Critiques - - Extract Critique!

KR1156 · #1 02-03-2006, 10:24 AM

I took this image of a model shot on a white bkgd, applied the extract filter to her hair in 3 different steps, took the best areas of her hair in each of the 3 steps and masked them together to get the final extraction.

Then placed her onto a blue bkgd.

palomino · #2 03-09-2006, 12:38 AM

looks good to me-- it is always a challenge to find out which extraction technique will work for a specific photo. Nice job.

-Kate

maureeno · #3 03-09-2006, 03:16 PM

Oh, if only I could do this as well!

Maureen

studioj · #4 03-09-2006, 06:24 PM

I like a lot the hair extract, but I don't like the t-shirt extract, it needs a little more of blur, or maybe transparency on the blue background

KR1156 · #5 03-09-2006, 07:32 PM

studioj.....it's not a shirt, it's actually a shot of a model in a bikini wearing prop angel wings! But i definitely see what you're saying....the sharp edges need to be softened or else it's a dead give away to a silo!

thanks.

bart_hickman · #6 03-09-2006, 09:57 PM

Looks perfect! After I realized you could load an alpha channel into the extract tool, I thought it was a much better tool.

What were the three steps you used? Different settings in the tool? Differently drawn outline?

Bart

KR1156 · #7 03-10-2006, 09:37 AM

Bart, the model was shot on a white bkgd and since she has black hair, i had nice contrast to work with...so it made extract filter a lot easier to work with.

the attached file is the first go at it...you'll see some areas that needed to be fine tuned, so what i did was set the brush size smaller is those areas i was concentraiting on and literally apply the filter to the "original shot" by duping the original layer 2 more times until i had all areas looking nice. then i just masked them together. I use extract a lot for fly away hair...i seem to get great results with it. The key to the way i go at it is....i dupe the Original layer and apply the filter. I'll do this a few times until i see all areas of the hair looking natural then i just piece together the best areas from each attemt (layer). But i hardly ever use it to silo a body, i trust the path or channel mask a lot better. It always comes out smooother.

Mike

masterful · #8 03-11-2006, 07:45 AM

the best way to do that I guess is to use Russell's method http://av.adobe.com/russellbrown/AdvancedMasking.mov This short movie was quite a revolution in my job for me... It really helps in most of the things I do..

taken from http://russellbrown.com/tips_tech.html (bottom of the list)

bart_hickman · #9 03-11-2006, 07:18 PM

Mike, Thanks for the info.

Masterful, Brown's tutorials are great. However, you should check out the extract filter. At first, you might think it's too sloppy, but with practice it will do a better job in many cases than is achievable with the pure masking method. This is especially true when the replacement background color is a LOT different from the original as it is in Mike's example.

Same goes for the background eraser. There's more to those tools than is obvious at first glance.

Bart

master1234 · #10 04-04-2006, 11:39 PM

Hi,

There is a new software program that just came out that cuts hair and other extremely fine detail images really well. It even finds the edges in your image first for you automatically so you do not have to trace around the edges with the magnetic tool, or magic wand or pen tool any longer.

For me it works out even better than building up channel masks - because I still seem to loose hair strands using that method too.

The program is a Plug-in for Photoshop and you access it just like a filter - except that it is a cutout program. Much better than Mask Pro3 or Extract for me.

Its called Fluid Mask - by a UK company called VertusTech.

There is a demo program that is free to try out -

http://www.vertustech.com

Below is a good example from the site that shows good hair done well.

Kraellin · #11 04-05-2006, 01:32 AM

master1234,

you might want to look at this thread: http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/software/10705-cut-out-plug-photoshop.html and yes, it does look impressive (as does the price).

craig

illapu · #12 07-09-2006, 04:48 PM

After trying the F M free trial download there really is only one question

If you do a lot of masking of shots without distinct backgrounds - then how valuable is your time ?

To my mind what is clear is that all other cut out add ons, like mask Pro 3 and Knockout are no longer viable, regardless of price. Either continue with photoshop's inbuilt tools or get on board with FM.

For young, student or trainnees FM is the future, so my view is that it is better to get on board with it now.

F M is a professional high end tool and not designed for occasional hobbyists. So it is not a question of comparing prgrammes, there is no comparison, it is working out "who" you are, in the overall scheme of things.

(Those oldies who have invested hours perfecting other methods will be loathe to change, but for the next generation, choosing F M - its a no brainer).

It is expensive - but it is designed for professionals who value their time and quality of work. So keep any third party reviews in context, they often reflect more on the writer than the product.

illapu · #13 07-09-2006, 04:50 PM

After trying the F M free trial download there really is only one question

If you do a lot of masking of shots without distinct backgrounds - then how valuable is your time ?

To my mind what is clear is that all other cut out add ons, like mask Pro 3 and Knockout are no longer viable, regardless of price. Either continue with photoshop's inbuilt tools or get on board with FM.

For young, student or trainnees FM is the future, - just see the "jigsaw" style interface to make the point - so my view is that it is better to get on board with it now.

F M is a professional high end tool and not designed for occasional hobbyists. So it is not a question of comparing prgrammes, there is no comparison, it is working out "who" you are, in the overall scheme of things.

(Those oldies who have invested hours perfecting other methods will be loathe to change, but for the next generation, choosing F M - its a no brainer).

It is expensive - but it is designed for professionals who value their time and quality of work. So keep any third party reviews in context, they often reflect more on the writer than the product.

creeduk · #14 07-10-2006, 10:51 AM

Did not find FM to be all that useful in the trial I did with it. Many other who I know tried it felt the same it does not give you any extra ability over what you can do in PS out the box.

KR1156 - Very nice extraction on the hair, looks like you are definitely getting your technique down.

WhidbeyPix · #15 08-01-2006, 02:54 PM

that's what I use and it works a lot faster for me than the extract tool in photoshop.
The background does have to be a different color than the subject, so it works best for chromakey type of work.