I have been focusing on cutting my retouching time in half and I've noticed that simply sticking with an effective workflow, staying present and focused during the process, and spending more time D&B while zoomed out are the main success factors.
My main beauty retouching steps are:
1. Raw file conversions and getting the best bits out of the original.
2. Cleanup on a new layer with the Clone Stamp & Healing Brush.
3. D&B and color corrections - zoomed out with a mid size brush. Zooming in only when a smaller area requires precision work.
4. Makeup, hair, details
5. Shapes: Liquify (only if I absolutely have to, very subtle) & global D&B.
6. Color grading
What are your usual steps?
What do you use for your Raw file conversion ? =)
At the moment LR, but we have a C1 vs LR article by one of our team members coming up in our RETOUCHED magazine, so I have read it and looked at his comparison screenshots, so I am now convinced I need to make a switch. I tried before, but it required time to learn the new software and I was too impatient, so I dropped it. There are a lot of video tutorials now, so it should be easier.
Hi Julia!
Do you have tutorials on color correction and grading ?
Not yet, but I will be covering some of that in my 3rd part of the Beauty Retouching tutorial in the new digital mag that my team and I are putting together - that will be in the July issue.
Thank you, Julia!
The steps you use are basically the same procedure as I use and I also rarely use liquify unless I really have to do so - I mainly use D&B as subtle sculpting.
I also do some minor color grading at the end like you.
Yes, I try no to liquify stuff unless I absolutely have to as well.
1. RAW conversions
2. Cleanup - Clone stamp and Healing brush on lighten and darken layers
3. D&B - With curves
4. CC - Hue & Saturation
5. Colour grading - Selective Colour and other adjustment layers
This solid formula has been working well for me recently.
Good to see you here, Upi! :)
1) Make cup of coffee
2) raw conversions
3) jump to photoshop
4) make another cup of coffee
5) the usual stuff (cleanup, d&b, color, etc.)
6) make another cup of coffee
Justin, hahaha, sorry I missed that part of my workflow - it's so ingrained in my daily life and work, that I took it for granted :D
1. Raw file conversion
2. Clean with clone and healing brush tool
3. Precision cleaning with frequency separation
4. Contrast
6. Makeup, Theeth and eyes
5. Global D&B
7. Liquify if needed
6. Color Grading
Julia, don't you use frequency separation any more?
Julia, you're going to LOVE C1Pro. I changed late last year, after watching Michael's tutorials. It was a big adjustment. I use it for my raw conversion and then still use LR to manage all my files, cataloguing them and for final output. C1Pro just isn't as fast as LR for that type of stuff but you can't beat the skin tones and raw conversion. It rules especially for the kind of work you do, plus it seems as though they have sorted out the tethering too which has been great.
1. Raw file conversion LR (exposure correction, colour correction, contrast & luminance balancing)
2. Photoshop - Duplicate layer then clean using clone stamp & healing brush & patch tool.
3. Frequency Separation (very very subtle & usually only for Beauty work)
4. Make up, Hair, D&B, illumination & colour with blend modes, selective sharpening
5. Liquify if required, but will also choose D&B to sculpt before considering
6. Color grading (Sometimes add grain & do a global sharpen for regular portraits)
Hello Julia,
I just want to know how can i merge smoothly merge Highlights and shadows from dodge and Burn.
Thanks
1. Multiple Raw conversions
2. Basic cleaning (clone stamp/healing brush) on empty layer set to current&below
3. Frequency Separation Tehnique (mostly for evening tones and luminosity)
4. Local D&B (i spend something like 4 to 6 hours here, because i "correct" every little tiny dot, but i dont know what something else to do.
5. Global D&B.
6. Matching skin tones (faces and body)
7. Little make up, teeth, eyebrows and lips.
8. Sharpening the image.
9. Stylize the image.
10. Save for web ( in most part)
PS: I realy want to see D&B tutorial or something like that on a not so perfect lighted portrait/beauty image because in my mind i have to use a really small brush to dodge or burn and is consumptive. Thanks!
Florea, I would take a look at Timothy Sextons tutorials on Lynda he really has a great workflow and goes over how he will d&b with the photo zoomed out so its pretty small on the monitor. He also retouches in a way that is different to many other retouchers and what I feel is more natural, I've seen his work on David Sims and Patrick Demarchelier's photos that is just amazing just perfect but not over done like the majority of online retouching tutorials teach you and her really is the only retoucher that works with the top photographers that is putting out tutorials and other than Lynda he has almost no internet presence. Before everyone starts saying that Pratik and Carrie Beene, Natalia and Julia are the top in their field they are not working for the same caliber photographers.
You could cut your time in half simply by making her look less fake and plastic.
It's definitely the way to go, FS/IHP steps that rip out the mid frequencies and look like Gaussian Blur when you step back have blighted retouching. #teamdodgeandburn :)
Hi
RAW conversion in Lightroom
Export as 16bit TIF (is there a reason to not do that?)
Next steps are in Photoshop..
Cleaning and painting with frequency separation (layers generated with a key-shortcut)
then I have something like a tonemapping and sharpening layer combination
D&B with a 50% grey/softlight layer (I do everything there, detail and global D&B)
and ath the end sharpening with a b/w layer in softlight mode
in step 2 are you doing a frequency separation or just straight up clone stamping and healing brushing ? flawless retouching regardless.
Conversion Raw Capture One
Cleane Up Tampon
DandB Courbe
Liquefy
Correcting color and graduing
Inverted Hipass
Carving