Thread: Is it ethical to shave a little off the sides?

Originally Posted by Azhia

OMG, he must spend thousands of hours staring at nipples! ..g.:

Probably to the point he doesn't even want to look at nipples anymore, lol.

Originally Posted by bakhtiyaar

Ok, so what about using a photo that is 20 years old? 30? How many promo pictures have you seen that don't look anything like the actual person? (First one that comes to mind is Robert Redford, so I'm not just thinking bellydance).

How is using an old picture that is no longer representative different than photoshopping a current picture? Just looking for opinions here, not pointing fingers.

hee heee... I've seen so many photos from the 1970s in use for some folks NOW!!

I touch up shiny face issues, red eye problems, and places where self-tanner screwed up, or I have wrinkles because I was at an awkward angle. I don't boost cleavage, add or remove weight, etc...

Originally Posted by shimmygoddess

I photoshop my pics sometimes...nothing major...but I try and get rid if stretch marks...muffin top or the backfat or side rolls..I think editing the photos you posted are fine...it is just an enhancement not a total makeover....

What shimmygoddess said and tamrahennatx said.

Originally Posted by shimmygoddess

I photoshop my pics sometimes...nothing major...but I try and get rid if stretch marks...muffin top or the backfat or side rolls..I think editing the photos you posted are fine...it is just an enhancement not a total makeover....

What muffin top and back roll?! Are you serious? You are so svelte.

Originally Posted by eshtabellydance

Another good thing to try is messing with the (transform - scale) of the image. You can pull/stretch yourself slightly using that tool and you'd be amazed what that does! Sometimes you won't need to shave anything off. If I were doing your photo I would make you slightly taller, take off the upper under arm ever so slightly, and smooth out the belly crease on the side, and take off the hanging down bit above your bra - just a side effect of the pose really. Then I would adjust the color and take it down a little because you look washed out - maybe add a slight warming filter. Then go down and dirty at 300% and fix up any blemishes, unfortunate shadows or lines. Then I would adjust the contrast and voila! That's pretty much the gist of what any retoucher would do. I have been asked to take jobs retouching soft porn/playboy type stuff. I turned it down because I anticipated it getting really boring retouching people's butts all day. But I have done wacky things like removed the maid or honor from wedding photos because the bride and her BFF got in a fight after the wedding. And making fake thick lashes for eye-makeup ads. I used to retouch Guess? campaigns, high end weddings, st. john knits ads and the like.

Thanks for the tips. This pic and the other troupe one were both RAW files, so I haven't done much to adjust them yet except for a few minor things. I need my boyfriend to show me how to properly work with RAW files.

Originally Posted by andalee-oriental

I know someone who does that for Playboy. He has some pretty crazy stories to tell.

Spill it!

yep, get rid of the shiny forehead, shave off some extra pounds, but don't make yourself a D cup when you are really a B, don't make yourself 10 years younger, and DON'T use old photo's from 20 years ago!!! How sad to see a workshop instructor advertised with a picture that looked like they were 30, then the teacher shows up looking 65-70!!!! Use a pic from the past and present to let them know you have experience and training, and were hot when you were young, but don't lie about where you are at now, like we won't notice????

Wanted to chime in to say that the picture is so charming!
Love it-the costume,the pose,the sweet expression:)

Lauren expressed it so well,
my pic´s don´t make me look very different,
(more "glam"of course)but what they see is what they get!

I say smooth out lumps&bumps,take out the red eye and photoshop Yul Brunner in-
Just don´t go all Feron on yourself!;D
Glenn Feron - The Art of Retouching

Originally Posted by Doozer

Spill it!

He mostly has to fixed botched boob-jobs. He says nipples go all over the place and he has to move them to make them symmetrical.

I make my boobs look bigger with cotton ..l;,

Creases happen to everybody, even if you are thin. As soon as you lift your hip, lean back or twist your torso. So yes, erase the creases, muffin tops etc.

My boyfriend does professional photo retouching, often for food shots.
The ready made meals don't look remotely like what is on the cover! And still most people don't complain

You should look glamorous but believable on your promo pictures.

MEISSOUN

Originally Posted by andalee-oriental

He mostly has to fixed botched boob-jobs. He says nipples go all over the place and he has to move them to make them symmetrical.

Yup, just what I thought. Thousands of hours staring at (and moving!) nipples...

"is it ethical to shave a little off the sides" sounded like a bikini line question to me...I had to take a peek! I was wondering where the "ethics" came into the equation. Now we are talking about Playboy...we just might merge the 2 topics yet!

