How Lighting Affects the Appearance of Arm Flab
While most of the photos on Instagram fitness star Anna Victoria's page may look flawless, she's hell-bent on setting the record straight: Perfection is an illusion, and a fickle one at that. To further prove her point, Anna recently posted two photos of herself in the exact same post taken in different lighting. She didn't need a filter to show how much of a difference that makes:
The photo on the left is taken in natural lighting, which is generally considered the most flattering kind. As you can see, Anna's arm looks slim and toned. Meanwhile, in the photo on the right, Anna stands directly beneath an artificial light source, which makes the skin behind her arms look dimply and conceals all that muscle definition.
"Lighting. Is. Everything," she wrote in her caption, adding that much of the #fitspo you see in your Instagram feed - the photos of beautiful people looking more perfect than you - are actually deceptive AF since they're almost always taken in the best possible lighting conditions. It's why comparing your reflection to the photos you see can be so deflating.
Anna goes on to point out that arm cellulite is Very Normal - so who cares if bad lighting puts it on display? "Do I love the look of my arms on the right?" Anna wrote in her caption, "No, but I don't hate it or myself for it, either. And you shouldn't either."
While no one's asking you to photograph yourself in bad lighting and post it, the least you can do is give yourself a break when photos surface those features you can barely perceive IRL. Lighting, what a bitch!
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