A woman shared how influencers achieve their enviable hourglass figures by using sneaky tricks.
Danae Mercer Ricci, a 36-year-old American, has been dishing out self-love vibes on Instagram for years. With her genuine and unfiltered posts, she’s gained a whopping 2.3 million followers.
She recently let slip that social media isn’t always what it cracks up to be, revealing that people use all sorts of tactics to look “picture perfect”. Beyond a cheeky filter, Danae explained influencers often take it up a notch.
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The mum-of-one highlighted how certain poses, core clenching and even a bit of sucking in can create the illusion they want their audience to see. She pointed out that just standing a certain way can completely overhaul someone’s appearance, and that’s before any digital touch-ups.
In a video that left her followers gobsmacked, Danae demonstrated how these “false” images are crafted with a few quick tweaks. People have been left mindlown after discovering how they do it.
(Image: danaemercer/Instagram)
Taking to Instagram, Danae wrote: “Ever wonder why influencers SIT in the EXACT SAME WAY for many of their pics? Kneeling knees towards a mirror, with abs popping and waist looking tiny?
“Well here ya go. Here’s the secret: That pose is epic for photos. It basically uses the law of camera (that whatever is closest appears bigger) to make the trendy ‘slim thicc’ look.
“Throw in an ultra-arched back (I’m talking a wild C curve with your spine) and some nifty side lighting from a window, and voila. You’ve got yourself an instant fitspo snap.
“Of course no one ACTUALLY sits like this. But it’s great for those feeling fire selfies (I certainly have taken a few). So just a reminder today: Social media is SO FILTERED.
“Even when it comes to casual ‘oh my gosh I’m so spontaneous!’ snaps. And you? You’re doing just fine. Normal angles. Posed angles. Sitting on the couch angles and all. You got this.”
(Image: danaemercer/Instagram)
Since she shared the post on social media, it’s been liked over 15,000 times. As well as this, many people reached out to Danae too.
They were keen to thank her for being so candid about body image, and also shared some of their own stories too. It seems as though we could all do with a bit more body positivity in the world.
One person said: “God bless you. Truly. Saving a generation of young women from the false reality that is social media.”
Another added: “These posts always amaze me. Pretty sure I would still look like a baby seal though.”
A third offered a different theory, writing: “Most of them just use the hourglass body filter. And lying about the skinny bbl. They take that one to the grave lol.”
Meanwhile, a fourth commented: “Sad part is men fall for it, or just don’t care because it’s pleasing to their eye. Which fuels the behavior. And then us women compare ourselves to it.”
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