- Photo airbrushing is the practice of modifying or manipulating photos to make them look better or more appealing. This is done on computer software like Adobe Photoshop or Adobe Illustrator, and is used to change a photo by removing certain objects (like a trashcan) that mar the appearance of the photo, or by removing blemishes and wrinkles from a person's skin. Other changes include lightening or darkening the shadows in a photo. In some cases, shadows may even be added where they didn't exist to begin with. Lightening and darkening of a person's skin tone or hair color is also done. For example, in the photo shown here of actress Brittany Murphy, photo airbrushing has been used to remove blemishes, freckles, under-eye bags and wrinkles, while the shadows around her face have also been lightened.
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Photo airbrushing, also called photo retouching, is done on graphics-editing computer software--most notably Adobe Photoshop, developed by Adobe Systems. New, updated versions of the software are released every few years. The Adobe Photoshop software is the most popular photo-airbrushing and -editing software on the market today. In fact, the terms "photoshopping" and "photo airbrushing" are sometimes used interchangeably to refer to the same process of photo manipulation. More people are using "photoshop" or "photoshopping" as a verb, instead of the more proper terms "photo editing" or "photo airbrushing."
Adobe Photoshop contains tools that, at the click of a computer mouse, allow the user to erase certain things (like blemishes), add details (like a different background), manipulate the color (by making it lighter or darker), and remove objects or add new ones. Incorporating these changes into the photo is as simple, but the user must have an intimate knowledge of the software to be able to use it efficiently and properly. - Due to its ability to manipulate any photo, the photo-airbrushing technique has met with a lot of criticism--especially in recent years, as the use of the technique has catapulted to new heights. Art directors at movie studios, magazines, newspapers and advertising companies use photo airbrushing software on a daily basis. This results in images that are misleading, and some people have argued that these images give people unrealistic expectations. For example, a young girl looking at a manipulated images of an actress who was made to look thinner via photo airbrushing may be tempted to lose weight, without realizing that the image has been doctored.