Meisson, does your boyfriend have to enhance any chicken breasts? ..g.:

Note: I'm looking at the photo from the perspective of it being promotional material intended to encourage booking the dancer for gigs. I don't think it's so much a matter of ethics as it is a matter of good PR. Should a photo be altered to change your appearance (rather than just putting in a better background or lighting), you run the risk of annoying customers who don't feel that your photos are representative of how you actually look. This applies to changes that you might think are very small - if the person notices that you don't look the same when they see you in costume in person as the photo of you in costume, their response may not be particularly forgiving. It certainly opens up the possibility of poor word-of-mouth PR.

hey halftruths, I totally get it. We all want to avoid the whole "bait and switch". I wouldnt want to show up at a gig and have the client wonder where that flawless, double d cup, skinny 20 year old in the picture is.

for clarification, I was just joking in reference to the title of the thread and the idea of ethics coming into play when tidying up bikini lines.

Originally Posted by samiramirage

hey halftruths, I totally get it. We all want to avoid the whole "bait and switch". I wouldnt want to show up at a gig and have the client wonder where that flawless, double d cup, skinny 20 year old in the picture is.

for clarification, I was just joking in reference to the title of the thread and the idea of ethics coming into play when tidying up bikini lines.

Speaking of photos -- girl, I wandered into your Myspace photo album the other day. What a cool place THAT is!

Originally Posted by samiramirage

hey halftruths, I totally get it. We all want to avoid the whole "bait and switch". I wouldnt want to show up at a gig and have the client wonder where that flawless, double d cup, skinny 20 year old in the picture is.

for clarification, I was just joking in reference to the title of the thread and the idea of ethics coming into play when tidying up bikini lines.

..l;, Hey, I'm just as much in favour of some photoshop tweezing when necessary!!

I have to admit, though, I hadn't even read your response before I posted mine! Totally wasn't directed at you. When I was acting I was often surprised by the glam head photo shots some people would use who would then proceed to go to auditions looking like an absolute train wreck.

(*sigh* My drama mongering bitchy-bride of a cousin is totally killing my sense of humour today.)

Originally Posted by Lauren_

Speaking of photos -- girl, I wandered into your Myspace photo album the other day. What a cool place THAT is!

oh dear, my myspace photo page is a mishmash of my life the last couple of years...good thing I made up my mind when I was 14 that I would never run for office. ..g.: No secrets here.

Originally Posted by halftruths

..l;, Hey, I'm just as much in favour of some photoshop tweezing when necessary!!

I have to admit, though, I hadn't even read your response before I posted mine! Totally wasn't directed at you. When I was acting I was often surprised by the glam head photo shots some people would use who would then proceed to go to auditions looking like an absolute train wreck.

(*sigh* My drama mongering bitchy-bride of a cousin is totally killing my sense of humour today.)

nothing like a bitchy bride to suck all of your life energy, just remember that SHE IS THE PRINCESS! ,m::

ok, back to topic...sorry

Originally Posted by Lauren_

Speaking of photos -- girl, I wandered into your Myspace photo album the other day. What a cool place THAT is!

What? No Link? Tease!

ha! its set to private, but you can add me samiramirage at aol . com

Originally Posted by samiramirage

ha! its set to private, but you can add me samiramirage at aol . com

Just GUESS how many new friend requests you're going to get, missy!

ha! bring it on, a glimpse into my not so secret life.

i'd have to photo shop out a camel toe..

seriously its a lot of hard work to get good pics (and expensive if you go to a good photographer) ..if you capture a great image but something is out of place like a piece of hair or it makes an unflattering angle ( i always have back roll) then why not edit

i wish we could photoshop permanent changes to our bodies!!! new boobs would have been much less expensive if i could have added them with photoshop. but guess what? acct says...tax deduction!!! whoohoo

Originally Posted by jesennia

i'd have to photo shop out a camel toe..

seriously its a lot of hard work to get good pics (and expensive if you go to a good photographer) ..if you capture a great image but something is out of place like a piece of hair or it makes an unflattering angle ( i always have back roll) then why not edit

i wish we could photoshop permanent changes to our bodies!!! new boobs would have been much less expensive if i could have added them with photoshop. but guess what? acct says...tax deduction!!! whoohoo

CAMEL TOE! Yes, that is photoshop worthy for sure. That is an unfortunate act of god that must be rectified