‘Social media influencer recreates same cloud formation repeatedly on Instagram posts, by way of suspect background photo digital retouching. Gets recruited by cloud-making app creator and subsequently gains thousands more followers as reward for duplicity.’
Could that headline be ANY more 2019?!
Yet as made up sounding as the influencer in question’s recurrent cut n paste cloud formations wasn’t, this latest tale of background photo digital retouching rings true.
Now, it’s not as though we’re strangers to the business of retouching photos and/or background image removal. The type that occasionally alludes to something a little different from the original picture, once we’ve enhanced it. And normally courtesy of a guiding hand from our most productive DT employee bar none, Photoshop.
(Disclaimer: other digital image editing software is widely available. Although not quite as good).
There’s no hiding from that.
And yes, we are culpable of any amount of background photo digital retouching services to the extent that we’ve lost tally. And no, we don’t shy away from such spurillous accusations, as it’s what we do. Our livelihood. And most importantly, what we’re routinely briefed to do by our post-image-manipulated happy, clients.
And we’re not bragging when we say we have digitally altered a myriad of image backdrops over the past 8 years. Dropping in, rearranging, removing and generally housekeeping a host of people, objects, props and naturally-occuring features. Think mountains, trees, cars, wedding guests, furniture, etc. All in then name of meeting client expectations.
Background photo digital tetouching of clouds though? Really??
Well, OK. We’ll admit it.
We’ve been approached to photo retouch/drop in an altogether different sky, as a background. Whether (geddit? – sorry) the clients are estate agents looking to enhance the collective backdrops to their bespoke property portfolio. Or brides/grooms hoping that we can exchange cloudy skies (think cumulonimbus, cirrocumulus, cirrus, stratocumulus, stratus or the Mind Flayer ‘cloud monster’ from ‘Stranger Things’) for the perfect ‘The Simpsons’ skyline. To depict sunnier versions of their all important wedding shots.
But we can safely say we’ve never duplicated the same cloud-filled sky. Nor attempted to casually pass it off as coincidence. What’s more, we can’t claim to be social media influencers; not yet anyway (but we’re working on it behind the scenes).
Plus, the facts about clouds are inescapable.
Anyway, the facts about clouds are inescapable. Because as we all know (and any 80s meteorologist worth their sticky thunder graphic will reliably tell you), clouds are formed by (insert the science/geography bit here). And it’s highly unlikely that identical cloud formations will appear in the background of EVERY SINGLE ‘ideal’ shot on your Instagram account. Even if you’re a social media influencer with a tick by your name.
That’s just the way it goes.
So it might not come as a total surprise to learn that one such individual has recently been outed on their favoured social media platform by a follower who questioned the legitimacy of said cloud formations. And smelled something fishy.
Apparently the travel blogger/social media influencer – in an ongoing bid to create lavishly photo-filtered dream shots of the places they travelling to – superimposed an identikit cloud formation/cut and paste sky background on a number of their Insta uploads. Which they’d acquired from dedicated fake cloud pattern-generating app, Enlight Quickshot.
Background Image Faker Rewarded with New Job
But rather than get into hot water for being exposed as a ‘cloud cheat’, the travel influencer has secured a new role with said app creator. Who has hired them for their ‘talents’ in the aftermath of said eagle-eyed Twitter follower pointing out the glaring similarities of the skies on four of the most recent posts the accused shared. Essentially four individual images depicting them swimming, lounging by the ocean, steering a boat and wandering through a field. Which prompted the whistleblower to point out that the quartet of images were suspiciously captured beneath the exact same cloud-filled backdrop.
Girls A Cloud
Protesting their innocence to their thousands of online devotees, amid the storm of social media procrastination that engulfed them, the travel influencer declared that they saw nothing wrong with utilising the cloud app. And subsequently altering the controversial skies. Claiming that they’d chose to do this so that their images conformed to what they described as an ‘optimal aesthetic’.
They also went on to add that Quickshot was the one app that helped them with the composition of photos when the sky was overexposed or burnt.
For their part, a spokesperson for Enlight Quickshot added they were excited about collaborating with the influencer, especially in the realms of creating a brand new ‘cloud pack’ based entirely on cloud photos that their new employee would actively curate.