Talking about digital retouching directly leads us to the idea of a set of modifications to specific elements or compositions within a magazine, cover, advertising art, or private videos for the social media among others.
The truth is that digital retouching can be defined as a series of digital steps or processes to balance relevant aspects of an image.
The tendency to view retouching as something exclusively used in the publication of images of models, style themes, and fashion has been established and reaffirmed over the years. It is a tradition in our minds to associate beauty or perfection with what is shown to us through photography, video, advertisements, or commercials that -beyond the commercial objective- focus on recreating a world built with ideas, perceptions of charm, and visual opulence.
IS DIGITAL RETOUCHING LEARNED?
As a starting point, we must establish the main ideas behind the word ‘retouching’. While it is true that modifying an image or composition is often considered a regular process without much complication or significant mental effort, this ‘simple’ action can have a great impact.
Let’s set the advertising world as the stage to guide the arguments of the topic. Graphic designers and photographers are the main representatives in this controversial world of photographic or video retouching; they are even considered the intellectual actors in recreating fabulous perceptions and attributes worthy of admiration on any idealized element. To be clear, photographers – by their nature – diligently seek the perfect angle for each person or element they are photographing, and their purpose is closely related to the acceptance that the client/target audience has of the beauty or aesthetics achieved through a good application of tricks or movements within the scene.
The capture of photographs is a process subject to constant and significant evolution since the nineteenth century, clearly considered an art in every sense of the word. For this reason, photographers are placed at a significant level that requires a prudent amount of time to prepare to practice the profession appropriately. Yes, we can all take photographs, but not everyone can achieve a level of compositional perfection according to the requirements of each need.
The photographer is not obligated to perform photographic or video retouching. And this assertion is since the responsibility of the subject lies in capturing a specific moment of a certain action that comes from some element or situation within any context. So, due to the nature of photography, there is no mandatory guideline indicating a consistent relationship between photography and retouching.
WHERE IS RETOUCHING FOUND?
Let’s move away from the traditional idea that retouching is only seen in magazines or covers. Let’s focus our attention on visualizing a realistic panorama of what is projected before our eyes every day. And yes: there is photographic retouching even on the box of our favorite cereal.
A very common idea among the population is to associate photographic retouching with the perfect silhouette of the girl in a tight dress on the billboard on the way to work. What many people do not know is that digital retouching is present in all visual material projected in our routine. For now, let’s not consider it a problem, but perhaps we should be cautious when talking about elements that influence our behavior, even if the set of affinities, tastes, or actions that govern our existence and coexistence with our environment are influenced by what we consume visually.
If we pay attention to what is within our visual reach, whether when watching TV, browsing the internet, or simply viewing advertisements within the mall, we will find an imminent reality: everything contains a communicational load, a non-verbal language that transcends borders.
Do you think the juicy, appetizing, and colorful grilled meat on the restaurant menu is an exact representation of reality? Or that the flawless lipstick of the girl in the makeup advertisement was just luck? Unfortunately, not everything presented before our eyes (advertising-wise) is a real representation of what it is.
THE PURSUIT OF IDOLIZED PERFECTION
There is a wide technical panorama when it comes to digital retouching. The evolution that software programs for these purposes have undergone is a true testament to the importance or popularity that has arisen to exalt attributes within an image.
Believe it or not, the desire for perfection in elements for aesthetic purposes dates to the Victorian era, of course, without computers or technological tools. The rudimentary methods ranged from applying effects by hand to incorporating materials into the image-making process to adjust the appropriate tones.
The revered Photoshop offers its aesthetic contributions since its emergence in the nineties; since then, its popularity has increased due to the countless options it offers to turn something ‘devastated’ into something magically beautiful. And just as it is a great ally in finding the desired perfection, it is also a character pointed out for becoming the protagonist of exaggerated modifications and creations labeled as unnatural
Currently, we do not depend on sophisticated software to apply enhancements to an image or video composition. Thanks to the emergence of countless applications available for this purpose or social networks that provide their users with a wide range of options to modify or improve their content before showing it to their followers, it is increasingly accessible to modify those visual aspects that, in most cases, interrupt the appreciation of the desired aesthetics. For instance, applications like the Videoleap app offer powerful editing tools for videos, allowing users to enhance their visual content with ease.
Considering that image retouching is a process that noticeably did not originate in the last twenty years and that, on the contrary, is an action that from its beginnings and for decades has emphasized the peculiar action of exalting the perfection of things, it can be mentioned that the reach that every individual has to show their best ‘version’ is an activity usual in these times.