Mischa Barton says photos were doctored

Mischa Barton was recently pictured sporting some serious cellulite.

At first the actress admirably defended the photos: "I like my curves," she told OK! magazine earlier this week. "My boyfriend loves them. So whatever works!"

"Every woman has cellulite," the actress said. "I've never claimed to have a perfect body."

Barton said she eats well, exercises and is comfortable with her body.

"If I'm in shape and I'm fulfilling my role as an actress, then that's all that matters to me. There's been a lot of nasty gossip written about me. If I was to cry over every single thing, I'd be the most depressed person ever."

She also said she thinks the paparazzi sometimes intentionally take unflattering photos.

"[The paparazzi] know they are worth more money," Barton said. "I've never claimed to have a perfect body, but it is what it is. I have a woman's body. I have hips and boobs so it goes straight there, which I don't mind because it gives me curves."

However, now the actress is claiming the photos were retouched.

"Those photos are doctored," Lisa Perkins, Barton's rep, told the New York Daily News. "I'm not saying she's perfect, nobody is. But they've given a 22-year-old woman the legs and bottom of an 80-year-old.

"Look at the shots that were taken shortly before on a beach in L.A. Did she develop all that cellulite in a couple of weeks? There's a lot you can do with Photoshopping."

Perkins told the New York Daily News that "parasite" photographer Jamie Fawcett tried to make Barton look bad because the actress was topless in the photos.

Fawcett denied the validity of the claim: "I wouldn't seek to publicly embarrass her with nudity or health issues or body image issues," he said. "It is a shame that publications tend to highlight an issue that is not fair to a young girl... However, sometimes these are the things that sell pictures."

The photographer sold the photographs to Britain's Daily Mail for an undisclosed sum of money.

Celebs with Cellulite

With summer fast approaching, we often find ourselves at the gym trying to get that swimsuit perfect body. We resort to eating salads instead of fries, and drinking water instead of soft drinks. Often times we find ourselves yearning for the bodies of our favorite celebrities. The abs of Marissa Miller or the legs of Cameron Diaz, while near impossible to achieve, become the official summer fitness goal. Sometimes however, our favorite stars have flaws of their own. It seems highly unlikely that someone paid millions to look good on camera could have imperfections, but they do.

While stalking celebs on perezhilton.com this afternoon, planning out how I was going to not eat all day, I came across a rather unflattering picture of Mischa Barton's cellulite thighs. Typically when celebs like Tyra Banks and Jennifer Love Hewitt are ridiculed for unflattering pictures I automatically come to their defense. They are girls with real bodies and eating habits. I don't, for some reason, expect perfection from them. However, Mischa Barton's cellulite offended me. Maybe its because she's known for being tall and thin. Perhaps its because she was wearing a dress out shopping that was shorter than a cover-up I'd wear at the beach. Regardless, I felt she should know better and cover up the cellulite.

This picture motivated me to google, "celebs with cellulite." Surprisingly, a lot of them have it. Scarlett Johansson's body apparently isn't perfect and even super models are stricken with the terrible affliction. Rather than this make me feel good about my own body, it made me disgusted with theirs. How is it that they get paid to look perfect but have more cellulite than the girls I see walking around my college campus?

After a little more reflection, I realized I was being ridiculous. I can't be mad at these women for having flaws. Everyone has them and some are hard to get rid off, especially cellulite. However, I can be mad that these celebs don't COVER UP.