Ok I lied.......Be Harsh this time

[SchlinkyMalinky]

Whilst you're here ant what remains on the image above to make it a 10/10 pro image?

For me personally I'd say the masking of the hair to the forehead is a bit slack. there's still some work to do particually in the shadow areas. Nose is still a bit 'porey'. Bit more DnB work on the general patchiness of the skin, the lines imbetween the eyelashes need looking at.
But as far as colour and intensity of the image go I'm generally quite happy with it

[Ant]

There is no 'pro image' rating for this. It's a low res snapshot.

for instance, I'm currently working on a 60" x 20" image at 400 dpi (which will be used at 72") shot in the studio by a professional photographer of a professional model.

[SchlinkyMalinky]

Thanks for the encouragement

[shellby]

Some retouchers still use a mouse. The wacom is not a magic tool that allows you to go super fast. Retouching takes time. High end work takes time.

See this article about one of the top guys:

"For all his technological expertise, it is Dangin's rapport with photographers and his slow, meticulous pace that seem at the centre of his success."

http://www.theage.com.au/articles/20...540121180.html

[SickBoy!]

If I were you a would add a bigger shadow, like a square, centered with the actual "bars" shadows from the original photo, that would be a really "trapped" atmosphere.

When I come back home I´ll try to do a sample

[SickBoy!]

ok, something like this...

[Cupcake]

This the way I would do it.

[cricket1961]

SchlinkyMalinky

First off, thanks so much for the chuckle on your screen name.
Second, I only took a look at your first posting of the before and after, and the comments I read aare all pretty good.
If you want, and I have done this for those who asked, You can upload
a hires before and after psd file to my FTP for me to look at and give you some constructive comments and such. I am busy, but I usually find the time to respond eventually.

Shelby is right, a wacom does not make the retoucher. But it really does help. And if you wish to work on the higher res images that are needed for high end work you really need to use something besides the graphire. It is a great training tool and awesome for home use and lower res images. But for images that are 300 dpi plus you NEED the added resolution that the intuos line gives you.

Shelby

Pascal had his time in the sun. Yes he is still a big thing in new york in the retouching world, but he has many "junior" retouchers doing work for him. Oddly enough most of those retouchers are "partial" experts there, meaning that they are great at parts of the image but not the whole. There is a reason why, unfortuenetly , clients are leaving Box studio. Mostly because his style of retouching has not changed with the times. And I am sure there will be those that do stay with him (clients) The soft light I so often "preach" to you and others will undoubtedly have its short time also. That is why I am working on figuring out something else that works as well. But I don't think that time will come soon thank god! : )

You are spot on though about taking your time and getting it right. There are "very" few shortcuts that work at a acceptable level at any level of retouching if you look closely enough. I just landed a 8 picture spread for InStyle that will likely take me 10 days to complete. Can it be done quickly? Probably someone on this forum can come up with something that is acceptable a lot quicker than that, but if I did something like that in order
for InStyle to save time or money it would be doing a miservice to them, to myself, my reputation, and to the photographer who got that shoot because of my skin work. Neither one of us would ever hear from Instyle again.
The beleagured point I am making is (to everyone really, not you) is to take your time and do it the right way (and contrary to some onthis forum, there is more than ONE right way). You are selling more than a retouching. You are selling yourself and your integrity as an artist. Also the believability of the magazine and the product that the retouching is supposed to help represent.

[SchlinkyMalinky]

Cupcake, in general I like what you've done, it's all a bit blurry for me tho

Cricket, monster post! Thankyou very much for the offer, I will take you up on it, when I feel I have something suitable (and good enough!)

I'm bidding on a wacom on ebay as I type so fingers crossed!

[shellby]

ooooh I like insight into Box Studios...

I am busy doing an Editorial story for a submission to ID Magazine. Hold thumbs it gets published.

Again I would not spend less than three hours each on these even though there are 8 images to do.

Yes the Wacom has made a huge difference to me. It took a while to get used to it. Put your mouse away. Lock it up and throw away the key!! That is the only way you will move on. I found drawing paths the hardest thing to master on the pen and tablet. Now, I don't know how I retouched without it.

Thanks again for all your help

[superkoax]

Here is my version!

I used dodge and burne on th dark areas of the skin and used ordinary air brush to brush in the white pixels with new!


gerry

[TheVeed]

oooh some insight into Box studios..!