Netizens blast Melania Trump's ‘heavily photoshopped’ new portrait as reason behind her ‘calculated choice’ revealed
Melania Trump on Monday unveiled her new official White House portrait as the First Lady of the US, shocking her social media followers.
Melania Trump on Monday unveiled her new official White House portrait as the First Lady of the US, shocking her social media followers.

The black and white picture by Régine Mahaux was the most significant change from other First Ladies' portraits, who typically chose more colorful photographs.
For the portrait, Melania wore a black Dolce & Gabbana pantsuit with a white shirt. The First Lady's stylist, Hervé Pierre, previously disclosed that dressing her is challenging because many American designers refused to work with her in the past.
In a statement, the White House informed that Melania's new picture was captured in the Yellow Oval Room on January 21. The Washington Monument was visible in the background.
In the picture, Melania's hands are seen resting on a table as the Washington Monument was visible in the background. The First Lady can be seen grinning as well.
How Melania Trump's latest portrait different from her old one
During Donald Trump's first term, Melania's official photograph was made public on April 3, 2017. Her coloured-picture was taken inside her residence. She was wearing jewelry, with a ring on both hands. With her arms crossed, Melania smile for the picture with a few teeth visible.
Speaking to Newsweek, Robert Collins praised Melania's classic“power pose”, which according to him“is communicating that she is in control”.
The image also indicates that the First Lady is the leader, who issues orders and is attempting to shift her image from that of the “supportive wife” to more equal participant in the government.
According to Collins, Melania made a “calculated choice” to not smile in her latest official portrait in an attempt to “match her husband's portrait.”
Melania's critics call her portrait ‘heavily Photoshopped’
While Melania's fans loved it and even claimed it looked like a Vogue cover, some of her critics believed her intense photo was heavily photoshopped.
“Meta needs to cool it with the force follows,” one person wrote.
“Oh dear I forgot to unfollow, see you in four years,” another stated.
While others called the imageodd, some claimed, “That's not an official photo,” and it is “heavily Photoshopped”.
Accused her of heavilymodifying the picture, one wrote: “Looks like she's made of plastic. It's so over-processed, heavy softening and blurring filtering. There's nothing warm or real about this image.”
ABOUT THE AUTHORShweta KukretiShweta Kukreti has over 8 years of experience in covering Indian and world politics. She joined the Hindustan Times in 2024 and is primarily assigned to the US desk. She currently works as Deputy Chief Content Producer and reports on a wide range of topics, including US politics, immigration issues (especially H-1B visa) and major global events. Shweta strongly emphasizes team operations, which encompasses monitoring news, delegating tasks, editing, developing comprehensive coverage strategies, and crafting engaging, and data-informed narratives. She received the Digi Star Award at the Hindustan Times within a year of joining for her broad coverage of US politics. In 2025, she earned both a promotion and a redesignation, a significant achievement recognising her contributions and the strong value she brings to the team. She has previously worked with the Indian Express, HTDS, ANI and Republic World. Seniors in all the media organisations recognised her work. Regarding education, she earned a BA (Hons.) in Political Science and a master's degree from Delhi University, and she pursued a PG Diploma in English Journalism from the Indian Institution of Mass Communication (IIMC). She also holds a diploma in Women's Empowerment and Development from IGNOU University and a French certification course from Alliance Française de Delhi. If not working, you can find her exploring the hills and engaging in adventurous activities in Rishikesh and Himachal Pradesh. She loves to play badminton, volleyball, and chess, and spend time with her friends and family. She also enjoys spiritual activities.Read More

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