remove/minimize shadows on face

[davidpz888]

Hi all,

I'm new to this form and I am wondering what is the best way to remove/minimize shadows on a face. I do not mean heavy large shadows caused by an object, but more in turn of shadows cast by parts of the face, such as below the lip and nose.

I attached an example. So far, I had some success just dodging it, but I was wondering if there were other techniques that would give better results?

Thanks,
David

[0lBaldy]

I am not being flippant but there are a number of ways to do what you ask.. and the best way is the one that works for you and your purposes.. Glossy print magazine or family album?

Levels adjustment layers (with masking)
Clone tool then fade
Patch tool or healing brush then fade
soft history brush set to screen
Dodge & Burn (D&B)
Paint with light (PWL)
Plus many others....

So we can get more specific to your needs, what image editing software are you using? How critical are your results?

[davidpz888]

Thanks for the list, I didnt realize there was that many different ways.

I use Lightroom 2 and Photoshop CS3 for my post-processing. I recently started doing fashion photography and so the images will be for my portfolio, online web sized and some 8x10 prints as well I guess.

When I started I never really paid too much attention on little details like shadows. I shoot mostly 3/4 to full length, I havnt done any studio beauty shots yet but Im planning to experiment with that soon. So I recently started reading up on retouching and noticed a lot of my previous shots can use some touch up lol

[des151]

davidpz888,
Have you tried, image, adjustments, shadow/highlight? Add a layer mask to the s/h layer.
Ray

[des151]

You can also dup. the bg. set it to screen, add layer mask to the screen layer, paint/white on the screen mask layer, blur mask, change the op of screen layer.
Ray

[davidpz888]

Hey des151,

Thanks for the info. I did try the shadow/highlight feature, but the shadows that I want to remove/minimize arent really strong to begin with, so I get better results from just d/b

However I was using d/b in a destructive way i.e. without layers. So from now on, I will create a new layer and use the 50% gray technique. Should give me more control. I have heard ppl using either overlay or soft light screen modes. I'm not sure which is better for what situation or what the difference is?

David

[HuBBa]

And next time put a reflector screen beneath the face to lighten those shadows directly

(and if you are not the photographer, hit him over the head with the reflector screen then put it there =)

[davidpz888]

haha yea I really should have used a reflector. When I first started out, I never really cared about the details, instead only the composition. And even when I started using a reflector, I didnt fully grasp what exactly was being filled.

But now that I'm reading more about retouching, I have a much better concept of how the little details are affected by light. And since its so time consuming to fix flaws in post-process, I think there will be more motivation for me to get as much of the little details right as possible.

[HuBBa]

Yepp. thats how you learn =) Both retouching AND photography.

[davidpz888]

Speaking of learning, what's the best way to lighten shadows with a reflector when photographing full body to 3/4. For head shots, I can put the reflector very close and beneath the face. But I cant for long shots since the reflector will be in the frame...

[HuBBa]

Shoot on the side of the reflector (use 1-2 on each side and shoot between them). This requires full body reflectors ofcourse and quite a lot of light. You can ofcourse use white walls and such aswell, the trick is to get creative in using what you have around you and remember that you need to bounce light into the shadow areas. And if you dont have it, you can make it quite easilly with some plywood/styrofoam and white paint. Avoid trying to paint a silver reflector though, the paint is usually not very healthy.

And if you dont have any reflector screens, walls but do have insane ammount of money/equipment, ringflashes and strip-boxes are excellent to put on fill duty

[davidpz888]

Thanks for the info HuBBa. I have a five-in-one 46" reflector. I found myself using the silver and gold side more because I find the plain white side insufficient to reflect light at a distance. However, like you said, there still need to be a lot of light to begin with. So I will experiment more with using strobes in the future.

[HuBBa]

Yepp. flashes give more control when it comes to the power of the fill light. Remember also that if the flash creates too much harsh light directly, and you dont have a lightformer that can diffuse it properly, you can always shoot it at a reflector screen and use the bounced light instead. Same principle as a reflective umbrella.

I like to think of my lighting equipment in terms of Lightsources (flashes, lamps, sun) and lightformers (bouncers, reflectors, softboxes, umbrellas, gobos). Think of it as a big toolbox which you can combine in many interesting ways to create your lighting.

Anything can become a reflector or a gobo or a diffusor etc. its all about experimenting and practising =9

[davidpz888]

Thanks for the info!

Do you usually use the flash against a reflector or through a diffuser?

I am satisfied with using a reflector to fill in shadows. Correct me if Im wrong, but now that I read more about dodge and burning, I notice flashes can be used to create highlights... rather than just balancing sunlight.

[Michael Bonner]

Originally Posted by davidpz888

Hey des151,

Thanks for the info. I did try the shadow/highlight feature, but the shadows that I want to remove/minimize arent really strong to begin with, so I get better results from just d/b

However I was using d/b in a destructive way i.e. without layers. So from now on, I will create a new layer and use the 50% gray technique. Should give me more control. I have heard ppl using either overlay or soft light screen modes. I'm not sure which is better for what situation or what the difference is?

David

As far as Overlay and Softlight modes go, Softlight is the gentler of the two. I use softlight whenever I D&B on skin because I find it doesn't introduce as many changes in saturation as Overlay does, especially when burning. I use Overlay when I'm doing eyes and lips because I usually want less subtle effects and I don't mind the increase in saturation - I'm even looking for it sometimes. I'll also use an Overlay layer to gloss over the highlights when I'm almost done.

Oh, and in the example photo, the shadow I have the biggest problem with is the one coming off of the side of the lips. All the other ones I'd expect from the angle of the lighting, but that one reveals a flaw in the models face.

[HuBBa]

Originally Posted by davidpz888

Thanks for the info!

Do you usually use the flash against a reflector or through a diffuser?

I am satisfied with using a reflector to fill in shadows. Correct me if Im wrong, but now that I read more about dodge and burning, I notice flashes can be used to create highlights... rather than just balancing sunlight.

Yes absolutely. If the lighting you have doesnt' actually create a highlight in the eye it's fairly common to use a weak flash or a normal lamp to create a "fake" highlight in the eye. The light source should then probably be weak enough not to actually cast light that disturb the lighting scheme, but strong enough so it shows up in the eye.

And i use it against a reflector if i want bounced light (which depending on the reflector) will bounce around a lot. Exactly how depends on the thing i bounce against and the angles.

Diffused light is to scatter and break up the shadows so i use that when i want softer edges on the shadows. And remember that this also applies to very small shadows, such as skin-detail, hair etc. People often just thing on the large shadows, body, face, nose, lips, cheek, jaw, etc. and forget that a super-soft light will also soften all the features, including the skin. So if you want soft light and a hard rugged manly face, you may wish to introduce a light only for creating hard highlights (small lightsource in relation to the subject which casts enough light to create a highlight (add to the existing light) but not strong enough to cast shadows that overpower the main light.

Hope it helps =)

/Henrik

[davidpz888]

Thanks for the tips guys! I cant believe how little I knew about retouching (and thus shooting in a manner to reduce post retouching) when I first posted here. But I've learned so much from theses forums and definitely will learn more as time goes on!

[DC_Headshots]

Take a look at my work with shadows!
http://photographyretouching.blogspo...otography.html

Photo Retouching Blog
Photo Retouching

[davidpz888]

Hi Kristina,

I checked out your blog, very nice. But it would be great if you could go into more detail on how you actually achieved the results.

And I didnt see anything regarding color correction/enhancements on your blog. I started a topic regarding it a while ago: http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/pho...ion-photo.html

If you know some methods, please feel free to share!

Cheers