Group shot - where do I begin?

[LadyLB]

Hi there, I'm so happy to have found this site. I have no professional photo editing experience at all, but usually manage to do a little fixing-up with the MS digital image program that came with my computer. Now, however, I have a difficult task ahead and have no idea where to begin. What is the best program? Has anyone used GIMP?

So I got married on the rainiest, yuckiest excuse for an August day ever, and in the only family photo we managed to pose for outside (and which my mother now wants to use in Christmas cards!) my brother looks like a scary mugger because of the shadows under his eyes, and I (bride) am squinting. And of course my hair is straggly and gross. Is there any way to fix any of these things? My photo-shopping knowledge is limited to removing pimples and redness, haha.

Here's the unfortunate shot: http://img136.imagevenue.com/img.php..._122_653lo.jpg

Should I attach the original photo directly to messages here instead? Is that allowed? The resolution is really high...I think it's like 8MB.

Any advice would be fantastic!

[Swampy]

Hi, LadyLB! Welcome to RetouchPro! Explore and Enjoy!

You should attach a low res copy of your photo (crop out the excess so you can make a bigger size file). You can always post a link to a higer res photo, but the one you post here will stay for all time so that others that come along months down the road will still have access to a file.

We do have a couple folks that use GIMP and are quite happy with it. Others use Paint Shop Pro (PC). I think the vast majority use Photoshop.

Lovely photo. I didn't spend too much time, but made a few quick fixes. Used the liquify tool (Photoshop) to open up your eyes. Smudged the hair a little to reduce frize and used the patch tool/healing brush to lighten the shadows under your brother's eyes. Crop.

[0lBaldy]

LaydyLB, welcome to RetouchPRO! Have a look around and enjoy your stay.
All the changes I did here Plus a lot more you can do in GIMP! It is just a matter of practice and getting to know the tools in the program... Good Luck.. Looking forward to seeing some of your work

Larger version here

[LadyLB]

wow, you two are talented! Swampy, smudging is such a great idea for the hair - thank you! OlBaldy, how did whiten and open the eyes like that? I only know how to attempt it by adding colors dot by dot, and even when zooming in to the highest possible magnification it still turns out looking as though someone drew on the photo. : )
Thanks so much for the advice.

[Aleksman71]

Did a few quick fixes on your lovely family.
bigger file:
http://shrani.si/f/2u/oa/2d6CprRu/family1.jpg

[0lBaldy]

Originally Posted by LadyLB

<clip>OlBaldy, how did whiten and open the eyes like that? <clip> : )

I cheated and used the eyes from the lady in blue.. (selected, copied, pasted then using the 'Free Transform' tool, flipped horizontally and adjusted to fit)

[LadyLB]

haha the literal version of "having your mother's eyes" : ) Aleksman71, we look great!

Here's my attempt -

http://img251.imagevenue.com/img.php..._122_197lo.jpg

Not perfect, but I think I'll survive if my mom sends this out to people. I used the "smudging" technique on my hair - it's fairly obvious, but I'm hoping people unfamiliar with retouching won't be able to tell. Thanks so much, guys.

[RokcetScientist]

Hi LadyLB,

welcome to the board. And belated congrats on your wedding.
Nice to see you and your family opted for a classical wedding: you had a real wedding dress (nice! and not a strapless white evening gown as you see so often these days), and the men went for correct morning coats (instead of white or black tie, a.k.a. frock or tuxedo) and grey tophats. With the correct traditional pose too!
Imo, a breath of fresh air compared to today's contrived atmosphere at most weddings.

Originally Posted by LadyLB

Should I attach the original photo directly to messages here instead? Is that allowed? The resolution is really high...I think it's like 8MB.

Huh? What I downloaded was only a 907KB JPG with a 1:43 compression rate. Not high-res at all of course. Doesn't make retouching very easy (if at all possible). What about that 8MB file? Can't you upload/post that?

Anyway, here's my Quick & Dirty effort:
http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/l...2_653lo-1b.jpg

I cropped, used the liquify tool, did some dodging, brightened some teeth, and warmed the whole image a bit. Must confess I didn't know how to tackle your hair.

Have fun!