30 Hilarious Examples Of Instagram Vs. Reality That Show The Truth Behind Photos (New Pics)

Show of hands—who here has edited their pictures before uploading them to social media? While I can’t actually see how many people there are, I believe that there must have been at least a few of us raising one of our limbs, even if unwillingly.

That’s because nowadays, it might seem difficult not to edit pictures, bearing in mind the content that’s floating around on the internet. Pictures of models are edited to perfection, even though they do not need to be at all. Pictures of regular people, who’ve worked hard on editing their photos, even though they, too, don’t need to. Images of unattainable beauty standards that seem everchanging—yet omnipresent—so you always have something to overthink regarding your looks or lifestyle. Not to mention, pictures of people’s “perfect” lives that are often only perfect on their social media accounts.

With such pressure, it’s no surprise that many people alter their reality—be it themselves or their environment—before uploading any photographs. But sometimes, they don’t realize when they’ve overdone it.

Talking about the reasons why some people edit their images before posting them on social media, Makana Chock, Professor of Communications at Syracuse University, told Bored Panda that people have a tendency to engage in selective self-presentation. “We choose those aspects of ourselves that we want to share with others. Usually, these tend to be the things that are our best features, or those that help us achieve some goal. This happens in face-to-face interactions but may be particularly evident in social media.

“Social media platforms such as Instagram are inherently visual,” Prof. Chock added. “And the technology allows us to, quite literally, show ourselves in the best light. We can highlight our best aspects and edit out the ones we think don’t flatter us.”

“Another thing to keep in mind is that social media is, well—social,” Prof. Chock continued. “Users are aware of the social norms of the site. Including the social pressure to polish their images and present carefully crafted windows into their lives.

“The difficulty with this is that people tend to engage in a process known as social comparison. Our satisfaction with ourselves, our bodies, our lives, is impacted by our comparisons to others. If we view ourselves as better or on par with comparative others, we’re satisfied. If not, we can become dissatisfied. This can be particularly problematic if our comparative other is unrealistically polished and enhanced.”

“In the past, media researchers found that people, particularly younger girls and an increasing number of adolescent males, became dissatisfied with their appearance when comparing themselves to models or actors in magazines,” Prof. Chock noted.

“To some extent, however, this comparison process could be moderated by an awareness that these were celebrities with access to a range of beauty aids. With social media, comparative others may be viewed as peers, people like yourself. This could potentially enhance appearance dissatisfaction. ‘If they can look like that, why can’t I?’”

A study in 2021 found that an astonishing 90% of young women reported using a filter or editing their photos before posting them online. They reportedly do it to even out their skin tone, brighten or bronze it, adjust the shape of their jaw or nose, shave off weight, or whiten their teeth.

To make matters worse, the women also reported being constantly exposed to advertisements or push notifications for all sorts of cosmetic procedures, including teeth whitening, lip fillers, and cosmetic surgery.

The author of the aforementioned study, Professor of Social and Cultural Analysis at City, University of London, Dr. Rosalind Gill, pointed out that young people were overwhelmed by images that were “too perfect.”

Moreover, “Women of colour, disabled women and gender nonconforming folk told me they rarely see anyone like them in the media,” she was cited as saying by Science Daily.

According to Prof. Rosalind Gill, "Posting on social media can produce the intense pleasure of 'getting likes' and appreciative attention, but it is also a source of huge anxiety for most young women.” She added that the latter had told her time and again that they felt judged.

Bearing in mind that people spend close to 2,5 hours a day on social media, it’s safe to assume that while many upload images of themselves, arguably even more spend their time looking at—and likely, judging what—others post.

Whether or not you spend more than 2 hours on social media, chances are you can’t imagine life without access to one platform or another. Nowadays, few people probably can, as the number of individuals on social media has grown steadily over the past seven years, Statista reports.

This source revealed that back in 2017, the number of social media users worldwide was roughly 2.73 billion, but it has since nearly doubled, reaching 5.17 billion in 2024. It is projected to increase to more than six billion in 2028.