New Zealand pop star Lorde has posted a picture online showing a comparison between her natural face and a digitally edited picture as a warning to fans over the use of airbrushing.

The Royals singer shared two shots from a gig in Chile on her Twitter.com page. One picture shows Lorde with a flawless complexion, while the other, taken at the same gig, shows her with spotty skin.

The teenager insisted fans should not feel bad about themselves when they see pictures of perfect pop stars, as reality is often different to the flawless images they see.

She writes, "I find this curious - two photos from today, one edited so my skin is perfect and one real. Remember flaws are ok."