Let Go of Picture Perfect
Written by Elise Museles, Kale & Chocolate
Do you look in the mirror and give yourself a compliment? Or do you zoom in on what you perceive as your not-so-perfect appearance? Or when it’s time to shop for a bathing suit (with those awful lights), do you think, “I love my body just as it is?” Or do you use magazine cover models as a standard for comparison?
Let’s be honest: there may be a lucky few of you who are completely comfortable in your own skin. But for the majority of us, no matter what we actually do look like, we often see ourselves with a judgmental & critical eye. The pressure-valve of perfectionism runs so deep, and it sets us up with painfully high standards that are impossible for most of us to ever achieve. And you know what happens next, disappointment inevitably sets in…
So, when my brother, Robert Sturman, told me that he had done a rare photo shoot with Liz Arch, a model & creator of Primal Yoga, that was raw, real and unphotoshopped, I couldn’t wait to see and hear more… In this guest post, Liz is vulnerable & courageous as she shares with us her experience of letting go of “picture perfect”.
We flip through magazines and see gorgeous models with perfect bodies, then we look in the mirror and feel less than. The photo above shows much more than I would ever normally feel comfortable displaying, but I share it today with the hope that we can stop comparing ourselves to others and start loving ourselves for the beautifully flawed masterpieces that we truly are.
A photographer once told me that even the models on magazine covers wish they looked like their own images. As a yoga teacher who has appeared in my own fair share of photo spreads and magazines, I can vouch for that. I have been told not to “overindulge at the salad bar” before big shoots and I’ve often wondered why I suffer through last minute juice cleanses and spray tans, when the final images are always photoshopped to erase my imperfections.
Sure, my ego loves looking at these “perfect” photoshopped images of myself, but these images aren’t the real me. I have cellulite and stretch marks and days when I skip my yoga mat for the couch and a pint of ice cream. But in our social media driven world, where everybody’s life seems so much glossier than our own, we’ve managed to convince ourselves that real is not beautiful and every photo needs a filter. I’m definitely guilty of editing my public life down to a handful of inspiring quotes and photos on Facebook that only show my best sides.
I never really thought much about it, until I started receiving messages from people telling me how “perfect” my body was. The thought of other people lifting me up only to put themselves down broke my heart, especially since perfect is not a word I would ever use to describe myself. So I called my dear friend, photographer Robert Sturman, and asked him if he would shoot the “real” me.
One of the reasons I have always admired Robert’s work is because he doesn’t do a lot of retouching. He might adjust the exposure of an image or play with the background, but you will never see a size eight woman photoshopped down to a size four. As a skilled photographer, he knows the body’s angles and when angles are not enough, he leaves all unflattering photos on the cutting room floor.
