Retouch opinions/comments

[D Thompson]

I've been doing some retouch work for a photog friend's senior portraits. I am thinking about maybe getting into the retouch/restore business and would like your comments/opinions.

Both shots are from Gary Chambers Photography.

Thanks in advance.

[D Thompson]

retouch #2.

Again, thanks in advance.

[bonni]

I'm no great expert on retouching, but I've got a pretty good artistic eye (formal training in that ;)).

The one of the guy looks pretty good, but the girl is a little overdone. People naturally have little lines and shadows on their face, but she looks... well, retouched. She's got that "too smooth to be real pancake makeup overdose" look.

You're doing very well, but a lighter hand on the smoothing and touchups is probably in order. I can tell you that I do retouching on photos of myself and sometimes my kids (if they have a bruise or a rash on their face or something), but I only remove the actual blemishes, and leave the normal stuff that people are supposed to have, like pores, wrinkles around the eyes, etc. Take out too much of the "real" stuff and you get the wax museum version of the person, and that's not a good look. ;)

Also, another thing to try is adding subtle highlights to the hair, skin, etc. In Photoshop, you can put a layer on top and set it to "Soft Light" and paint in subtle little areas that will add really believable highlights. Another thing to try is duplicating the whole picture and making the top layer an "Overlay" on very low opacity to add a bit of depth and deepen the shadows. That kind of retouching will add a lot of interest to many pictures without being overhwhelming.

One site I've found really helpful is http://www.retouchpro.com/

bonni

bonni

[wall]

I agree with bonni. The guy looks great, but the girl is way too "smooth" looking. Good luck with the business; I know it can be hard to find the right balance when touching up photos, but you seem to be on the right path.

[D Thompson]

bonni - thanks for your comments. I agree that the girl is probably a little too smooth, although the original does have some of the "texture" of her face. I'll have to watch that in the future.

I do use either a overlay or soft light layer filled with 50% gray and use that to dodge/burn. I've found that works much better than the actual dodge/burn tool (which IMO is worthless).

I like your suggestion of the overlay layer at a low opacity. I gave it a quick try and like the results. Thanks!

I've checked out that sight in the past and it has some good info. Most of what I learned came from Katrin Eismann's book "Photoshop Restoration & Retouching".


wall - thank you for your comments as well. I'm not sure if I want to get into it or not. I'm basically trading my friend some lessons in PS for some portrait lessons from him. I'm mostly nature/landscapes, but thinking of portraits to earn a little to support this habit. I don't think I'll quit my day-job yet.:D

[TheObiJuan]

do you have the .psd file for the first one?
I would cut back the opacity on the the smoothing layer by 30%.

[Vich]

Is the BEFORE sharpened? The eye shadow is very thick.

#2 is really nice.

[D Thompson]

do you have the .psd file for the first one?
I would cut back the opacity on the the smoothing layer by 30%.
I kept the .psd file and cutting the opacity back looks better.

Is the BEFORE sharpened? The eye shadow is very thick.

#2 is really nice.
I did not add any sharpening. The eye shadow is all hers. A little thick, huh?;) Thanks.

[speaklightly]

Dennis-

You done some very nice work and you will just get better and better as you build your experience, as demonstrated by the changes you have already made. Go for it! You have a skill.

SJ

[D Thompson]

Dennis-

You done some very nice work and you will just get better and better as you build your experience, as demonstrated by the changes you have already made. Go for it! You have a skill.

SJ
Sarah - Thank you for your very nice comments. I really appreciate your opinion!

[Geoff Chandler]

I go along with Sarah's comments.
I would also suggest that 'Less is more' sometimes
Just a personal feeling - I think your corrections are great
but if you do quite a lot - don't get carried away, sometimes
you only need to do a little bit to make the difference
keep up the good work, & maybe show us some more?....

[D Thompson]

I go along with Sarah's comments.
I would also suggest that 'Less is more' sometimes
Just a personal feeling - I think your corrections are great
but if you do quite a lot - don't get carried away, sometimes
you only need to do a little bit to make the difference
keep up the good work, & maybe show us some more?....
Geoff - thank you for the comments. I think I'll probably post a note on my LCD - "Less Is More". :D I know it's something I have to watch. It's kinda a tough choice, especially the ones who have a "less than perfect" complexion because I know in 10-15 years it will be better and I would like their Senior picture to reflect that.

