Who doesn’t like a good selfie? These days, no one has time to wait for others to snap a pic. And certainly, no one wants to deal with the tedious task of cropping unflattering angles or random photobombs. If something fun is happening, or if you’re simply looking fantastic, all you have to do is whip out your cell and capture the moment – no tripod required. But while selfies may be all the rage, how far will you go to take the perfect pic? Would you, say, spend a couple thousand dollars on plastic surgery? One woman sure did, and she’s happy to talk about it.
Los Angeles talent manager Triana Lavey loves taking selfies. Maybe, just a tad too much. But unlike most other people who will just keep deleting and retaking pictures until the ideal pose is struck, Lavey decided she wanted to ensure all her selfies would come out perfect the first time around – by getting plastic surgery.
Since 2012, Lavey has spent around $15,000 on plastic surgery procedures to look great in her selfies – most of which end up on her Instagram account. While you may be wondering why Lavey didn’t just invest in a good filter app, Lavey explains she wanted her pictures to be 100 percent unmodified. So, instead of Photoshopping her pics, she decided to Photoshop herself instead.
Thus far, the selfie queen has undergone rhinoplasty, Botox injections, fat grafting procedures, and a chin implant all in the quest for the perfect Instagram selfie. In an interview with ABC’s Nightline, Lavey confessed, “I now have the face that I always thought that I had.”
But did Lavey really undergo plastic surgery merely to look good on the Web, or is she using Instagram as an excuse?
Most likely, a little bit of both. Though she could have just said she wanted to improve some of her features, Lavey does have a pretty valid reason for the Instagram excuse. Lavey works for a public relations firm that specializes in representing social media talent, so she knows firsthand how important it is to put your best face forward – literally.
“Today this business is moving at the speed of the Internet,” added Lavey. “Your selfie is your head shot so you can reinvent yourself every day with your iPhone. It’s a legitimate form of promoting yourself.”
True, but did Lavey undergo cosmetic surgery because it was something she truly wanted to do, or did she fall prey to the pressures of her line of work? While you may or may not agree with her reasons, Lavey certainly isn’t the only one who has gone under the knife in the name of social media. A few months ago, we reported on an increasing trend in India known as the “Facebook Facelift”, where 20 and 30 somethings were turning to plastic surgery as a way to become more photogenic for their social media pictures.
What can we say; we are definitely living in the digital age. And these days, first impressions are, unfortunately, often based on what we post on our social media and networking accounts – including our photos. As far as Lavey is concerned, after looking at her before and after pics, we have to say that regardless of her reasons, her results certainly speak volumes. The enhancements are subtle and natural, and overall she looks great.
As Lavey so eloquently stated, “Not everyone is born beautiful, and if you can get a little help from an app or a nip-tuck then more power to you.”
Tell us what you think about Lavey’s transformation. Is a picture really worth 1,000 words – or in her case, 15,000 dollars?
