One of the most complex areas about retouching beauty shots is definitely fixing hair. If you see any editorial or advertisement that has perfect hair, you can be rest assured that there was some retouching involved. Although this isn't the only way to retouch hair, the guys at FX-Ray put together a good video showcasing some tips and tricks. There are definitely many methods of doing it, but this should come in handy for the common trouble areas.
More so than the techniques, what I actually enjoyed was the key point about getting it as right as possible before bringing it into post production. You can't circumvent the need for a good hairstylist to set a foundation. You can debate the results or the techniques, but the principle of good prep is universal with hair work. The key to a good final product is a strong image to start with.
You can also download the project files to follow along by going to their site.
Also as a quick heads up, I will be teaching a few great retouching classes at the Fstoppers Workshop in the Bahamas this May. Check out the details here (http://fstoppersworkshops.com/pratik-naik/. Come out and spend some time with us, you need that break! Check out the promo video on what you can expect at this year's workshop!
[Via Calvin Hollywood via FX-Ray]
This..... was an awesome video! So much info learned on editing hair! I laughed pretty hard 1:53... "oh wait that wasn't supposed to happen." ha!
awesome work :) but what about hair on the face :)
Awesome. I'm checking out his frequency separation technique too.
Thanks for these time saving tricks
Outstanding. Hair has always been so tough for me to figure out what to use in PS. Thanks for the video
When it's about ordinary people (no models) with just a tad too messy hair I apply a gentle touch of Oil Painting filter. It takes away the high frequencies in the hair structure and makes it look more even.
This is definitely 2nd level retouching. The kind of work found in high end magz. and the kid that pays big bucks. You could learn more from a guy like this in 30 days of 'side-by-side' working than you could in 4 years of trial & error.. Very talented dude.
This is something I have been dying to find. THANK YOU!
This has got to be one of the best hair-retouching tutorial I've ever seen! Impeccable techniques, wow!
This really cool!! thanks for sharing. :)
Sometimes I think what is the point to learn all these tutorials and spent hours and hours to achieve excellent shot and then compete with other retoucher to get the work. There are so many retocuhers in the world that this is just wasting the time honestly.. I have 8 years retouching experience in high end but honestly when I see how I have to compete with others for the lower price I think it is better to spent time different way then sitting like 8 hours a day by computer and retouch the ordinary image ...