Skin texture/cleanup: Which program do you use for portrait work? I know many wedding photographers really hit home runs with the way the bride's face ends up looking ......... Come...

Beercat Loc: Central Coast of California

Which program do you use for portrait work? I know many wedding photographers really hit home runs with the way the bride's face ends up looking .........

Come on, give us your secret

bkyser Loc: Fly over country in Indiana

Sorry, I can't help much. I use PS (now PSCC) when needed. I usually clean up blemishes with the spot healing tool, then make a copy, do a very slight surface blur, then use a layer mask to only really fix up the bride. (and sometimes Bride's mom) I could do all bridesmaids because it is pretty quick, but I try to make sure the bride is always the best looking. I really try to be so subtle that they just think they were exceptionally pretty that day. Too much PP takes too long, and if overdone, it is way too obvious. Even toning it down, I personally just don't like the looks that Portrait Professional gives me. (bought it years ago, just upgraded this year, and still don't like it) I'll be interested to see some others' comments

skidooman Loc: Minnesota

I do all my retouching in PS (CS 5). I'd like to think I'm getting better/faster at it all the time.

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bkyser Loc: Fly over country in Indiana

skidooman wrote:

I do all my retouching in PS (CS 5). I'd like to think I'm getting better/faster at it all the time.

Very nice. That's what I go for, natural, but the nice "glow" Can I ask, do you do the same thing that I do? (spend time on the bride, and sometimes the bride's mother, but avoid doing too much with bridesmaids and guests, so the bride is always the best looking.) Or... is that just me? (I also like to do that, because it saves a lot of time. :thumbup:

skidooman Loc: Minnesota

bkyser wrote:

Very nice. That's what I go for, natural, but the nice "glow" Can I ask, do you do the same thing that I do? (spend time on the bride, and sometimes the bride's mother, but avoid doing too much with bridesmaids and guests, so the bride is always the best looking.) Or... is that just me? (I also like to do that, because it saves a lot of time. :thumbup:

Thanks. Yep, same as you, mostly just the bride. Others if there is something that obviously needs work, but not usually.

greg vescuso Loc: Ozark,Mo.

I do my retouching in PS CC
And I try to limit it to the bride but if others are in the shot I will do some blemish removal. Here is a before and after shot of the first dance at my nieces wedding in October. I used the spot tool to remove any blemishes and then made a mask layer with a Gaussian blur and a surface blur, then bring the opacity down to get the effect I want, then I make another masked layer and add an un sharp mask and invert it so I can paint sharpness around the eyes, eye lashes and eyebrows.
I didn't add but a very small amount of skin softening to this image because her skin looked so good naturally.

Before

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After

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greg vescuso Loc: Ozark,Mo.

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fotodon Loc: Oberlin, OH

bkyser wrote:

Sorry, I can't help much. I use PS (now PSCC) whe... (show quote)

Agree wholeheartedly with all you say, especially the Portrait Professional thing.

fotodon Loc: Oberlin, OH

greg vescuso wrote:

I do my retouching in PS CC br And I try to limit... (show quote)

Looks good. As we all know there are many ways to do the same thing in PS. Indeed, I have done this the same way as you in the past. I have learned, if you have a Wacom tablet or other pen/tablet, your workflow speeds up if you use the Adjustment Brush in ACR or LR. You "paint" in lower Clarity over the face, adjust till you like it, start a new brush, then paint in increased clarity over the eyes, lips, and teeth. While you are there, you can brighten the eye catch light and teeth if needed using exposure and maybe contrast.

But remember what Bob said about keeping it natural. Be careful not to overdue.

Don

greg vescuso Loc: Ozark,Mo.

fotodon wrote:

Looks good. As we all know there are many ways to... (show quote)

I see how doing this in LR can speed up your work flow, using these layers in PS sure does take some time. I think I will try using light room for these edits. Currently my work flow is so very slow that if I was trying to make a living editing my wedding shots I would most certainly starve. I'm sure I will be posting soon looking for more help with this. Thanks for your help. Greg

fotodon Loc: Oberlin, OH

greg vescuso wrote:

I see how doing this in LR can speed up your work flow, using these layers in PS sure does take some time. I think I will try using light room for these edits. Currently my work flow is so very slow that if I was trying to make a living editing my wedding shots I would most certainly starve. I'm sure I will be posting soon looking for more help with this. Thanks for your help. Greg

You're welcome. I guarantee that my suggested method will seem slow until you get comfortable with it. After that you will fly through it faster and faster. If you have a background in old fashion wet process dodging and burning it will be easier. At any rate, feel free to PM me with any questions. There a lot of tips and tricks that go along with the process but maybe you will catch on intuitively.

Don

Bobbee

I use PS CS6 and PortraitPro. I will use either one depending on what I am looking for. PP sometimes gets too heavy and it turn the Bride into a porcelain doll. So I revert to PS and do it by hand. Sometimes I go to PS first, edit. and then hand that off to PP and back off on the sliders and end up with what I want. It's a crap shoot.