The art of Bret Michael's abdominals and other ab "treatments"

Not long after Jezebel suggested that the photo of Poison singer Bret Michaels on Billboard‘s cover had been somewhat altered, we received a link to a news story from the folks at the mag. Headline: “Six-Pack Is Real, Says Photographer.”

“I didn’t eat for a day and I did about 2,000 sit-ups,” Bret says. He also requested “good lighting and a warm room.” But come on — Photoshop is clearly the star of this cover.

According to Billboard:

Photographer Blair Bunting, who shot Michaels’ cover, says he was not shocked by the accusations, but assures skeptics that the Poison singer’s chiseled abs are wholly authentic. “When he took off his shirt, I was like, ‘This guy’s in shape for 47!'” says Bunting, who made his Billboard cover debut with the photo. “It’s always easy for someone to cry ‘Photoshop,’ so I wasn’t too surprised by that…but he takes his shape seriously.”

Okay, sure. He’s in shape. But releasing this “before” compared to the “after” picture (click to see enlarged).

Everything is exaggerated and smoothed. Wrinkles have vanished. The small indents in Bret’s stomach look like deep, dark valleys. Coincidentally, in today’s New York Times, one can learn of some alternate ways to get great abs, beyond Photoshop: Lab Series Skincare for Men Ab Rescue Sculpting Gel “tightens, firms and smoothes the appearance of the midsection with caffeine, creatine and soya protein.” Or, you can create shadows with spray tan stuff!

Melanie Mills, the lead makeup artist for “Dancing With the Stars” and a spokeswoman for St. Tropez tanning products, said that for faster results, the male dancers on the show, who often perform shirtless, have custom tans to appear more buff… The secret to tanning abs, Ms. Mills said, is “contouring the recesses.”

And if that doesn’t work, try Abs in a Box, which “offers both a defining cream containing caffeine and a makeup palette to both darken contours and lighten the summits of muscles.”

Because if there’s one thing a woman really wants, it’s a man with bronzer on his tummy. Jamie Kern Lima, a founder of the company, notes that the makeup is waterproof: “It’s not like you’re going to get out of the pool and leave your abs [in the water].” I don’t know where we (as a society) got the idea that ab definition is so desirable that you need to fake it, but I’ll bet anything the market for this crap — and the pressure for men to have killer abs — is no where near the big buisiness of breast implants and Wonder Bras. So… score one for women? Article by Jezebel

About The Author

Patricia Colli, Editor of Beutiful Magazine, is a human rights activist, equality advocate, and promoter of health, acceptance and wellbeing. Having experienced disordered eating, unhealthy exercise patterns and poor body image, she is especially passionate about shedding light on eating disorders and the power of body acceptance.