Kim Kardashian has been known to stop at nothing to get the perfect photograph.
But a recent shot of the star shows evidence of a truly bizarre Photoshop job that has many online raising their eyebrows and calling the alteration totally unnecessary.
The uproar began after a TikToker pointed out the photo, which shows Kardashian sipping a cocktail in a pool, shows clear evidence Kardashian edited out her trapezius, the muscle in the upper back that connects the spine, shoulder blades and collarbones.
See the photo below.
Seems normal enough, right?
Well, think again.
TikToker @caroline_in_thecity, a professional photographer, broke down all the alterations made to the photo.
It turns out Kardashian had her trapezius removed almost entirely.
@caroline_in_thecity Nerd out with me and test your media literacy skills! Can you tell what is fake in this image? #medialiteracy #photoshopskillsonfleek #carolinesediting #photoshopgametime #greenscreen #greenscreenvideo
Caroline used another photo from the same session as a comparison to the one Kardashian posted to Instagram, and the differences are unmistakable.
Whereas in the other shots, Kardashian has a normal looking trapezius sloping from her shoulder toward her neck like the rest of us, the Instagram version shows Kardashian with almost a 90-degree angle from neck to shoulder.
Caroline also spotted evidence in the pool water behind Kardashian, which seemed to be missing the telltale ripples from the rest of the pool in the area where Kardashian's trapezius would normally be.
Of course, there's nothing inherently wrong with editing photos—most of us do it nowadays with just our phones.
But Kardashian has gone on record many times challenging the notion her cosmetic procedures and constant Photoshopping has created and upheld unattainable beauty standards for women.
Asked about the issue by Allure magazine Kardashian admitted she is far more invested in her appearance than most people.
"I really, genuinely care about looking good. I probably care more than 90% of the people on this planet.”
But she claimed everything she's done to her appearance is attainable by others.
“If I’m doing it, it’s attainable.”
Obviously, not having a trapezius is not attainable for... well, anyone—and that's before we even get into the resources she has for maintaining her appearance, being a billionaire and all.
On Twitter, the trapezius-editing struck many as ridiculous and left some people angry.
\u201cmfs in comment section defending cuz "sHe's iNsEcUrE" as if her family isn't the reason for creating insane body standards and self image issues while making billions off it\u201d— Earendil \u2b50\u26f5 (@Earendil \u2b50\u26f5) 1662042790
\u201cKim Kardashian photoshopping her trapezius out of a photo has absolutely sent me, what will she magic eraser next\u201d— Bhakthi (@Bhakthi) 1661906958
\u201cIt doesn't even look good??? This woman is out here LYING about the procedures she has done and that still isn't enough, she has to also alter her body in ways that aren't even possible with photoshop\u201d— Kirsten MacInnis (@Kirsten MacInnis) 1662047913
\u201cYou would be shocked how much the Kardashians and other celebrities alter their faces and bodies on Instagram. It's extremely damaging because it's setting an unrealistic and literally impossible standard. Nothing is real on the internet ya'll.\u201d— Ala'a Ibrahim (@Ala'a Ibrahim) 1661964880
\u201cidk whats worse\u2026kim worrying this much about what people would think about her trapezius or the person who noticed that\u201d— ghazal (@ghazal) 1661966635
But others thought the call-outs were far stranger and far more problematic.
\u201cThis is weird but I think the press calling out every instance of photoshop is weirder\u201d— samthegreat // BLACK LIVES MATTER (@samthegreat // BLACK LIVES MATTER) 1662012365
\u201cnot the internet discovering that the Kardashians photoshop their pictures in the good year of 2022\u201d— Sam\u2077 HAPPY JK DAY (@Sam\u2077 HAPPY JK DAY) 1661972387
\u201cdo yall not realize that maybe the reason they do photoshop their stuff like this is because yall bully them so ruthlessly when they share natural photos, or you see them without makeup? \ud83e\udd28\u201d— derek \ud83c\udf3a (@derek \ud83c\udf3a) 1661971858
\u201cy'all calling her out just because she's Kim Kardashian. Almost every celebrity photoshop/facetunes their photos let's be real\u201d— m\ud83c\udf80 | BORN PINK (@m\ud83c\udf80 | BORN PINK) 1662008871
\u201cwhy does the media still talk about \u201ckim k photoshop scandal\u201d in 2022, get over it\u201d— Enxhiolloni (@Enxhiolloni) 1662051369
Kim isn't the only Kardashian who heavily manipulates her appearance online.
Her sister Khloe was reportedly so embarrassed an unedited bikini photo of her leaked online she filed a lawsuit to have the image scrubbed from search results.
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