Hi, I have been lurking around the site for quite a few months now trying to absorb as much as possible. I am looking for serious critiques and comments on this retouch. What did I overlook, what could be better, what should I have not done at all? Please be honest, I am not here just to have some fun in Photoshop, I am actively trying to get work in NYC and want to know what I need to work on to achieve that.

Thanks!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/7136592@N07/2378357115/sizes/o/in/photostream/

Also, thanks to Jasz for providing so many high quality images to work on, it's made practicing what I've learned here so much easier.

Hi Tim,

I really like your style. It looks great.

A couple of things struck me:

1) The shape of the cheeks look strangely ... chiseled, or beveled somehow. They appeared much rounder in the original. If that's what you were going for, then it's all good.

2) The eyes. It's my pet subject. Often people make them too white. In your case, I don't think you've quite made them white enough. The whites of her eyes are just a little too similar in colour to her skin. I'd whiten them a tiny - repeat, tiny - bit.

Even the coloured part of her eyes (is that called the "iris"? I can never remember!) is a little dull. I think there was a bit more green in the original. I'd bring back that green, and pump it up a little, for striking effect.

3) Still on the eyes, I'd add some sexy new eyelashes if you have the time. Her existing eyelashes are lovely and dark, but they're a bit sparse.

All-in-all, though, a great job.

I can see you put quite a bit of effort into this. So I trust you won't be offended by my comments. That said, I think you may have created a new person. :)

To me, altering the actual shape of the models face is going a bit further than just a retouch, it changes who the person is. Not quite the same as getting rid of a few wrinkles or adding digital make-up.

While thinning her face I think you have the curve on her lower left jaw too abrupt for the amount of jaw removed.

The increased larger highlight on her chin is somewhat pronounced mildly giving the illusion of a Jay Lenno type chin.

The highlights are blown out a bit on the forehead and nose area.

Adding the slight smile was a nice improvement visually. Something that you can usually get away with, whether she can smile like that or not.

Her left eye white is slightly brighter than the right.

A little more smile line would have been better.

More skin color would have been an iimprovement. The flat bronze color and shadows give a CG look.

The shadows appear too dark when compared to her cheek bones, making her face appear even flatter.

Contrast seems a little high, but I realize this is subjective depending on style.

Often the facial shape can be altered just with light shadows without changing the facial construction. Sharp areas like her jaw outline can be lessened at times just by using the blur tool on the edge, making it less prominent, similiar to the area by her left eye edge. Usually if you elect to thin a face, you would take less area off, making it nearly undectable by comparison.

I wish you the best.

Damo77 and LQQKER, thank you. No offense taken at all, this is exactly what I'm looking for. This is my first serious attempt at a retouch, and it seems that I ignored the advice that just because you can do something doesn't mean you should.

Thank you both for some great advice, I plan on putting it to good use. I already had a feeling I had gone too far with this and now I know for sure. I will definitely be reworking this image.