I don’t wanna be one of those people who looks totally unrecognizable in tagged photos vs self uploaded photos so I definitely err on the side of “making the photo better” vs “changing what I look like”. That being said I don’t think people consciously try to make themselves look like a different person... it’s a slippery slope. So I stay away from altering my features and body. I don’t judge when people do it (unless it’s really obvious and cheesy) but I wonder what their end game is for when people see them IRL and they don’t look the same.

So, here’s what I do. Usually I sharpen details like my eyes and eyebrows. My skin is usually clear, so if I have a pimple it will really stand out and I’ll clone it out. For that reason actually I never blur my skin, because it already photographs so smoothly it would look fake. In fact I’ve been accused of smoothing my skin when I did nothing but throw a filter on. On that note Wet n Wild Photo Focus foundation makes my face look like it’s had the blur tool taken to it so that’s a win for under $10. I showed my friend an unedited/unfiltered photo that my manager sent to me in iMessage to “prove” it (she believed me, but I really wanted to drive the point home). We are the same foundation shade, so she ended up trying it out and got hooked on it too haha. I have played with removing under eye circles, but never go through with it because it looks so fake... my under eyes are just naturally contoured due to the shape of my eyes (round, deep set). It just wouldn’t look like me.

Honestly my secret weapons are good lighting, knowing which angles/expressions photograph well for me and only posting photos where I have a full face of makeup on. Which I guess is a bit deceitful, but /shrug. Nothing wrong with only wanting to present your best self.