Karie's post here has me wondering a lot about how much the perfectionism in fiber arts that we think of as being driven by social media is more specifically driven by unfamiliarity with photography. Lemme expand. /1 https://twitter.com/kariebookish/status/1289233200917577728

Almost every single picture I post on social media is cropped, brightened, and sharpened. Sometimes I fuss with the contrast and do other things, too, but those are the basics.

It means images that start out like the first photo turn out like the second. /2

I have a Lightroom preset I made for myself to save time, but there's always a little fussing afterward to get it just right. It's all stuff I can do on my phone, and it takes about 30 seconds, but it has a major effect. /3

I think most people using social media don't understand how easy it is to tweak a photo and give the illusion of perfection, but let me be very clear: my knits are riddled with errors. /4

This crown everyone was all excited about? It's got a major mistake because I cast on the wrong number of stitches and didn't realize it until I'd already finished the brim, but I was too lazy to rip back. I can't find it now. /5

These mitts? Look closer. I totally forgot a pattern repeat at the top left. It's got a bald spot. Also, one mitt is slightly longer than the other. /6

This shawl doesn't even have the same number of stitches between the final bobble and the end of the row on any of the bobble rows because I was always forgetting an end-of-row increase. /7

My knits are not perfect. I reject the idea that they have to be or even should be. My knits are imperfect, just like I am—and just like a good portrait can minimize imperfections you'd rather not highlight for whatever reason, so can a good photo do for knitting. /8

People think photographs are a perfect capture of reality, but they aren't, not even the unedited ones. Lenses, camera software, film (if you're not taking digital photos), and processing all affect what the image looks like. /9

And because people don't understand that, they think a good photo that catches their eye must feature something that's perfect. That's not true at all. /10

The other thing a lot of knitters overlook is the power of blocking to make a finished item look perfect. We can talk about that later.

But just know this: the knits you're looking at aren't perfect. Most handmade things aren't. That's the beauty of them. Don't be scared. 11/11