a skilled computer user to manipulate an image, that is, to control how a picture turns out, changing it in ways that someone looking at it does not know it has been modified. That’s what the story is about — computer manipulation of pictures to create the perfection that sells magazines. Instead of reading the whole story at once, read the notes below which direct you to read one section of the story at a time and answer some questions. Questions and answers Read the first seven paragraphs of the story. In that introduction, the writer, Atiya Achakulwisut, raises many questions and suggests how she went about finding answers. In fact, she talked with the editors of four fashion magazines to find the answers to three questions. Complete each of the questions below in your own words: How long ... How much ... Do you [editors] think ... Now read what the four editors have to say in the section of the story up to the … (16 paragraphs). On a separate sheet of paper make brief notes of the answers to the questions. Each editor has a different answer to questions 2 and 3 so make note of those differences. Here’s another questions for you to write answers to: What changes can be made to a picture of a model using a program like Photoshop? Another view There is another point of view, one that says, "Beauty has many faces. ... Can we be fat and beautiful? Can a woman look good without being six feet tall? Is it okay if our skin isn’t white but we are happy?" In part of the Outlook feature that we do not have space for here, Dr Chalidaporn Songsamphan, a feminist and lecturer in political science at Thammasat University, asked those questions. Her fear is that women who are not as tall and slender as a magazine image, whose skin has a few blemishes, will damage their health. " Some," she says, "get so insecure they do themselves harm, develop eating disorders, fall prey to exploitation by the dieting, cosmetics and plastic-surgery businesses." In the last part of the story, the editors responded to those concerns (6 paragraphs). That section begins with the question: "But doesn’t the use of techniques like this have the potential to mislead women into believing in impossible standards of beauty?" Read what the editors say following that question. Below is a brief summary of their ideas. After you have read, think about what they say and decide whether you agree or disagree and write A or D beside each statement. The technology (photograph manipulation) is not powerful or dangerous enough to mislead women. Readers are mature enough to decide what is best for themselves. Being satisfied with yourself makes you beautiful. Most readers don’t realise how much pictures are enhanced. Most readers just want to look at beautiful pictures and don’t care how they got that way. After you have decided what you think, talk with study group friends or classmates and find out if they agree with you. Make sure you find out their reasons and explain your own. After you have finished this lesson and reading the part of the story that is here, you may want to read the rest of the story. You can find it on our Bangkok Post web site at http://www.bangkokpost.com/en/150103_Outlook/15Jan2003_out01.html. You’ve already done the tough part and the rest is really worth reading. OUR STORY FROM THE BANGKOK POST
Beauty is... in the keyboard of the beholder Those magazine spreads of flawless girls and guys have invariably been retouched, using digital image-enhancement techniques Story by ATIYA ACHAKULWISUT You’ve been warned (by that song that advises wearing sunscreen!): Don’t read glossy magazines too often — they make you feel ugly. Is it true? What do you think when you look at pictures of cover girls? At Jennifer Lopez’s curvaceous body? Milla Jovovich’s clear, flawless skin? Or, closer to home, the incredibly slim and long-legged Methinee "Luk Ked" Kingpayom? They’re gorgeous, of course. And so perfect — skin smooth and taut; body tall, lean and lithe; face, and even armpits, free of flaws. But why are blocked pores, unsightly hairs, lines and wrinkles — imperfections that even the best make-up and lighting can’t hide — not visible? The answer is retouching technology — Photoshop, in particular — which, with a few clicks of the mouse, can eradicate what are regarded as flaws and blemishes and construct an image of flawless beauty. With its power to alter and to make what is altered still look real, does the image manipulation that is widely used in local and foreign magazines set a new standard of beauty that is impossible for women to attain? Does this tool manipulate women? Does it play a part in driving women, young and old, to overspend on cosmetics, gym memberships and plastic surgery? To answer these questions, it might be useful to first ascertain how long retouching has been employed by local magazines, how extensively it is used and whether it is regarded by those in the business as indispensable. Sakchai Guy, editor-in-chief of Lips, said his magazine has been touching up photos for more than ten years, even before Photoshop became available. In the old days, he said, pictures were enlarged and manipulated manually but the results were a lot cruder than those possible today with digital technology. "It’s so important that it’s hard to imagine producing a magazine without it these days. Retouching enables us to deliver perfect work. As both a photographer and an editor, I insist that we have to present the best we possibly can," Sakchai said. Up to 95 percent of the pictures in Lips have been retouched, he added. This includes not only eradicating a model’s physical imperfections but also cleaning up the background or changing