Before
After
Here is one example of a retouched image that I provide to a client as part of my Creative Image Styling Service. Unfortunately I don’t have a step by step tutorial with pictures or a video screen capture (will come in the future though) so I’ll just explain the steps I go through to get the finished result for the client.
After the images are backed up and transfered from the memory card I do basic image adjustments in Adobe Lightroom. Here I can select a preset where I can make the image look completely natural and accurate and also make further tweaks, like brightening the shadows, adjusting the white balance etc. I do this with every image that gets taken to ensure all the photos that get delivered to the client are of high quality and not all flat looking, like when they come straight out of the camera. That service is included with all of my packages.
After the basic adjustments, I export the image into Photoshop as a High Res 16Bit file (to maintain the most colour information) and this is where I start the major pixel pushing. In this case the image was already converted to Greyscale (Black and White) in Lightroom with a colour mix that is suited to the photograph and mood.
Every image I work on is different, so using presets and actions in Photoshop are not always prefered, so the client does get their money’s worth. I start by using a Levels Adjustment Layer to brighten the midtones, darken the shadows and bump up the highlights a little. This adds a little punch in the contrast. I then noticed some distracting reflections in the lady’s glasses so I cloned these out by using the clone stamp tool (Shortcut ‘S’), making sure I was sampling all the layers (The check box in the tool bar).
To introduce some more character to the image I used a Curves Adjustment Layer and used the ‘Strong Contrast’ preset as a starting point. I played around with the levels to get the look I wanted.
Next I wanted to selectively brighten the lady’s face. I used my favorite Blend Layer Dodging Procedure featured here: http://www.zoom-in.com/blog/photography/sophia-betz/adobephoto/career-cliff-notes-dodge-burn I selectively used this method to brighten the skin areas and the flowers on her dress, concentration more around eye, nose and lips areas.
I then added a further Curves Adjustment Layer, and used the medium contrast preset as a starting point again. This time using the layer mask provided with the Layer Adjustment inverted (click on the layer mask icon in the layer pallet and press CTRL+I to invert the mask to black) and using a white low opacity brush (B) over the facial region and hair, bringing out more detail (in a bridal portrait this wouldn’t be the case). I call this selective contrast and by re-naming the layers in the layer pallet I can keep a track of what I’m doing. I adjusted all the layer opacities to get a good mix of all adjustments to make them look like a natural blend.
Next I wanted to colourize the image by giving a sepia toned look. This look can be overdone when applying it to every picture in a shoot, but I only ended up using it on a handful of photos in this client’s case. It usually suits pictures of older people to give the image a little warmness and to make it timeless. I achieved this using a Hue/Saturation Adjustment Layer and clicking on the colourize check box. You can now introduce a colour hue of your choice and its saturation level. I used an orange hue at a low saturation level to add a subtle colour cast. This effect can also be achieved with other methods, but this is the quickest and easiest.
Once I was happy with the overall look, I flattened the image by pressing CTRL+SHIFT+E. Many people would say ‘nooooooo!’ when it comes to flattening layers here, but I will never return to this image again to work on it again as a PSD (Photoshop Document). Why would I choke up 400-500MB or more of Hard Drive space or even bog down the computer’s CPU, when I have the original DNG file anyway. I have found I rarely return to a PSD file unless I save it for working on later when a photo is not finished.
Next is a vignette, you can do this a number of different ways, including in Adobe Lightroom or Adobe Camera RAW by using the vignette sliders, in Photoshop by using the Lens Correction Dialogue (Filter ->Distort -> Lens Correction) or by using the inbuilt vignette action in the Actions Pallet. This way you can make a selection with the Marquee Tool (M) to whatever size and input the amount of pixel feathering (150-200 pixels on a high res photo). After the action has done its thing, I click on the white layer and invert it to black (CTRL+I) and reduce the layer opacity to make the edges look burned in. I sometimes darken a photo deliberately, then brighten certain areas to draw the viewers eyes to the subject. This method is as old as photography itself. I usually do this using the same techique I use to brighten eyes (see above), but I use the Multiply blend mode to darken the photo then paint back with a black brush on a white mask the area I want to have brighter. I then adjust the layer opacity to get the right balance.
Last thing is the sharpening, which is what I do to all the images that are destined for the print lab. First I duplicate the layer by pressing CTRL+J. I enlarge the image to 100% pixels using my CTRL+’+’ command to zoom in and then go Filter ->Sharpen ->Unsharp Mask. A dialogue box opens and I usually leave the .9 to 1 pixel setting and dial in about 100-120 on the ‘amount’ scale. This is to personal taste this, but I dial in a suitable amount for print (slightly over sharpened). After I have committed the sharpening, in the Layers Pallet, while the 2nd layer is selected, I change the layer blend mode to ‘Luminosity’ to reduce halos on high contrast edges in the photo. Reduce the layer opacity if you went over board on the sharpening. To go that extra step you could apply a layer mask to that layer and invert the mask to black (incase you don’t remember its CTRL+I). Then paint in, using a soft edge brush, the eyes, nose, hair and lips to retain the detail there and leave the rest soft.
In the case of this image I merged the top layer into the main one by pressing CTRL+E as I didn’t do the selective sharpening. I duplicated it again (CTRL+J) and applied a Blur Filter. Go to Filter ->Blue ->Gaussian Blur and input around 5-6 pixels. Then reduce that layer’s opacity to around 30% or to taste. With this technique you still get a sharp image, but with a slight dreamy, blurry glow which is pleasing to the eye when it comes to portraits at weddings. Remember, not too much blur or it will look way too 1985.
There you have it, the image is flattened (CTRL+SHIFT+E), coverted to 8BIT (Image ->Mode ->8BIT) and sRGB if it already isn’t (Edit ->Convert to Profile and select sRGB in the drop down box). Now it is ready to save and print by my photo lab.
Next time I’ll endeavour to get at least screen shots, but hopefully in time video capture.