Photoshop Is New, But Beauty Standards Have Dictated Editing Since 1800s

On social media, we often see photographs that make us question, 'Is this real or AI-generated?' or 'Is her skin really that flawless, or is it simply a filter?' We blame modern technology for shaking our ability to differentiate between what's real and what's edited. However, did you know that retouching images existed long before the digital world? Like today, the Victorian era too had its very own 'Photoshop' to remove blemishes from photos. This trend lasted centuries, setting beauty standards and photo editing practices we know in the contemporary world.

From slimming their waists to clearing skin blemishes, women in the late 1800s were notorious for editing photographs to fit the time's beauty standards. This was done by retouching negatives using pencil markings or scraping techniques so that the final print created the illusion of 'perfection'. #InstagramWorthy!

How Photos Were Edited In Victorian Era

People's bodies were diverse and 'flawed' even in the Victorian era. However, much like today, beauty standards called for a slim waist, full bust and hips, and clear skin. While most women opted for corsets, popularised by the Queen herself, many others retouched their photos to make a more idealised mark.

Looking at vintage photographs, we tend to have the misconception that women in the Victorian era were flawless. Their clear, glowing skin is palpable in the two-dimensional image. Their waist seems 'non-existent'. However, this was the trick of photo editing of the time, as documented in many history books and studies.

The Art of Retouching Photographic Negatives (1898) and Waist Question (1892) in Photography, The Journal of the Amateur, The Profession, and The Trade are two such reports, where the writers have detailed how the waist, arms, hair, skin, dress, etc. can be edited by “by stippling or comma-like touches.”

“Make a curved pencil-like line commencing about halfway between the arm and the waist, gradually taking off more of the figure until the waist is reached, then more suddenly curving outwardly again over the hip, tapering off the line gradually. After this graceful curve is made, it is a case of stippling out with a pencil that part of a dress which is cut off into the background, making it match as near as possible," the author of 'Waist Question' writes.

Other Uses Of Photo Editing In The Era

Photographers in the Victorian era were highly skilled in adhering to the bizarre requests of the public. The edits were not limited to beauty, but also to remove unneeded parts in the photo or even for some innocent fun. For example, 'headless portraits' were all the rage in the 19th century.

The trend reportedly started with photographer Oscar Gustave Rejlander's 'Head of St. John the Baptist in a Charger', (between 1855 and 1860.) This was achieved by combining two negatives. Many such headless images emerged, with people's heads separate from their bodies or a head on a platter, and more.

While beauty retouching and whimsical illusions were popular, the Victorian era also saw the use of photo manipulation for sentimental reasons. Families grieving the loss of a loved one sometimes turned to post-mortem photography, a practice in which deceased individuals were posed as if still alive.

From Photoshop to artificial intelligence, today we have the technology to alter images in a single tap. Though the tools of manipulation have changed, the purpose remains the same.  However, both eras grapple with the same fundamental question: What is real, and what is an illusion?