In all seriousness...with the exception of obvious artistic expression...

I see no problem with using photoshop or filters to enhance looks.

I've worked in the media. Every photo you see of women in print media has been touched up in some way.

I understand the arguments about the very fact we alter ourselves with forms and corsets, wigs and makeup. If you then choose to go out then this is the face and body that the world sees. Hence for me I would consider I'd done you all a disservice if in showing myself here I'd photo shopped a picture of myself.

I'd look upon it, and this is my personal opinion, that if i hadn't the courage to show myself to you all, warts and all, then I'd be misleading folks.

This especially rings true for me in that I'm one of the collective that advocates the joys and merits of going out in public. If I enhanced my pics then others may think I look better to the muggles than I do in reality and be put off going out because in some way they feel they don't meet the standard. They're too far off passable to follow in others footsteps. It's only the gorgeous who can venture forth. I suppose I look upon it as telling the truth, the whole truth........ Honesty is the best policy.

Maria I don't think you are only "fooling" yourself if you enhance your pic somehow.
You fool yourself if you wear pantyhose if that is the case.

I agree with Tracii G..
I never have "photo shop" enhanced any of my pictures...I still am using an old "net book" from 2007..LOL
I have a poor phone its a pre-pay "LG"
I have taken pic with mine and had my wife take them with her "I Phone" and its a world of difference!!!
sorry I don't have an example on the phone..Maybe I can when my wife wakes up..It is laying right in front of me...Neither of us lock our phones..Or care..I just trust her and will not look at hers until she wakes up :-) Saddly my old crappy computer still takes a 640x480 picture...This site will not support anything over 540kb??

People are only fooling themselves!

I tried photoshop but could never understand it because it was way too complicated.
Portrait Pro software is easy to use and what I have is just a make up/pic cleaning up tool.
No matter what make up enhancements you do you still look like you.
Its not like you can add teeth, hair , a sixth finger or anything drastic.
Just a simple clean up tool and not much more but is a lot of fun to see what make up works on you.

Hmmmm 2 days and 57 responses later......

I suppose Ms. Windser just likes to drop convo-bombs and run. I would have liked to find out her reasons for this topic.

I adjust brightness and contrast all the time for my pictures. For many, i blur out the hair I am not allowed to shave that shows thru. But the real faked ones I had made clear they were edited for the purpose of learning what makeup changes might help create that appearance in reality. The body shape is me, at times with padding, not via photoshop.
But if someone choose to do that all the time, to whiten teeth, etc, then that is their choice.
And Sherry is a very wonderful member with amazing stories to share yet she is not showing her 'real' face.
Hugs, Ellen

It is humorous that the OP mentions "artistic expression" as an out....

"Artistic license (also known as art license, historical license, dramatic license, poetic license, narrative license, licentia poetica, creative license, or simply license) is a colloquial term, sometimes a euphemism, used to denote the distortion of fact, alteration of the conventions of grammar or language, or rewording of pre-existing text made by an artist in the name of art."

So I am just supposing that if the OP should use an app to remove a festering pimple from her pic, that is OK. But if someone else should do it to remove an unsightly mole, that is a no-no.

Double standards are commonplace these days.

When I came to the various forums/support sites 9 years ago it was merely to learn; what I am, who I am, why I am, who you are, what we have in common, how we vary and so on.

To me that is done with words; in the guise of experiences, thoughts, feelings, and from those who have gained more knowledge thru counseling etc, etc.

To be totally honest, I really don't care what anyone looks like, and I have only posted pics of me once or twice and only on a couple of the dozen sites I have spent considerable time on. And I did that only because they were for people I had gotten to know well enough to call them friends.

I remember one gal who would show up once or twice a year at CDC.com and post elaborate, professional, make-over transformation studio pics, and then she'd visit several times over the next week or so to read the comments.

I never bothered to click the post open after the first time, if you can't tell me about yourself then it's a waste of my time. I do realize that there are people who are just anti-social, to go with the folks who are that narcsisstic, but at any rate I want to know you thru your words, pics are only a reference.

As has been well said here, what is the difference between all the padding versus the apps to enhance a shape digitally, or any of the other multitude of techniques used to change our appearance.

I found the avatar pic I have used for the past 8+ years, after being on this site about 2 months, and have stuck with it ever since. For the record, it is of a CD/TG person from Japan by the stage name of Izam, who was part of a band called Shazna......or something like that.

I left one site for good many years ago because too many members were always harassing newcomers, and openly calling folks cowards for not posting pics of themselves.

Funny thing was they rarely posted anything about themselves, or participated in discussion. Who is the coward there?

Again, tell me something about yourself, I want to know about you.

Cass

p.s. kudos to those of you who are totally and completely living your life out there, as the same person we see on your avatar.

Where the "real or Photoshop" question comes into play is when someone posts in the photo gallery and everyone is responding how beautiful or sexy they are and it's a heavily altered photo. That's a bit dishonest.

We have to remember that this is the Internet and not everything on the Internet is as it seems.

But there are some massively wicked things you can do with Photoshop
Attachment 290598

I don't have or need Photoshop as I Photoshop myself in real life! There's a BIG advantage to that. :eek:

U Photoshoppers only see the pretty woman u want to present in your photos. While I get to see her in my mirror, too!:tongueout

Sherry, now that is funny!
Over the years there has been references to the backgrounds of some of my fun outings (mainly the steam train trips) being photoshopped into the pictures. People just could not believe a crossdresser would go out into the public eyes dressed as I do. I don’t recall the references being from this forum, though!
I just don’t have the patience for doing photoshopped pictures and respect those that make theirs with very artistic and creative backgrounds. However, I don’t really enjoy seeing those that touch up their appearances using photoshop. But whatever makes them happy, so be it.