Advice / tips about my restoration attempt....

[vity73]

First of all, hello everybody and sorry for my poor/simple English.

I'm a newbie in restoration and after reading lots of tutorials and information about it, I've concluded that this is the best forum to keep on learning.

So... I've been working on an old photo of my wife and these are the before/after results:

http://img295.imageshack.us/img295/9392/vickyp.jpg

I really like the result but I would like to know your opinions about what I've done right and, above all, what I've done wrong and so I could try to improve it.

Thanks in advance and regards from Spain.

[BigDon]

Vity,

Looks like you did a good job to me! Keep working....

-DON-

[chillin]

I would work with the tones a little bit more.

[vity73]

Thanks for your opinion, BigDon.

Regards.

[vity73]

Chillin, your feedback is welcome and you're probable right.

I´ll play with tones to see if find a best choice.

Note.- I've been watching your web and your work looks really amazing.

Best regards.

[spotter]

nice work on the retouching.I think there is a bit too much magenta still in the hair and rug which you could solve with selective colours and a layer mask

[vity73]

Thanks for your tip, spotter.

I'll try to follow your advice... if I can....

I´m not as good as I'd like to be.

[TommyO]

Vity73,

One suggestion would be to work on your masking skills. (I'm sure you know, but....) By first creating and saving selections as alpha channels, you can invoke these alpha channels as needed to create masks. The mask in turn prevent corrections from affecting the entire image.

In your image there is obvious contamination of colors between edited layers. The masking will prevent that. Use Chillin's image as an example. I've seen enough of his work here on RP to know he routinely masks out selective parts of the image during color correction. His image is quite clean and colors don't look contaminated. Masks are the easiest and fastest way to separate the elements of the image for this purpose.

Below are Chillins on the left and yours on the right. Look for where colors are clean in his, then compare the steps you did and how you could have prevented inserting more color into those areas.... i.e. mask.

Best of luck with it !

[vity73]

Tommy, you're totally right.

Masking separately is the best way to do it and that is why I posted here.... to learn from people like you.

Unfortunately my masking technique must improve too much.

Anyone know a good tutorial to mask separately using the alpha channel?

I'd greatly appreciate it.

[Rikard Rodin]

I find the best way to do a mask (if you're willing to spend the time) is to paint the mask. First create a flat color layer, then put a mask on your top layer and then use the paintbrush to paint the mask. Adjust the size and hardness of your brush to capture all subtle variations of the image's edge.

[vity73]

Hi Rikard, thanks for your advice.

I'll try to experiment on that way.

Best regards.