The Good, Bad, And Ugly Side Of Beauty Filters

For a fairly brief period of time since the internet came into our lives, using social media was restricted to posting inspirational quotes, chatting with friends, and posting unadulterated pictures clicked with low-resolution cameras.

Cut to today’s social media milieu, Millennials and Gen Z post even the tiniest details of their lives, often in humorous ways. But it is not just sharing content, it also matters how it is shared – using filters to create different moods and vibes is definitely one way to go. From the Koala ears filter to the golden crown filter, from nerdy glasses to the ice queen filter, there is certainly no dearth of filters on Instagram today. But adding funny animal features to our faces isn’t the only purpose of filters.

From making your lips appear fuller to giving you chiselled jawlines, these Instagram or Snapchat filters can transform you in the blink of an eye! Well, now that these filters have become so entwined with our online lives, let’s take a look at how these filters have positively and negatively impacted people.

Boosts Confidence

Some filters help in making one feel more confident about themselves. But some of these can hamper the way people perceive themselves.

Funny Filters

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Filters in one way or another add more vibrance to our virtual world. During the covid lockdowns, people were increasingly spending more time in front of their screens and these Instagram filters became a great passtime for many of them. Some of the funky filters that became a trend were ‘Guess The Gibberish’, ‘Gesture Challenge’, ‘Which cartoon character are you,’ etc. This was definitely a good side of having so many filters to play around with.

Party Mood

It is even possible to recreate the feel of a party while sitting at home thanks to the Neon II filter on the platform. With the Neon II filter, you can put up a Neon sign inside of your frame and make it shine onto your face, just like an actual nightclub sign would.

Problematic Aspect Of Filters

Often, beauty filters on social media platforms lean towards transforming faces as per Eurocentric norms. From lighter eyes, smaller noses, or flushed cheeks to high cheekbones, these filters can warp your face. While others completely alter the face by smoothing out every pore, enhancing the size of the lips, and altering the shape of the eyes.

According to a report from Wall Street Journal, “thirty-two per cent of teen girls said that when they felt bad about their bodies, Instagram made them feel worse.”

Every time we click the app, we discover a new filter that transforms us into completely different versions of ourselves.“You get a mismatch between how you perceive yourself and the images you see on social media which increases body dissatisfaction,” said a study author Susan Paxton, a professor emeritus at La Trobe University in Australia.

Instagram filters can be all fun and games till they start festering unrealistic beauty standards.

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