Advice and critique please

[rummym]

Hi,
I am new here and this is my first post. I have been dabbling with retouching portrait with photoshop for the past 2 months. So I am fairly new in retouching portrait. I have been told that I am too heavy handed in my retouching, so I am working on not doing that (especially on the skin).

Attached is my recent retouch using technique that I just learned, to try to maintain the texture of the skin.

Am I on the right track? Any feedbacks and suggestions for improvement.

Thanks.

[pellepiano]

Its to much visible blurring for my taste. I prefer mostly dodge and burn based techniques.

There are some nice tutorials here ....
http://www.carrienyc.com/tutorials.html

[rummym]

Thanks for the feedback, pellepiano. Appreciate the link. Awesome videos there !

[0lBaldy]

Rummym, Welcome to RetouchPRO Hope you enjoy your stay here and make lots of friends. Poke around, try some of our three pages of Retouching tutorials, have fun!

Hate to be sooo critical on your first post.... but... it is getting very close to the plastic look and you have introduced some shadow areas along some borders (maybe from using to much High Pass)

to brighten the eyes it is sometimes better to just work on the Irises and leave the whites the natural color while maybe getting rid or softening the red veins with a feathered selection and edit the red using hue/saturation adjustment

Eyes = Ctrl+J (copy layer), USM (Unsharp Mask (amount 135 - radius 2.4)), hide all mask, paint white Iris only, adjust layer opacity to taste

(click thumbnail, wait a couple seconds for pic to change)

[Der_W]

Apart from what has already been said the first things I spotted were the forehead, that seems to have lost all definition (try to keep it or if that doesn't work for you, repaint the shadows and highlights using the dodge & burn techniques) and the throat, that looks like it was from a boxer, after you removed the larger wrinkle. Again you could try to darken up the back of the throat to make it look thinner, but this way it just looks weird.

But I really like the colors you added to the background :-)

[aartist]

Now that you have smoothed out her skin,
the remaining wrinkles seem out of place to me.

OlBaldy is right about the whites of the eyes.

[rummym]

Hate to be sooo critical on your first post.... but... it is getting very close to the plastic look and you have introduced some shadow areas along some borders (maybe from using to much High Pass)

OlBaldy, thanks much for your feedback. Please do be more critical as that's my intention for posting, so that I can get some directions for future improvement. As for the shadows, I can't find them. Do you mind pointing them out for me?

Thanks for the tip for the eye. I'll try them out.

Apart from what has already been said the first things I spotted were the forehead, that seems to have lost all definition (try to keep it or if that doesn't work for you, repaint the shadows and highlights using the dodge & burn techniques) and the throat, that looks like it was from a boxer, after you removed the larger wrinkle. Again you could try to darken up the back of the throat to make it look thinner, but this way it just looks weird.

Der_W, thanks for the feedback. I kinda see what you mean on the forehead. Somehow I was troubled looking at the original and tried to even out the tone and ended up looking like this as I painted. I tried using D&B to paint the shadow back but it ended up looking weird. I guess I just need more practice with D&B.

For the neck, should I have left the large wrinkle alone? or maybe just soften it? If I use D&B to paint back shadow, do I make a line of shadow along the original wrinkle line? or should I darken the skin from that neck line all the way to the shoulder?

Thanks.

[0lBaldy]

Originally Posted by rummym

OlBaldy, As for the shadows, I can't find them. Do you mind pointing them out for me?Thanks.

be glad to... (the thinnest yellow line is beside a very light shadow beside the flash shadow)

[rummym]

I see what you mean now. Thanks for pointing that out! How about the skin on the face itself? When I zoom in 100%, I see very rough textures. I was tempted to smoothen it but then if this is already almost plasticky, then I am kinda confused what to do. Is the skin texture on the right track?

[0lBaldy]

Originally Posted by rummym

I see what you mean now. Thanks for pointing that out! How about the skin on the face itself? When I zoom in 100%, I see very rough textures. I was tempted to smoothen it but then if this is already almost plasticky, then I am kinda confused what to do. Is the skin texture on the right track?

I do not believe the skin texture is any way near to being on the right track.

I think on this particular retouch I would start over and try your technique again using different variables or try another technique entirely, maybe from one of the tutorials mentioned before.. I feel it would be a lost cause if you try to repair what you have here.. If you are trying a new technique the general consensus seems to be .... it didn't work out very well this time

You should be your own best critique.. step away from the photo for awhile then return with fresh eyes and do your own critique.. things will pop out at you on the second look..

Do your best... keep on practicing and posting your WIPs (Works In Progress)

If you do this same picture again it can remain in this thread for continuity

Good luck!

[rummym]

OlBaldy, thank you very much for your honest feedback. This is a new technique I am trying to learn. I will try again !