How we fell for filters and the science behind your obsession
It started innocently enough. A few fun filters on Instagram, adding Bambi lashes or a smattering of false freckles onto our faces, bathed in skin-flattering light.
But soon we slipped into more invasive territory: carving out cheekbones, accentuating our jawlines, and smoothing our skin until it appeared poreless and doll-like.
If we were filtering our real selves online before, the global pandemic has pushed us into overdrive, exposing a whole new realm of artificial enhancement. From Monday morning meetings conducted via Zoom (yes, there’s a 'touch up my appearance' feature on the business-based platform) to a short-lived fling with Houseparty and weekends wiled away on TikTok, we’ve never spent so much time online, looking at our own faces. Our phones have become a mirror that’s never out of reach, and with the constant connection comes a worrying rise in aesthetic dissatisfaction. (Were your lashes always so straight? When did that forehead line appear?)
Digitally ‘touching up’ our faces might feel like an innocent-enough plaster over a minor insecurity – perhaps you’ve had a sudden breakout, or want to quickly conceal that pigmentation without actually using concealer – but this behaviour is part of a much bigger, more sinister issue.
“Without doubt, social media now plays a large role in our lives and for many, that includes increased anxiety around our appearance to other online users,” says psychologist Martina Paglia of The International Psychology Clinic. “Filters are now commonplace online and, sadly, it is becoming increasingly rare to see photos – particularly of girls and women – that haven’t been filtered in some way. Even Zoom now has its own built-in filtering tool.”
Paglia stresses concern around the effect our filtered world is having on even the most resilient of internet users, denigrating self-esteem at a worryingly rapid speed. “We’re subconsciously being told that even the most beautiful people simply aren’t good enough to show themselves as they really are. We all want to look the best we possibly can, but when that means refusing to be seen as you are in real-life, it’s indicative of poor self-esteem and a deep-seated belief that you don’t feel you’re good enough to be accepted for who you are.”
Rankin’s 2019 photography series, Selfie Harm, really brings this concern home. As part of the Visual Diet project produced with M&C Saatchi and MT Art Agency, the photographer asked teenagers to photoshop their own portraits to a level they deemed acceptable for social media. Placed side by side, the warped before-and-afters are a troubling glimpse into today’s teenage minds.
"Camera phone filters seem fun and innocent, but there's a darker side behind the fun and it scares me," says Rankin. "With apps like Facetune you can make all these tweaks and alterations to completely change who you are. You have the option to change every part of your face, hit the save button and store it. And once it's stored, you see your ‘new’ face every time you turn that lens on. It's like they encourage you to modify yourself: they are teaching people that they aren’t good enough."
Paglia is seeing the effects of this first hand, with an increasing number of patients suffering from poor body image, which easily leads to eating disorders and an obsession with plastic surgery: something she says is widely considered the “ultimate fixer”. But what are we trying to ‘fix’, and why?
“Of course, it isn’t the outside that needs to be fixed: it’s the person’s emotional resilience and self-confidence which has been shattered by society’s attitude towards people who are deemed to be less than physically perfect,” explains Paglia.
It’s quicker to apply a filter than a face full of make-up, and certainly easier than working on your self-confidence. It’s clear that our increasing screen time is sending us backwards in the self-acceptance stakes - and fast. "It's all fun and games, until it's not," adds Rankin. "We need to be thinking about how and why we are drawn to these apps that allow you to modify your face. Beneath the ‘fun’ and triviality, it's truly terrifying."
The rise of social-media surgery
Of course, being able to see ourselves with a smaller nose, smoother skin or lifted brow in an instant has led to an inevitable rise in cosmetic surgery enquiries; one recent study revealed that searches for ‘rhinoplasty’ and ‘nose job’ this year had surpassed 2019’s total by the end of July.
Dr. Lauren Hamilton, cosmetic doctor and founder of aesthetic clinic Victor & Garth agrees that filters have changed the way patients look at themselves – where a prospective client would once enter clutching a photograph of a celebrity, they now present a digitally altered image of their own face. “These filters create an unrealistic version of themselves; a warped sense of perfection. No one is truly symmetrical or can walk around with a constant glow, so should we really be striving to achieve this in our patients?”
And of course, as tech innovation increases, the social-media beauty standard becomes more and more unrealistic: now, the rules of Instagram Face dictate that we need an acutely chiselled jawline, anatomically impossible eyes and skin that literally radiates light.
A lot of this is obviously ridiculous: skin cannot (and should not) be poreless, and your thighs cannot be the same size as your wrists. But these visual cues still permeate our subconscious, shifting our stance on beauty and diminishing our satisfaction with how we look in the real world. When it comes to resisting the new beauty standard, we have lengthy work to do.
The death of individuality
What’s more, the fact that we’re all singing to the same (face)tune means we're inevitably all striving to fit the same beauty mould: big eyes, longer lashes, even bigger lips. So does the rise of Instagram Face signal the demise of individuality? Consider the worrying rise of dubious cosmetic surgery ‘packages,’ – last year, something called the ‘Kylie Jenner package’ was being booked up and down the country, with clients hoping to recreate the star’s enhanced facial structure, regardless of whether the procedures involved work with their natural features and bone structure.
Rise of the resistors
The pressure to achieve homogeneous perfection online may be becoming weightier, but there are routes to resistance. Body confidence influencer Alex Light stresses the importance of being conscious of what you’re consuming. “I used to follow accounts that posted heavily edited pictures and my self-esteem was low. I was constantly comparing myself to unrealistic images. When I began to understand that editing was so rife, I focused on curating my feed, which involved following people that pledged no digital distortion and promoted body confidence.” She credits this shift with having a huge impact on her mental health.
Lou Northcote has been flying the flag for honest content since the launch of her #freethepimple hashtag in 2019. The model and acne-positive spokesperson posts unfiltered, unedited images of herself that have inspired women around the world to improve their relationship with their own skin. Similarly, make-up artist Sasha Pallari is fast gaining recognition for her #filterdrop campaign, which urges both consumers and brands to return to reality, or make users aware when a filter has been used on promotional content.
The benefits of a social-media switch-up are not just anecdotal, either: studies have shown that decreased usage of social media can be beneficial for those suffering with anxiety and low mood. Paglia is just one of many advocates for taking back control of what - and how much - you are exposed to online. “As a psychologist, as well as digging to find out the initial reasons behind my client’s low self-esteem and helping them to adjust the critical messages triggered by their brain, I would also recommend regular digital detoxes and a feed adjustment, to follow individuals who do not use filters and transmit positive body image messages. I urge clients to choose reality over fake every time”.
There’s an argument to suggest that if we’re denouncing filters, so too must we throw out the notion of make-up - after all, they're both in the business of altering our natural appearance. But the problem with filters lies in their homogeneity: the fact that you're using them in order to look like someone else, or to meet someone else's beauty standards. Sure, the same can be said about cosmetics, but the true joy of make-up involves enhancing what you have, celebrating your inherent beauty, and expressing your individual self. Wear a full face, a barely there look or a creative statement – but wear it for you, not for others – and certainly not for the internet.
In need of some at-home inspiration? Sign up to our free weekly newsletter for skincare and self-care, the latest cultural hits to read and download, and the little luxuries that make staying in so much more satisfying.
You Might Also Like