the composition of a picture. Amat Nimitpark, fashion editor of Image magazine, is of the same mind. "You’d need to see some of the original photos we get to realise how scary they can be and why we need to use Photoshop. All those lines, wrinkles and pores!" He insisted, however, that Image doesn’t touch up photos to the point that facial skin resembles plastic. "We still want models to look human," he said. The attitude of Nuanchan Supanimit, editorial director and executive editor of Praew magazine, is that Photoshop is just another tool of the trade. It’s certainly useful, she said, but its importance shouldn’t be exaggerated. "We only use retouching to correct what we think are flaws in the picture. Realism is important to us. She cited as an example a Praew cover featuring a close-up of the actress Buachompoo Ford, in which freckles can still be seen under her make-up. "She looks herself. Actually she looks cute that way. Sometimes we even ask the graphics staff to put back in wrinkles they’ve erased because the image looks unrealistic without them." Chulita Areepipatkul, editor of Ploy Gaem Petch magazine, said she makes minimal use of the technology. "Most of the people we feature in the magazine are naturally good-looking anyway and we want to portray them the way they are, not as flawless but drab dolls." The veteran editor revealed that, on average, Ploy Gaem Petch has recourse to substantial image manipulation only about once a year. Normally, she said, retouching is confined to erasing a couple of pimples or wrinkles here and there. Asked if there are any standard rules about what should or should not be touched up, or any limits to image alteration, all the editors interviewed replied that nothing is fixed, that the criteria are totally subjective. "It’s flexible," said Sakchai, "it’s up to what the stylist or fashion editor wants. Sometimes, we need to exaggerate things a bit, to make everything look 100 percent perfect to please our sponsors." Nuanchan of Praew said she bases her decision on whether or not she feels comfortable with a photo. "As I said before, our goal is not to present an image of flawless beauty, but we do want our pictures to be pleasing. If the model has a large mole, we tone it down. If an elderly person has too many wrinkles, we remove some. If the model has dark circles under eyes, we erase them." Armpit skin must always look fair and smooth, she said. Scars must be erased — they are unpleasant. If the model doesn’t have a curve where there should be one, it must be added. Too thick a waist? A few clicks of the mouse and the extra inches can be shaved off. Legs can also be lengthened to make the model look taller and slimmer. All these modifications can be carried out as long as the resulting image remains realistic, said Nuanchan. "The technology is quite incredible, " Sakchai commented. "There’s no way you can tell unless you’re a real expert. " … But doesn’t the use of techniques like this have the potential to mislead women into believing in impossible standards of beauty? None of the editors interviewed believed the technology was that powerful or that dangerous. The images of flawless beauty seen on magazine pages only serve as a source of ideas for readers, they said. "I think people nowadays know where the limits of beauty are," Nuanchan said, adding that Praew targets well-educated working women aged 25 and up and she believes its readers are mature enough to decide what is best for themselves. "It’s not wrong to want to be beautiful. It would be wrong, however, if women were to do harmful things to themselves to achieve that. If they wish to have a smaller waist like the model, they should exercise. It’s probably not a good idea to undergo an operation to have fat removed," she said. "Self-satisfaction is the biggest source of beauty," she continued. When you’re happy with yourself, you radiate peace and people feel good around you. Of course, you have to take care of yourself physically but don’t drive yourself crazy doing it." A large proportion of readers don’t realise the extent to which digital image enhancement is used, said Amat. "I’d say only about 50 percent of them are aware that photos have been retouched. Even though the technology’s been around for a while, many people don’t pay any attention to it. They’re happy to have beautiful pictures to look at. They don’t care about the process, what has to be done to obtain them."	SOME VOCABULARY HELP insecure not confident about yourself disorder an illness that causes a part of the body to stop functioning correctly exploitation a situation in which people are treated in unfair or dangerous ways, especially in order to make money mature sensible; able to make good decisions invariably certainly enhancement to increase or improve eradicate to destroy or get rid of something completely attain to succeed, usually by a lot of effort ascertain to find out the true or correct information indispensable essential; too important to be without crude not showing much skill or attention to detail exaggerate to make something seem better, worse or more important than it really is drab dull and uninteresting recourse the ability to use something that can help subjective based on your own ideas or opinions rather than facts modification changes in order to improve or make more acceptable radiate to have a quality that is easily seen by others

•This lesson was prepared by Maureen Paetkau, a professional teacher of English as a second and foreign language and Assistant Manager and Webmaster for Learning Post at the Bangkok Post.

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Last modified: January 27, 2003