 by dorothy snarkerNavigation |
L'Oréal colors more than Beyoncé's hairTake a look at Beyoncé. Does she look, um, different to you?
Yeah, something is not quite right. Something like, oh I don't know, the fact that her skin is a good two to three shades lighter than it appears in real life. Last week Beyoncé Knowles' new L'Oréal Paris ads for hair coloring have caused quite a controversy over the apparent lightening of her skin.
Of course L'Oréal spokespeople denied the claim, saying: “We highly value our relationship with Ms. Knowles. It is categorically untrue that L'Oréal Paris altered Ms. Knowles' features or skin-tone in the campaign for Feria's hair color.” Beyoncé's endorsement deal with L'Oréal started in 2001.
Look, L'Oréal, we all have eyes in our heads. Even if your ad designers didn't intend to make Beyoncé a whiter shade of pale, there is categorically no way Photoshop was not opened and employed here. And it's not even the first time there has been a public dust-up about the possible lightening of her skin in print. In 2005, Vanity Fair was accused of the same digital trickery on its cover.
While I'm not 100 percent convinced in Vanity Fair's case, I'm floored by the L'Oréal ad. And it's not just her skin tone that seems manipulated by the cosmetic giant. I mean, I can't be the only one who looked at the picture and thought, “Dang, is that really B's nose?” Somehow — either through lightening her skin or futzing with her features — they made her nose seem more prominent. Trust me, this is the first and more than likely only time I've looked at lovely and talented Ms. Knowles and been preoccupied by anything other than her bootyliciousness.
The moral of this story: Don't Photoshop what ain't broke. Submitted by on August 11, 2008 - 9:00am. |
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Ms Snarker, that last one is a very good picture.
And thank you for that.
That really doesn't look like Beyonce in the new L'Oreal ad. I don't know how they can make someone who looks so naturally gorgeous look strange and weird. Her other L'Oreal pictures are gorgeous!
The nose
Love your last statement
"The moral of this story: Don't Photoshop what ain't broke."
It is so true, I have seen Beyonce in concert and as good as she looks...to photoshop her that heavily is insane. They could use a picture of her on one of her many red carpet events and not photoshop it and it will look 50 million times better then those photoshoped pics they use of her sometimes.
This reminds me of when they did something similar to Kate W. when they slimmed down her thighs in a magazine spread, or how they enhance guys packages in underwear ads.
@_@
I'm astonished and I find it quite offensive.
Probably someone at L'Oréal has a thing for Michael Jackson.
On top of that, I think her natural skin color would have been much more appropriate for that particular dye, so one more reason to think this ad is simply tasteless.
Oooooh, I love a bit of cake. Oooooh, cake. Oooooh, cake. Cake. Cake. Cake. Cake. I'm just one of these people. I come home and I need a piece of cake. [Marjorie Dawes]
Photoshop
"The moral of this story: Don't Photoshop what ain't broke."
Amen.
This is the first time I've
Debrowning Beyonce
www.myspace.com/lunakiss7
What's wrong with Beyonce's original look? I don't understand why L'Oreal's photoshop freaks feel obligated to mess with that womyn's looks. I swear. I'm not a Beyonce music fan , but I do find her attractive though. You really didn't need to lighten her skin in a magazine ad to add blondish hair color in her hair. She's born with a lighter skin hue. Most light skin WOC do look great with blondish hair color; they really do not need debrowin their skin color even more in a freakin' ad.
Awomyn to that Ms.Snarker.
False advertising?
How do I say this? How honest is the promotion of makeup when you use computer enhancements in your ads?
Basically you're advertising that the makeup makes you look "better" than it actually does. I'd buy L'oreal, expecting to look like the advertisement, only to realize the ad doesn't reflect the effects of the actual product.
Like the McDonalds commercials with the Big Mac that looks so immaculate. When you get to the store, it looks like a pile of soggy bread and dry meat.
Urm..
