ThatIsBeyond… No Pictures, Please.

I am so lucky that I am not plagued by the paparazzi! Honestly I put enough pressure on myself to look a certain way, without a lens to the whole world tracing my every step.

In my previous job I looked after a perfectly lovely lady. She was from a huge girl group with international acclaim and she, like a lot of celebrities could not walk 10 paces without a flashing camera bulb in her peripheral vision.

At the beginning of the evening I was taken aback by her natural beauty. The sort of woman who exudes elegance and positivity from within. She had not wanted a big fuss made and sat with the crowds to watch the show. By the interval I noticed that she looked a bit uncomfortable. There were a gaggle of people around her and phone flashes were Peppering the auditorium. I approached and offered a room for her to escape to and she couldn’t have been more grateful. She explained that she hadn’t realised how big the theatre was and her agent had booked seats smack bang in the middle with no aisle!

After finding alternative seats for the second half, I was called to the foyer to deal with a disturbance. Outside were a (not diminutive) group of paparazzi with fat imposing lenses. I politely asked them to step away from the front of the theatre and to stop blocking the fire exits.

I have to say that they were pretty imposing men. Whilst they did eventually disperse, I think that had more to do with the 8 security guards who were flanking my sides! Of course they were out of my hair in a matter of moments, but I knew that our guest would have to deal with being trailed and bothered by them not only today but for a long time to come.

When I met her after the show to let her know, she declined an offer to sneak her out of the theatre. She reasoned that they already knew she was here and that if she escaped they would stay here healing the staff for the rest of the evening. She then asked if o would mind waiting with her whilst she got ready. She was shaking. Clearly caught off guard, she started to apply later after later of make up. In total it took 25 minutes to complete the transformation. As we headed to the foyer she stopped at a mirror, took one final glance and then turned her smile on to the blinking cacophony of the camera flashes.

What struck me most that evening, is that she felt the world needed to see her in a certain way. Even though she looked fantastic, she knew it wouldn’t read well under the hard flashlight and so changed her appearance to suit.

I have been known to post many a picture on social media, but if I am honest I am quite discerning about which ones make the cut. It’s sort of applying a filter over the way that the world sees us. Excentuating what we see as good and hiding all of the bad.

I don’t like this side of me. There is enough judgement in the world without subjecting myself to harsh critiscism at my own hands as well. But I do think it’s prevalent across the internet and something we should consider. What does it really matter if someone sees me from another angle or if (god forbid) there is some fat somewhere that looks a little unsightly.

I will be doing more to highlight all of my angles – and not apologise for myself or to myself for being who I am. Even the bronzed Adonises have work to do on themselves and I for one am not doing to do my harm with my judgement.

I can safely say that I would have done exactly the same as my celebrity acquaintance in that situation, but what a sad world it is that any of this matters. To that end I thought I would share some pics that went immediately into the deleted folder and why…