In just a few days, I'll be teaching on Creative Live! Watch me over the course of three days (June 26-28), as I will be teaching and presenting about the art and business of retouching. We'll start right from the beginning of a shoot all the way to the finishing touches! I have the pleasure of bringing in Felix Kunze to shoot the photography portion of the event.
It's a common problem to have a variation of colors across the skin in any image. This may occur for many reasons, such as blood flow, skin quality and texture, or lighting changes. It's always been a hassle to fix this since it requires some guess work and tweaking. It's often not as precise as it could be either. Michael Woloszynowicz has come up with a brilliant way of color correcting skin in a way that I've never seen before!
Like many of you know, running a full time business in photography is difficult! What started out as a passion soon grew into a something much more. You slowly learned how much was involved in turning your joy into a business. Eventually, you began to realize there was a lot more than you anticipated. If you're lucky, you had a great game plan set. For many, they learn as they go along.
With the multiple methods of sharpening in Photoshop, a big issue is that many of them are applied globally without any consideration to edges and areas with varying level of per-existing sharpness. The result of these techniques can enhance issues of fringing or inconsistent results across the image. This method by Michael Woloszynowicz is by far the most intelligent method I've seen so far.
This video was incredible! Ten By Fotolia brought two talents together and gave us an all access pass at their creation. Eric Paré is a Montreal based creative photographer who is a master at light painting. Mike Campau is a brilliant digital artist who is skilled in retouching, image design, and CGI. Together, they bring us a great video filled with lots of information that everyone can take away from.
The thought of removing stray hairs in Photoshop conjures up thoughts that are equivalent to torture. It's not uncommon to hear your fellow colleagues gripe about retouching hair. However,
Michael Woloszynowicz has come to the rescue. He is becoming one of our favorites here at Fstoppers when it comes to Photoshop tutorials. Check out this efficient way in tackling stray hairs!
Michael Woloszynowicz is a great photographer and retoucher. Not only that, but he is a great instructor. His videos always provide clear and detailed instructions on techniques many of us want to know. Recently, Michael released this video regarding the issue of color casts on models. Although Photoshop offers many tools to get close, this method is a truly a brilliant way of thinking.
Adobe Photoshop can be a really daunting program. Do you remember the first time you opened it up? Much like anything else, it takes time to get good at it. Even with what you know now, you still realize there is a lot left to learn. The Internet provides such a valuable resource in learning the program. Here is a list of the best resources to learn Photoshop!
As a retoucher, an issue I have to fix at times is light falloff that occurs in studio. This can happen when the light modifier used isn't ample in covering the model fully. Thankfully, there is an easy fix that allows you to correct this problem. Prior to, it was a little more difficult without being able to harness the power of the raw file to fix it naturally. Once you get used to the process, you can use this technique to correct other exposure issues as well.
Before starting in the world of retouching, I always wanted to know more about it. Now that I'm working full time as a retoucher, I am happy to give back when I can. Julia Kuzmenko McKim of the Retouching Academy reached out to me to speak with her on retouching, inspiration, and business. If you aren't familiar with her already, she's also a staff writer here.
Aside from techniques, I have noticed that there isn’t much information out there on retouching and the industry. I have been asked great questions over time that I thought people would love to know the answer to. Accordingly, I wanted to make a series to showcase them for the purpose of education and knowledge.
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.
As a retoucher, I spend most of my day molded into a chair and working in front of the screen. It was only after a couple of years that I began realizing the strain it took on me. Being much younger, it wasn't as much of an issue as it was when I started getting older. I immediately began finding ways to make my time behind the screen more comfortable and healthy. As fellow creatives, I am sure most of you also have the same issue. I reached out to my colleagues for advice and here are some suggestions I found.
Cale Glendening is a director and cinematographer that recently released this new piece that is a must see. As he puts it, “ It speaks to all avenues of passionate endeavors and the common thread of desire, determination and relentless pursuit it takes to see them through.” No matter what you invest yourself in creatively, you identify with the determination required to keep pushing to attain your goals.
Retouching jewelry is an extremely time intensive task, especially when it is done correctly. It can involved hours of work to fix the most minute details. When it's done right, it looks effortless and this time-lapse video is no exception. The balance of artistry and technicality makes the final image what it is.
Will Burrard-Lucas is a professional wildlife photographer who took aerial footage of life in the Serengeti. His BettleCopter drone took to the skies and captured a variety of life that was beautifully captured. From the primal feeding instincts of a hyena to the group of hippos lazily spending their afternoon submerged in water, this video is worth a watch.
David Guttenfelder is the only western photojournalist who has regular access inside North Korea. With this opportunity, he has the ability to show the human side of the country. He wanted to showcase the truth, both the good and the bad. You empathize with the people of the country when you see the hardships they are going through. You're also fascinated with how they operate behind closed curtains.
It isn't the end of the year just yet, but The Camera Store released this great video depicting the best and worst lenses and bodies of 2013. They typically make great videos and this is one of them. It may give you a great insight on some lenses to consider for the holiday season as well! If you received gift cards or cash for the holidays, these suggestions may tempt you.
South Park is a show that comes off as harsh. With their crude and direct sense of humor, it was just a matter of time before they attacked the world of retouching and post production. In a recent episode, they decided to poke fun at the concept of Photoshop and manipulation.
The LAPD and the FBI are currently on the case of half a million dollars worth of stolen Leica Summilux-C (cine) lenses. This occurred on Sunday, December 1st, when a shoot was being held by Doug Emmet in Los Angeles. It's being reported by CPT Rental Inc. and with any luck we can only hope that they will be recovered as news spreads.