If the advertisement wasn't offending enough, the denial makes it even worse. I mean, we're not blind or stupid. Some lightening can make colours seem lighter, but if they didn't actually bring the sun to the studio, there's no way that's Beyoncé's beautiful color.
And I agree on the nose. It's just.. not the way it's supposed to be. At all.
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MUSICPLAYER
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only cheaper
hu
I'm crazy about Bee' since i was 6years old, and i love when she's black, with her real skin, when there are no fake she's wonderful. I can't stand that people want to make her more white... and about her nose, i really think she had chirurgie on it, i've seen lot lot and lot of picture of Beyoncé when she was more young, and her nose wasn't like that. She did it a few years. That my opinion. The picture of l'Oreal, really don't look her... just the eyes, and the teef, her lips it's not really like that...
I don't care :D Bee' rocks my life with her voice. Great article.
[and sorry for mistakes, i'm french]
L'Oréal
Ah, good old Photoshop. The growing trend to Photoshop everything to the extreme reminds me when CGI hit in the 90's. Remember Beauty and the Beast used a small amount of CGI and after that you had Alladin using an excessive amount? To the point the animation and movie itself was crap. Atleast that's my opinion.
I'm not a fan of L'Oréal in the least and I have not bought one of their products in my life (as far as I can recall). They've helped to block legislation for years against cosmetic animal testing and used to be the leading cosmetic company to use it. I don't know if that is still true, but I won't buy from them.
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I guess
I guess I'm the only one who actually expects this behavior from advertisers. Light skin, small noses, thin, large breasts, large bulges.
This is advertising. They're not selling reality. They're selling an image. A predominantly white one.
Instead of writing your replies here, write to the companies! Tell them you won't buy their products!
Advertising is like politics: it only gets worse once you give them power. In the case of the advertisers, Photoshop is that power.
RE: I guess
Quote from Penny Winterr- "I guess I'm the only one who actually expects this behavior from advertisers."
No, you are not the only one. There are cases from the past abput photoshop and celebrities so it is not new. One example is recently Jennifer Hudson had a picture for her new album cover, it was severely photoshopped. Her hips were slimmed down, it was unrealistic for Jennifer Hudson's body.
Good Idea
I emailed L'Oreal with both a question and a complaint in as polite yet direct a manner as I could. Businesses spend a lot of time and money on marketing research. If you volunteer your opinions on any aspect of their marketing, be it actual products, or advertising it does have an impact. I would encourage everyone to contact the company and tell them what you think of the ad.
beyonce
Confession
nonsense it is
LOL I do not care for her either. Yes,she is of Creole i descent ,but that picture does not portray her natural skin color. I get darker in the summer and lighter in the fall and winter,but never like that and I am her skin tone. The company caters to white people anyway. there's nothing wrong with catering to a specific group,but they shouldn't changes someones apprearance and leave M.J. alone,lol Anway,she gets on my d@mn nerves anyway. O Well,she knew that could do that before she cashed the check.
I heard that the actual ad does not look like this. This topic has been hot for awhile.
well...
her real skin tone would look better with that dye, in this add she just looks...blah.
and L'oreal just lost a potentiol customer, its not like i ever bought anything from that brand but i'll make damn sure that i'll never will.
Ha-whuuuuh?
Wow, I didn’t even realize it was Beyoncé at first.
Thanks to the shoop, I had to do a double-take to realize it wasn’t Mariah Carey, who really is a few shades lighter (although perhaps not that light).
Strange marketing choice to make, L’Oréal.
[
"Suicide is man's way of telling God, 'You can't fire me: I quit.' "]The sad thing is..
Indeed, Don't Photoshop
I think it's downright absurd for L'Oreal to even try to "deny" that there is infact something off in that picutre.. I mean, they know we .. can see, right?
BTW, I think the woman is just drop dead gorgeous on that VF cover!
wtf
What !!!!!
This is just messed up. Why would she let them do that? She looks kinda creepy.
Dang she look just like her mom in that last picture.