Hi everyone,
I'm applying to a retouching studio and they sent me a test image that I have to work on and send it back to them. I'm not going to post the image because I'm not allowed to, but it's not what matters anyway.
They have also sent me two other reference images that are part of the same series, so that I can match the mood to those.
Here's an image I found online that has a similar mood to their references, just so you get the idea (rain, colours, perspective, etc...): 1.jpg
Basically their reference images are dramatic looking car ads. What they have given me is a layered PSD of such an ad, but without the dramatic effects. The image looks raw and it's still visibly a composite, nothing is color matched.
The instructions say that the image has been compiled from a purely structural point of view, and now needs balancing and grading to a finished level, to sit as a family with the other two examples they sent me. All elements need to fit well together, while the mood and drama needs to focus on presenting the car as amazingly as possible, matching the paint to the colour reference shown. They will be assessing my understanding of light and aerial perspective, technical approach, interpretation of the brief and overall creative excellence.
This all makes sense, and I'm sure I can do all this because I have quite a bit of Photoshop experience. However, as I've never worked in a production studio, nor have I worked on other people's composites, I'm not sure what is expected from me at this so called "grading" stage of the workflow:
I'm aware that this might not give you much info at all, plus you probably don't know what they have in mind either, but for those of you who have production studio experience with things like car ads, you might have an idea of what exactly is expected at this precise stage. I imagine this is a routine thing that a dedicated team does and I'm just wondering what their typical responsibilities are.
For example, with a Beauty image, I would already know that it's very important to preserve skin detail, make skin look flawless, clean up eyebrows and eyelashes, etc... But with a car composite, I'm not sure what the typical "to-do" things are.
Thanks so much, and sorry for the vague description/question!
I'm applying to a retouching studio and they sent me a test image that I have to work on and send it back to them. I'm not going to post the image because I'm not allowed to, but it's not what matters anyway.
They have also sent me two other reference images that are part of the same series, so that I can match the mood to those.
Here's an image I found online that has a similar mood to their references, just so you get the idea (rain, colours, perspective, etc...): 1.jpg
Basically their reference images are dramatic looking car ads. What they have given me is a layered PSD of such an ad, but without the dramatic effects. The image looks raw and it's still visibly a composite, nothing is color matched.
The instructions say that the image has been compiled from a purely structural point of view, and now needs balancing and grading to a finished level, to sit as a family with the other two examples they sent me. All elements need to fit well together, while the mood and drama needs to focus on presenting the car as amazingly as possible, matching the paint to the colour reference shown. They will be assessing my understanding of light and aerial perspective, technical approach, interpretation of the brief and overall creative excellence.
This all makes sense, and I'm sure I can do all this because I have quite a bit of Photoshop experience. However, as I've never worked in a production studio, nor have I worked on other people's composites, I'm not sure what is expected from me at this so called "grading" stage of the workflow:
- Am I supposed to add in any elements, such as birds, water splashes, etc... at all, or just strictly stick to what they have given me?
- Am I meant to add in light flares or is that the composite team's job?
- Am I supposed to fix mistakes they made or just keep whatever they sent as it is and only deal with "grading"?
- What exactly is "grading": is it purely color/tone/contrast work, or does it mean something else?
- If all I have to do is match the colors and the contrast, that seems like a fairly easy job. I'd imagine they have given me something very challenging, so I can't seem to figure out where the challenge is.
I'm aware that this might not give you much info at all, plus you probably don't know what they have in mind either, but for those of you who have production studio experience with things like car ads, you might have an idea of what exactly is expected at this precise stage. I imagine this is a routine thing that a dedicated team does and I'm just wondering what their typical responsibilities are.
For example, with a Beauty image, I would already know that it's very important to preserve skin detail, make skin look flawless, clean up eyebrows and eyelashes, etc... But with a car composite, I'm not sure what the typical "to-do" things are.
Thanks so much, and sorry for the vague description/question!
Comment