Consumption of naturalness in social media: The example of instagram filters

Social media tools, which have become new socializing places, play an important role in our inclusion in daily life. Social media deeply penetrates the course of daily life, the spoken language and the way of thinking. For this reason, it is sociologically important to understand the impact of social networks that permeate every aspect of daily life in order to address social functioning. In this study, body perception, which has gained a new dimension with the widespread use of social media applications, is discussed through Instagram filters, which have become a very popular medium with their visual content. Today, Instagram, which has become a medium where we can carry/carry every aspect of daily life, has a significant impact on the body. Since the studies on Instagram mostly focus on privacy and self-presentation, it is seen that the body is neglected. However, Instagram, with its visual content, keeps the desire of its users to be visible, offers everyone the opportunity to open up to the outside world with its best representation, and in a sense, even imposes this on its users. For this reason, beauty filters, which are widely used in Instagram, are one of the most important tools accompanying this process. The effect of filter use on individuals in the study; As a utopian space, Instagram is handled through the digital scene of consumption, standardization of naturalness and filter usage motivations. Qualitative research methods and techniques were used in the study. In-depth interviews were conducted with 15 young girls in the 20-30 age range through semi-structured interview forms. According to the results of the research, beauty filters invite the individual to be visible with their best representation. Since the use of filters encourages individuals to comply with the ideal understanding of beauty, it causes them to see themselves as flawed in real life. It has been found that positive feedback increases the use of filters. In addition, it has been concluded that the use of filters affects consumption habits, triggers the desire to make changes on the person's body (various surgical interventions such as rhinoplasty, lip augmentation), and can alienate the person from real life. Keywords: Instagram, Filter, Naturalness, Consumption, Body