Something to Aspire to in photo retouching...

[skstarkiller]

A nice page with some great examples by the master Brian Dilg - HERE (http://www.briandilg.com/imaging/index.htm#imaging).

[Wendy]

I just seem to get a blank page when I click on it :( ... I'll try another browser.

Wendy

[Wendy]

It worked ...

The site just goes to show that you can't believe all you see !!

Wendy

[skstarkiller]

It's amazing what you can do with time, patience , and the right tools.

[karen donnybrook]

That is amazing. I doubt if I will ever become that competent, maybe in my dreams:D

[Pauline]

A terrific link! Thanks for finding it. I love the fact that had the before picture not been included you would never know a touch up had occured. Now that is something to aspire to.

[Ward Grant]

It's amazing what you can do with time, patience , and the right tools.

For me, one of the right tools would be talent. While I like Elements and am able to make minor corrections, I doubt I could achieve the same results, starting with just the "before" pictures. But, hey, my friends and family think I am talented and that is good enough for me.

[kerriann85]

That was pretty neat. I think I run into some real retouching challenges at work, but not like this! (well ok, high school seniors are close.) :D
Enjoyed it a lot!

[vawitt]

Cool site!! And I was just feeling proud removing a street lamp from in front of a sign... :D :D

~Val in :) IL

[Carbone]

I seem to be the only one finding that too much of a good thing is not a good thing in itself... All the subjects (except the little girl) have been significantly retouched to look younger. That roman on his horse is quite different.

The technique is flawless. The goal is questionable.

Ray
P.S. I haven't had dinner yet, so I'm ranting.. hehe!

[kayser]

The couple was a little creepy- all the changes to their faces as you rolled the mouse over was a little freaky.

[Wendy]

If you want a real laugh look at this section of his site ....

http://www.briandilg.com/laughs/index.htm


Wendy

[Pauline]

Ray, unfortunately touching up like that is a reality and you know it's kind of comforting to know that all those pictures that you constantly see ARE touched up!! That doesn't mean that I want to give every one I know a face lift. It just means that the pictures we see are NOT realistic and therefore not something we should try to aspire to. I think the more teens that are educated on the fact that those teen mags and rags are all retouched the better. There are so many kids starving themselves so that they have the perfect body when in reality the perfect body comes from photoshop!! I've have pointed this fact out to my girls many times.

One day I was fixing up pictures for my daughter to print of her and her friends and one girl had a lot of pimples on her face. I removed them all and my daughter said she didn't like it because THAT was how her friend looked. I put the pimples back, and was actually proud of her.

[Carbone]

Pauline, that is exactly my point. At times, I am asked to remove a few pounds, shorten this and lengthen that, change eye colours, etc. At the end, the subject bares no resemblance with his or her own self. Funny how people think they look better ;)

Ray

[chas3stix]

Hi all,
While we're on the subject of retouching, I have three photos that are a bit fuzzy at the bottom because of a finger print on the lens of the camera. Can anything be done to fix this?
Chas

[ME100FINN]

Pauline and Ray I agree! The shots are amazing. I simply have a problem with the human touchups. The tv couple was unreal. I have looked at the "skin" ads and know that it cant be that flawless--I am not that stupid to fall for it. Makeup isnt THAT good when zoomed in to see pores of the skin! It has been no surprise that touchups are done for print, but our society has gone to extremes. It not only affects teens, but adults as well. I think its fun to have one "glamour" shot done in your life, but I will do my part to keep it real (ok, but I will blot out the one or two pimples I get from time to time--I am not a teen anymore LOL).

[karen donnybrook]

I agree with the comments regarding touch up can change a person beyond recognition. The only touch up I have done is to remove scars (more marks than scars) from skin cancer treatment that have not completely disappear yet. The first lot of treatment has faded completely but the second lot of marks are yet to fade away. As for the rest of the "blemishes" that make us what we are, they are part of me and that is that!!

[Pauline]

Beatrice, I had a glamour shot done once. I had so much makeup foundation plastered on my face it was hard to smile!! I looked in the mirror and didn't know who was looking back at me. About a pound of hairspray in my hair. The pictures turned out beautiful, but they really didn't look like me. I realize for the camera, they overdo it to get the 'natural' look. What cracks me up is there is a local real estate agent in our little town who uses her glamour shot for her business ad. It looks absolutely ridiculous. Especially since she is wearing black gloves and resting her chin on one!!

Now one touch up I did do made my aunt happy. She's chubby and 4 feet nothing. I gave her an extra 2 feet by stretching her and making her skinny. She laughed her head off and loved it. She's never been tall or skinny. Also when she was here last we took some pictures and she had slopped on her shirt so she reminded me to photoshop that out. :D Doing a make over for FUN is okay I think and a lot of fun. My daughter does look beautiful with the green eyes I gave her but I'm not sure about the purple hair.................

[Ward Grant]

Hi all,
While we're on the subject of retouching, I have three photos that are a bit fuzzy at the bottom because of a finger print on the lens of the camera. Can anything be done to fix this?
Chas

Chas, seems like your post may have gotten lost in the mix.
My quick and dirty solutions would be 1) creative cropping, 2) creative blurring (blur the rest of the outside and leave the center clear) or 3) cloning and copying a good part of the image.

If you post a copy of the image to www.pixentral.com you can post a link back here (highlight the HTML at the bottom) and someone can probably give you more detailed advice.

[chas3stix]

Thanks Ward,
I'll give it a try.
Chas

[chas3stix]

Ward,This is the html. Long,huh?
<a href="http://www.pixentral.com/show.php?picture=1Fay5fh5fSdMsHBdQ7Kq8ZXHCiGTfo"/><img alt="Picture hosted by Pixentral" src="http://www.pixentral.com/hosted/1Fay5fh5fSdMsHBdQ7Kq8ZXHCiGTfo_thumb.jpg" border="0"/></a>

[ME100FINN]

Pauline -- LOL that is too funy about your aunt! As for the glamour shot, it must've been that old shop in the mall called "Glamour Shots" right?? That was one that I had done YEARS ago!! LOL I looked pretty ridiculous too. Waste of money. My idea of a glamour shot now is what is in my profile -- soft, somewhat wrinkle free, no major dark circles under the eyes... the basics, but not plastic face. That's what Barbies are for.

Chas - try different modes of the stamp/clone too (check the option bar along the top of the screen).

[Pauline]

Actually Beatrice it was one of the 'home' parties. You know like tuperware, etc.! It was fun doing it though since it was all friends and we were in a neighbour's living room. You are right though about a waste of money! 2 got hung up and the rest are all in an envelope in my drawer!!