Photo Retouching - - The demystification of dave hill! let's all help! - Page 67

Gee · #**991** 08-15-2008, 04:10 PM

well yeah there's good stuff on it.
but sometimes it's weak?

skydog · #**992** 08-15-2008, 04:58 PM

Yep I agree...some good stuff...but inconsistent. As a side note, is this web site designed or is it canned? The reason I ask is if I want to redo my website is there some good site with canned templates I can use or do I need to go to a designer?

York · #**993** 08-16-2008, 01:31 PM

Hi,

I read some posts here about Hill. Unless Hill tells his technique, no one will ever be able to copy the exact technique, just because processing is a projection of the inner mind and vision, called style...

But, it's interesting to look at images and learn to develop your onw style.

My pictures are not as Hill (allthough some people compare some of my pics with him, but i believe it's nothing like that), but i get lots of questions about processing them... I made some 'makings off' on my blog.

Indeed, the most important step is taking the photograph with strong lights. Don't take an old pic and try this technique, it will be trash.

There is no voodoo, no magic, but nice pics ;-)

Regards

Gee · #**994** 08-16-2008, 06:35 PM

ez mate on the one u showing here the girl on the first plan got really ugly skin.
grey tones on her arm. that doesnt look great at all if u want my opinion.
that's the first thing i saw on the pics and, sorry for the good points, but this is really weak here.

try again

Gee · #**995** 08-16-2008, 06:40 PM

i just saw ur website
that's not the best pics :p
u got few really really insane ones btw.

i'm from brussels

York · #**996** 08-17-2008, 05:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gee

ez mate on the one u showing here the girl on the first plan got really ugly skin.
grey tones on her arm. that doesnt look great at all if u want my opinion.
that's the first thing i saw on the pics and, sorry for the good points, but this is really weak here.

try again

It's the conversion to webresolution that makes the slight blue tinted skintone to some degree of grey tint. The light in the prison is blue/green, so this has to be visible on the skin.
The printed version is perfect.

Regards, good luck in Brussels ;-)

snook305 · #**997** 08-21-2008, 09:46 AM

Hey guys check out this plug-in if you like Lucis..
MUCH cheaper and even better if you ask me...:+}
http://www.topazlabs.com/topazlabs/0.../topaz_adjust/
I just bought it and works great.. they have a sale now and it is only 39.00 more or less..
Snook

plugsnpixels · #**998** 08-21-2008, 10:42 AM

I posted a quick comparison set of Lucis Pro and Topaz Adjust here. I'll add more examples to it soon.

Pinto · #**999** 08-21-2008, 01:41 PM

I tried the sample of Tapaz Adjust. You better have a very fast machine or small images. The noise section is slow as a goat.

plugsnpixels · #**1000** 08-21-2008, 01:53 PM

Yes, it indeed is slow, but I hear they're working on an update:

"We're working on making the Topaz Adjust previews faster. It should be ready by the end of this month. 10:40 AM August 05, 2008"

See also this discussion.

It's a somewhat new release so some growing pains are to be expected.

singlo · #**1001** 08-21-2008, 03:30 PM

I don't know if somebody else mentions this before (this is a hell of a long thread that I haven't followed it much and i don't bother to read from start to finish).....September issue of Digital SLR Photography here in the UK published a long 16 pages of interview with Dave Hill. It gives good insight to his techniques and working approach.

People expect clever PS tricks from Dave Hill will be disappointed, there are no mysterious tricks in his PS workflows..he revealed..most of the techniques you and me know already. His lighting is not unique either...he uses "ghetto" White lighting monoheads and a Profoto ring flash, Canon 5D and a cheap Canon 28mm prime most of the time.

He uses 5 point lighting: key, brolly fill, ring flash fill and double kickers.

Probably Dave is laughing his head off when he sees this forum discussion.

Ich.Mario · #**1002** 08-21-2008, 04:34 PM

who will publish this interview online? yeah, copyright trouble. where can i buy this issue?

singlo · #**1003** 08-21-2008, 05:22 PM

Ok I quote the essential bits from the interview:

"I don't think there is one consistent look" claims Dave in response to the enormous amount of blogs and forums discussing the Dave Hill effect. "My Photoshop work has defintely changed over time. I no longer smooth skin I used to, for one and there is no single recipe for what i do either. I am using a bunch of different things, all applied locally using layer masks. Sharpening, dodging and burning with curves and alterations in the hue and saturation of certain colours. I will often desaturate the blacks as well so there is no evidence of color cast there. I will try different approaches for different scenes. I always try to play with the highlights and shadows, and quite often boost highlights by painting locally with lightening curves layers. its all the basic stuff really, masking with the Pen tool then getting stuck in with adjustment layers and their masks.

Its a look that has been popular in advertising for some time particularly in the car industry, where heavy UMS with high radius settings and comparatively low Amount settings is used to increase edge contrast, before saturation is toned down. Highlights and shadows are dodged with separate curves layers and their masks....

Basic stuff you and me know already!!

I personally think much of forum people hype up the mystery of his techniques and will be surprised his techniques are quite basic....the same is true with Amy Dresser stuff before she explained her workflows...people were speculating that some mysterious and complex techniques which turn out to be very simple.

Ich.Mario · #**1004** 08-21-2008, 05:26 PM

great one. now close the thread

just kiddin'...

click
some expensive light

, skin smoothing (oh my god, dave hill doesn't do skinsmoothing!!!!

), d&b, curve adjustments.

sam_bond · #**1005** 08-23-2008, 05:22 PM

Hello all,

after reading the Dave Hill article in Digital SLR Photography and contemplating for a while, i took some pictures earlier today. The picture i have attached is very simple as far as lighting is concerned, it was one bare flash pointing out of my window onto the street, powerful enough to overpower the sun slightly. The sun was coming from behind. in an ideal world, to get that Dave Hill look i would have had 2 kick lights behind the guy, but unfortunately this was impossible as i am tethered to mains power for the time being and the street was very busy and i didn't want people tripping over wires!

here is a before and after @ 25%:
www.whoissam.co.uk/n_before_after.jpg

What you are seeing:
Dave Hill said in the article that he does alot with layer masks so this led me to process things individually (face and arms, tshirt, jeans, the road and finally the sky) to be honest i dont know why i didnt think of this before as it is so easy to do and improves the quality of the final image (i guess this is all part of learning!) To sharpen the image i used Lucus Art and got it to the amount that suited each individual component of the image, then i dodged and burned for a bit. That is pretty much all the processing for the image!

As you can see with just a guy standing infront of my camera, the image is a bit boring. If i had him wrestling an alligator or something in the street with some kick lights behind him, im sure it would look more 'Dave Hill' :-p. I suppose this is my last point: Dave Hill has a great talent for coming up with ideas and scenarios for pictures, and if you want to take a picture that looks like his you have to have a humorous or interesting subject in the first place!