I think Ant made a good statement in one of his posts,that people should have an understanding of photography and lighting,probably some basic courses in these areas would greatly improve a persons retouching skills,especially I think if they want to do high end retouching.One thing for sure is it cannot hurt


just my opinon zganie

There is a very simple question one can ask: "If there were no computers, would I still be retouching?"

If the answer is "No", there is a great possibility, that you''ll never become a very good retoucher.
Up untill 15 years ago, retouching was mainly done by people who understood light, composition, etc... They had knowledge of photography, drawing, colors, values etc...


Today, everyone with a computer is 'retouching'. It's not because you handle a 'wacom', that you are able to retouch.
No,no,... first you should be able to even 'see' what should be done in a retouch. 'Doing it' is than the other thing.

Most people don't even 'see' or 'know' what exactly they should retouch.

To answer the question: Yes, a base 'knowledge' in all these things is recommended.
The real question is : "Is anyone, who is retouching nowadays, capable of understanding all that?"

Just wondering, because I'm not a plumber, and even if I follow some courses, I probably will never be a hi-end-plumber.

That and a good eye to see things. Having the ability to tell the difference between good retouching and bad retouching is also very important. Some traditional fine arts classes wont' hurt, either.

There is a very simple question one can ask: "If there were no computers, would I still be retouching?"

If the answer is "No", there is a great possibility, that you''ll never become a very good retoucher. Nah. That's one of those aphorisms that sounds profound and seems to make a good point but is actually totally lacking in content. The truth is that computers are not and never have been just a different way of doing what would be done anyway. They create a reality that did not exist.

"If there were no airplanes, would you still try to travel across the country in a single day?"

Duh.


Up untill 15 years ago, retouching was mainly done by people who understood light, composition, etc... They had knowledge of photography, drawing, colors, values etc...

Today, everyone with a computer is 'retouching'. It's not because you handle a 'wacom', that you are able to retouch.Call it whatever you want, but the level of retouching that drives the graphics industry is still produced by people who understand light, composition and color. When Quark came out, suddenly everyone was a typesetter. But using 34 fonts in a single flyer wasn't going to compete with people who understood design. You didn't need pockmarks up and down your arm from hot lead to know about type.
No,no,... first you should be able to even 'see' what should be done in a retouch. 'Doing it' is than the other thing.

Most people don't even 'see' or 'know' what exactly they should retouch.

To answer the question: Yes, a base 'knowledge' in all these things is recommended.
The real question is : "Is anyone, who is retouching nowadays, capable of understanding all that?"Sure. They're called retouchers and they work for people who want retouching done. High end standards are the same, no matter what the tools. The computer has opened up the low and middle levels to a large number of people, but they're not producing ads for fashion mags.

Just wondering, because I'm not a plumber, and even if I follow some courses, I probably will never be a hi-end-plumber.You would, if that's what you wanted to do. Nothing's stopping you. But you have to want it, and work at it, and be willing to master the required craft. Like anything.