Here is another I retouched for my friend.

[Vich]

Geoff - thank you for the comments. I think I'll probably post a note on my LCD - "Less Is More". :D I know it's something I have to watch. It's kinda a tough choice, especially the ones who have a "less than perfect" complexion because I know in 10-15 years it will be better and I would like their Senior picture to reflect that.

Here is another I retouched for my friend.
Well done before/after shots are a pleasure see. Like how the fall tree colors were patched up. The first thinkg I noticed was "gee, what nice Fall colors, great backdrop. Not sure what "haze removal wand' you used but it was the right one. Those kind of changes are so often a trade-off, but not this one.

[D Thompson]

Well done before/after shots are a pleasure see. Like how the fall tree colors were patched up. The first thinkg I noticed was "gee, what nice Fall colors, great backdrop. Not sure what "haze removal wand' you used but it was the right one. Those kind of changes are so often a trade-off, but not this one.
Vich - thanks, I'm glad you like the before/after shots. :) Actually, I used the clone stamp and/or the patch tool. I thought that helped as much as anything. Took a little time, but I thought it was worth it.

Thanks again.

[D Thompson]

Here is a redo for a friend that was taken around 20 years ago. The before on the left was a 3.5x5 scanned in and the after is a 5x7. Thanks in advance for any comments.

[Geoff Chandler]

Your doing a great job on these shots - I get asked to do some similar things too.
I don't mind as it is an extension of the overall hobby, and it all makes good practice.
Thanks for continuing to post your examples and, yes, the before and after
really helps.
BTW - in the last example did you cut the left hand side out completely or clone
in where the other guy was - I mean - we see a reduced picture with some excellent
cloning - but did you do a huge clone job that we cannot see - or just a crop and clone.
Just curious.
best wishes
Geoff

[D Thompson]

Your doing a great job on these shots - I get asked to do some similar things too.
I don't mind as it is an extension of the overall hobby, and it all makes good practice.
Thanks for continuing to post your examples and, yes, the before and after
really helps.
BTW - in the last example did you cut the left hand side out completely or clone
in where the other guy was - I mean - we see a reduced picture with some excellent
cloning - but did you do a huge clone job that we cannot see - or just a crop and clone.
Just curious.
best wishes
Geoff
Geoff - Thank you, again, for the nice comments.

Here is part of the job in progress. I needed to get rid of the guy on the left. He is mostly gone here, but still a lot of work. I thought about cloning the posts in, and I may do another one with the whole picture without the guy on the left, but decided to crop and clone the one post. The crop was printed as a 5x7.

Hope this helps and thanks again.

[Vich]

Here is a redo for a friend that was taken around 20 years ago. The before on the left was a 3.5x5 scanned in and the after is a 5x7. Thanks in advance for any comments.Nice clone.

Noticed its a little over exposed on the woman's face a tiny bit, but white pants are blown out. Man's face is in a shadow. Nice old-photo look, looks like a great little capsule in time. Getting rid of the interloper is a neat trick! I'm sure they appreciate it.

[D Thompson]

Nice clone.

Noticed its a little over exposed on the woman's face a tiny bit, but white pants are blown out. Man's face is in a shadow. Nice old-photo look, looks like a great little capsule in time. Getting rid of the interloper is a neat trick! I'm sure they appreciate it.
Vich - Thanks for the comments. I agree with the pants being blown out, especially on the guy. They're pretty white even in the original 3.5x5 that I scanned. Kinda funny to look back and remember the fashion back then. I can't laugh, there is probably a couple of shots of me with shorts that short and just as white. :D

[Vich]

Vich - Thanks for the comments. I agree with the pants being blown out, especially on the guy. They're pretty white even in the original 3.5x5 that I scanned. Kinda funny to look back and remember the fashion back then. I can't laugh, there is probably a couple of shots of me with shorts that short and just as white. :DMe2 my friend.

This thread helps us remember how photos age like wine. I'm sure there's a story behind why this old photo is getting a face lift - hopefully a good one. In any case, a time capsule.

Very nice job on the whole body cloning eraser. I like them equally. The big one diminishes the importance of the technical imperfections and the pillars offer a pretty good frame.

[D Thompson]

One more Sr. retouch for my friend. Comments/criticism's always appreciated.

Thanks.


11-15-05 - uploaded a cropped version that shows a little better.