Davis denies airbrushing used in campaign posters

THE Mary Davis campaign has denied that the presidential hopeful’s campaign posters were airbrushed, dismissing any such questions as those of a “misogynist”.

When questioned by the Irish Examiner, a campaign spokesman said: “The photographer who took the pictures has said they are 90% lighting and 10% subtle enhancing.”

Does “subtle enhancing” mean airbrushing, we asked?

No, they responded, it was “not airbrushing”.

After a few more requests for an English translation of the term “subtle enhancing”, the spokesman, Sean Fitzpatrick, said we “could” use the term “image enhancing”.

However, you don’t need to pay a trip to the local opticians to spot the marked difference between daytime shots of Ms Davis taken earlier this week and her poster image — with many likening her to a Kellogg’s Special K ad.

Why did she do it, we asked?

“We are delighted with the posters. The reaction has been good. That’s what people do. They want to look their best on posters,” he said.

“Why don’t you ring Michael D Higgins and ask if his posters have been airbrushed?

All this stuff about airbrushing, it’s just being a misogynist.”

However when you look directly at Davis’ poster image, you realise how much creative licence has been taken. Such was the “tidying up” that some people have questioned if a stand-in was used.

However, a public relations consultant, who wished to remain nameless, said the use of a “face double” will probably bring in votes.

“Just like in real life, lots of people make a judgement on appearances. So, image enhancement can have a beneficial effect on the candidate. Its common to have your poster photo in some way adjusted so that your image is optimised,” he said.

So next will we see Martin McGuinness returning to his golden locks, David Norris with a coal black beard and Dana using her old album covers?