Sunday, 19 Jul 2009
Portrait of Body Dysmorphia
I don’t normally post stuff photography-related anymore but this is more of a social commentary than photography. Straight from my flickr site here it is:
Portrait of Body Dysmorphia
I don’t really look like that.
To be completely objective the statement above is partially true and partially false and each has certain implications.
Technically speaking (considering the aspects of photography and retouching aspects), I don’t really look like this. The original picture is here The lighting with selective retouching produced a more compelling image.
But here’s the other implication of this picture and why I titled it “Portrait of Body Dysmorphia” (or body dysmorphic disorder); I actually don’t think I look like this.
When I look in the mirror (or when mentally picture myself), I don’t see this picture. Actually, I don’t see anything that resembles this picture. Instead, I see a scrawny Asian dude battling his genetics in response to social pressures. Should men be muscular? It’s been a while since we’ve hunted wooly mammoth and saber tooth tigers, yet it’s still deemed socially desirable (for reasons that deserve its own social commentary).
Ironically as I type this I remember a scene from Fight Club. As Edward Norton’s character and Tyler Durden (played by Brad Pitt) board the bus they see an ad with a male model. Edward Norton’s character turns to Tyler Durden and asks sarcastically, “Is that what a real man is supposed to look like?”
Knowing the difference between “right” and “wrong” however doesn’t mean we choose to do the right thing. Interestingly I almost named this picture “Portrait of an Eating Disorder” because counting your calories and planning meals in advance is considered orthorexia nervosa.
Camera info: Nikon D3, 24-70mm f/2.8G, 1/125th, f/11, ISO200, 70mm
Strobist info: 2x AB800 left and right camera front with barndoors, as kickers. Main light is an AB800 in a 20 degree grid ceiling high camera front upper left. Click here to see the lighting setup
Post-processing: Lr2 and PS CS3
