Beyoncé, reigning Queen of Pop, is under the spotlight this week after pre-Photoshop images "leaked" from a L'Oreal campaign shoot in 2013 went viral.

The close-up images show the heavily made-up singer in all her natural glory, laying bare an uneven complexion and even -- gasp -- showing her pores.

Originally posted on fan site The Beyoncé World to celebrate the star's natural beauty, the photos were swiftly removed following backlash from "the BeyHive".

"Due to the disdain of the BeyHive, we have removed the photos," reads a statement posted by the site. "We don't want to cause any drama, nor do we wish to start fan wars." It added: "We were just posting the photos to share the fact that our queen is naturally beautiful, at the same time she is just a regular woman."

Yet much of the online reaction has been positive, with fans championing the star's natural good looks.

"We know Beyoncé is pretty. We know Beyoncé wears a lot of makeup. You have exposed nothing but your pettiness," tweeted one fan @JamilahLemieux. Meanwhile @SNeverything said: "I'm also a #BeyHive and people getting outraged over #BeyonceLeak is stupid. All I got from the leaked photos is that she's indeed BEAUTIFUL."

The leak comes days after an unretouched photo of supermodel Cindy Crawford was published on Twitter, revealing the 48-year-old pin-up's "flaws". Although Marie Claire magazine, the publication that ran the original 2013 photoshoot with Crawford, has referred to the release of the image as a leak, public reaction has been overwhelmingly positive.

"Bravo Cindy Crawford. "Beauty is truth, truth beauty, that is all Ye need to know on earth, and all Ye need to know," tweeted Hollywood actress Jamie Lee Curtis.

So are consumers ready to see brands ditch the airbrush? With Adobe Photoshop turning 25 today, it is a timely question. While celebrities such as Kendall Jenner and even, yes, Beyoncé herself, have been called out by fans over the last year for the suspected digital alteration of their own selfies, long-term campaigns such as Dove's "Real Beauty" and new headline-grabbing UK health initiative "This Girl Can" continue to get great press. Could natural really be the next big beauty trend?