Although the campaign promotes a new product line, it also challenges how society views beauty. Will women of a certain age respond to these ads and buy the new creams and shampoos and lotions — or, would an 18-year-old, 6-foot-tall flawless beauty photographed under the most optimal conditions push the products more effectively? It's hard to say. I'd like to believe the former but will admit to searching out any color lipstick advertised by Eva Longoria.

Critics have suggested the reality ads are bad for business and could brand Dove as "for older" or "for heavier" women. Dove reports a positive response to what it's calling the "Campaign for Real Beauty." In any case, it's getting its fare share of attention from the Today Show and other media and is initiating discussion about female body image.

In the end, whether you like the ads or prefer something a little more perfect — there should, at the very least, be a round of applause for the women who took part in this venture. What you see is how they really look. There's no Photoshop action here, no retouching, no altering of the images — all of which begs the question: Would our models of the moment and Hollywood's top actresses agree to be photographed under similar, all natural conditions?