Simple Art of Photo Retouching

Post production (retouching) plays a huge role in producing my final images, but that behind the scenes action is rarely seen, unless you happen to be sitting by me in my office while I'm at work. So, I decided to give everyone a sneak preview into my world of retouching.

Farm Supply.
Normally I would shoot this image while lying on the ground facing up towards the model, from a low perspective you can create the illusion of longer legs - but the building was being prepped for demolition so the ground was covered with glass and I didn't feel like cutting myself. So I cheated. In photoshop I changed the perspective that could have also been achieved by simply laying down, as you can see I also did extensive work in the entire image to give it a much more painterly feel - some refer to this look as HDR (High Dynamic Range) which I accomplished here through extensive dodging and burning, and several overlay layers. No filters were used except for a single offset filter applied to one layer which was then overlayed to sharpen the edges a bit more.

LEFT IS BEFORE, RIGHT IS AFTER - click thumbnail for a larger view



Spinning Sunset
In this image we were literally shooting directly into the sun, which created a very tricky exposure situation. If I exposed for the model then the sky would be almost pure white, but if I exposed for the sky (which I did here) then the sky was correct but the model was too dark. With digital cameras it's always easier to adjust an underexposed image than an overexposed image, so I opted to expose for the sky and fix the rest later by brightening her up!

TOP IS BEFORE, RIGHT IS AFTER - click thumbnail for a larger view




Portrait of Nicole
With such an exquisite face there's really not a whole lot I can do to improve upon it, so I decided to give the entire image the look of a timeless painting to match her timeless beauty. Since we didn't have a make-up artist for the shoot I cheated and enhanced her eye shadow.

LEFT IS BEFORE, RIGHT IS AFTER - click thumbnail for a larger view



Whiskey Bucket
Sometimes all an image needs is an extra bit of POP to set it apart. Some dodging and burning with some exposure correction. Again, the original was slightly underexposed so that I wouldn't lose any detail in the sky.

LEFT IS BEFORE, RIGHT IS AFTER - click thumbnail for a larger view



Trailing Scarf
This image was shot in pitch dark with a single battery powered strobe. To light the bridge and the model ideally I would have had to use multiple flashes, but on this particular night my assistant was unavailable so complex light set-ups in the freezing cold (it was November) were out of the question. So I boosted the light in photoshop and again added an HDR look to the wood, and her clothes.

LEFT IS BEFORE, RIGHT IS AFTER - click thumbnail for a larger view



Soaking Wet Sky
Speaking of cold, it was literally about 38 degrees outside, with wind and rain to boot. But the sky was absolutely unbelievable so we couldn't resist. We quickly set up a single flash, which my trusty assistant held high above his head so we didn't have to bother with a stand and we shot a couple dozen frames in about five minutes, and then got back into the warm car. Once again, with a proper amount of time we could have achieved a better lit scene, but I opted to fix it in photoshop later. I also put a bit of wind in her hair, using custom hair brushes by trisste-brushes.

LEFT IS BEFORE, RIGHT IS AFTER - click thumbnail for a larger view



Out of Control
And for the opposite of cold we have fire! For this image I combined fire from a different photo to boost the flames and increased the orange glow on her sides, obviously I also extended the wall behind her.
LEFT IS BEFORE, RIGHT IS AFTER - click thumbnail for a larger view



Gasoline Car Wash
Alas, I'm not nearly irresponsible enough to have a model spray actual gasoline onto the ground as I quickly snap off images and fire electronic flashes in her direction. The color spectrum was added with a simple gradient fill, one of the most overused tools on any computer program - but here it works! I get asked at least once a month if that was gasoline or a rainbow of some sorts.
TOP IS BEFORE, BOTTOM IS AFTER - click thumbnail for a larger view



Thanks for viewing, these are just a small sampling - if they're enjoyed I'll post more later.