A Photographer Was Criticized for Using Photoshop, but She Showed the Originals and Fought Back

year ago

Lilia Alvarado became interested in photography after she had twin daughters. In order to capture the most important moments of her life, she didn’t just take pictures of everything with her smartphone, but instead, decided to create professional photos. Now Lilia is a famous child and family photographer and she regularly shares her works with her subscribers on Instagram and Facebook and even explains how she edits the photos. And despite the small number of people who are critical of her, she has managed to stand her ground and justify her work.

We at Bright Side couldn’t resist Lilia’s wonderful work and we would like to share some of it with all of you.

Even though Lilia’s work looks beautiful, there have been some people who question how real the photos are and how much photoshop has been used.

Lilia decided to respond to the criticism and as a first step, she reminded people that photos have been edited almost since the moment the first camera was invented. Photographers were able to remove the unnecessary elements with chemical and mechanical tools.

In the pre-digital era, cameras weren’t able to capture a clear image of an object in the front or background, so the sky always looked like a white spot. Then, photographers started combining 2 photos to get a full-fledged clear image. Here is one of the first “edited” photos by Gustave Le Gray made in 1857.

Even modern devices can’t always capture the colors we see. In order not to store thousands of excessively light or dark images, we can fix them with a photo editing tool. Then, the photos will take us back to the happy life moments instead of being an irritating reminder that we are not that talented.

Also, Lilia said that using Photoshop to deceive people is unacceptable. On the other hand, photos are not supposed to always show the world just the way it is. The point of art is to show the artist’s vision, feelings, and opinions.

Finally, Lilia decided to reveal the original photos to her subscribers. They prove that both photos look great. Lilia doesn’t hide the fact that she edits photos but she only does it to enhance her vision, and not to hide flaws.

Also, Lilia shares photo editing lessons with her subscribers on her website and channel. Just because something has been photoshopped, it doesn’t mean that it’s not real enough. The reality is hidden in everything around us no matter how unreal it looks.

Tell us in the comment section below if you love Lilia’s photos more before editing. When is using Photoshop unacceptable in your opinion?

Please note: This article was updated in July 2022 to correct source material and factual inaccuracies.

Comments

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This is no worse than using a filter on your phone. I don't understand what people hat an issue with...

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I think a part of it is ignorance of editing tools on the part of the "accusers", and part of it is frustration that no matter how much they try they can't look as good as professionals... IF everyone has a camera, and IF everyone is a photographer - something I hear all too often these days, then how come everyone can't make their photos look this good? Answer: there is value in hiring a professional and cheapening out and hiring your cousin who also is a "photographer" is not justified if the difference is so obvious.
www.anujmadan.com, whereisanuj_insta

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I do not understand the need for all that fakery. If you are a good photographer you do not need to fake your photos, and if you have to fake your photos what is the point? They are not real anyway. Give the people real photos, how they actually look.

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