Porn industry finds hi-def too graphic

The true cost of HD

Posted in Music and Media, 23rd January 2007 13:39 GMT

High definition video can reveal more than was intended, as the porn industry, in its rush to embrace the new technology, is finding out.

Sets and scenery for shows made in HD need a much higher level of finish, but in most cases the actors' bodies are sufficiently covered for imperfections not to matter. Not so in the porn industry, where some "stars" are having to go to new lengths to deal with the imperfections highlighted by the new formats, as the New York Times reports.

Apparently, "Jesse Jane, one of the industry's biggest stars, plans to go under the knife next month to deal with one side effect of high-definition. The images are so clear that Ms Jane's breast implants, from an operation six years ago, can be seen bulging oddly on screen."

Anyone who has seen before and after photographs of magazine models will know the value of a Photoshop makeover, but applying the same techniques to video is more difficult; requiring more inventive approaches from porn producers: "Some shots are lit differently, while some actors simply are not shot at certain angles, or are getting cosmetic surgery, or seeking expert grooming."

This is clearly going to lead to more expensive porn; a hidden tax which consumers will be forced to pay if they want to avoid being reminded that the performers were constructed from a kit of parts glued together. And the BBC thought it had problems negotiating the digital changeover.®

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