Critique My Website & Retouching!

[nick24a]

Hi Guys. Im looking for other professional Retouchers to give an honest critique of my retouching work. I have recently received a critique for an agent and would like to see if others have the same opinions. Be brutal its fine, Im a big boy

www.nickedmonds.com

[evanrobert]

i think you got some really nice stuff––and you're lucky as you have some really nice photographs to work with. i would say you need to focus more on "enhancing" the qualities of the original photos rather than trying to change them so much–– that can come later. (in fact, before i saw your art section, i guessed that you might have been an illustrator.) a lot of it is undeniably beautiful (girl with pink cigarette comes to mind) but it tends to look a little plastic at times.

here's my website if you want to see. it's pretty weak.

http://evantrusewicz.com

[nick24a]

Thank you for the reply. Your stuff is amazing by the way. Really good. I have had another person mention the over retouched look. I don't quite understand it however just because all of the retouching Ive done (especially the portraits) have been pixel level Dodge and burn retouching maintaining all of the skin texture. No smoothing whatsoever!! This is the case with the Cigarette girl! Obviously the Art Director asked for the added makeup and color styling, but as far as the retouch goes its all non destructive? Im obviously doing something wrong! that or the size the images are displayed on my website are too small that you can not see the skin detail? Hmmm what to do!?

[evanrobert]

hey thanks! i've been told that i over-retouch too, actually. it's tough!! maybe it is a resolution thing on your site, though. (if your site is flash, it might be distorting your images; flash tends to blur things in its default display mode.)

the best advice i got, which is so simple, was to just pull it back to 85%. which (i do the dodge and burn on the soft light layer) is very easy when you can literally just pull the opacity to 85%.

retouching is funny. i've noticed the better/more experience i get, the less i am actually doing. you (as in me too) just eventually *get* what needs to be retouched, and what can be left alone).

i wish i had something more to offer! just keep going. you obviously know how to retouch and that is most important.

––evan

[Mike Needham]

For what it's worth nick, I don't find your skin overworked, there is a slight suspicion with the lipstick line on one image being lasered on but overall I find the images great, large enough to show enough detail and a nice use of the before and after slide. Not a massive fan of the sideways scroll, but that's no biggie to me.