Mum & Dad

[smurfing]

These are my second attempt at recolouring photos
They are pictures of my parents taken at the end of world war 2 (taken in Belgium)
Would anyone be willing to use their expert eyes to give me some citique on these pictures?

Many thanks in advance
Smurf

[Swampy]

Smurf... Not bad

I reduced the green cast in both pictures by doing a Hue Sat Adjustment and choosing green from the color popup, eyedropper click on her forhead and sliding the hue slider slightly to the left. This added pink flesh tones to the faces.

I've also circled some problem areas. On the "Mom" photo, there is some kind of streak down the left side that needs work. On Dad, there is color spillage or something going on from the head out into the background.

[smurfing]

Thx Swampy
I think the 'straek' on my mothers photo is caused by some scratches on the scanner screen - will now try to cure this

As for father - I think it may be caused by being too enthusiastic when colouring

thnks for your critique
Smurf

[Swampy]

Smurf, if you have extracted the head shot, and have the selection active (marching ants) then you can go to your paint layer and paint without going outside the "lines" of marching ants. Helps keep clean edges.

[smurfing]

Have played with your recommendations in mind resulting in the following results
Colours are st to my fathers thoughts (sadly mum passed away a few years ago)
smurf

[Swampy]

Much better, Smurf :-)

[Vikki]

I'm on the go, so I only have a minute to post...
It appears to me that the images are too muddy - overall dark and dismal. Could be caused by the method you've used to color or too strong adjustments. The coloring also has a yellow/brown aged look (perhaps that was your intention?). I would recommend lightening up the image and applying a more natural coloring. For instance, it appears that the same color was used throughout, with just a bit of additional color added to the usual areas. Were Dad's cheeks rosy like that? Just my opinion, but the placement of cheek color has a feminine appearance.
Sorry, have to run!

[smurfing]

Thx for your input Vikki
I think I can see where your comments lie -
As being quite new to this 'game' I am not sure what to do about it - your advice would be gratefully recieved and tried
thx again
smurf

[Photomaster]

Assuming you are using Photoshop:

1. Use Patch tool to fix blotches on the face;
2. Use Curves Adjustment layer for face color and to bring out detail on his blouse and follow with Hue and Saturation adjust layer for further color refinement;
3. In the Select menu, select Color Range to remove background, then on a separate layer lay in a new background using the Gradient tool;
4. Use the smudge tool to smooth out the edge of the figure and the Clone tool to fix the color on the lower, outside edge of the ear, also use a hard edged eraser to touch up the edge of the figure as needed (enlarge to 200%);
5. Again use the Patch tool to fix blotches on the blouse;
6. Use Dodge tool to lighten whites of the eyes, area above the right eye and to add slight highlight on lips;
7. Use burn tool to darken line between the lips and details on the blouse;
8. Use pen tool to add primary eye highlights to eyes (use separate layer and adjust opacity as necessary);
9. Use Smart Sharpen on figure;
10. Combine figure and background to a single layer;
11. Add a bit of noise to the final image.

These are the steps I would use to produce a finished product. See attached. Hope this helps.

[smurfing]

Hi Photomaster

Again I must say a big thank you to all members of this site for their willingness to help us lesser mortals in our attempts to crack this sometimes trying hobby
I shall certainly be giving your technique my best efforts

Thanks again
Smurf

[Vikki]

Smurfing,
To answer your question:

your advice would be gratefully recieved and tried

I have posted quite a few coloring comments throughout the site. If you do a search for colorizing, etc. or my name, you can get some ideas.

Here's how I would go about this. Because Dad has delicate features, I wanted to avoid the rosy cheeks, yet still give him some color.

[smurfing]

Vikki

That is superb - gives me a very hard task to equal anywhere near this with my mum

Thanks very very much
Smurf