Toggle

Need Your Input On My New Retouching Class Before It “Goes Live.”

By Scott on Thursday, December 27th, 2007 at 6:01 am | updates.

retouchclass.jpg

I’m working on a new online course called “Professional Portrait Retouching Techniques with Adobe Photoshop” and I hope to have it “up live” on KelbyTraining.com in the next two weeks or so. Before I wrap it up, I hoped to get some input from you, to make sure I cover the techniques you think should be included.

First, some background: This is a class on portrait retouching, so it’s not going to cover color correction, or fixing lighting, or anything that’s not directly related to portrait retouching in Photoshop (both head shots and body sculpting). Also, there won’t be any retouching of nudie naked nakedness. In fact, there will be no nudity at all (other than my own, of course, as I usually record these in the nude. I’m kidding. You knew that, right?).

Anyway, here’s the list of individual lessons from the class, but it’s not too late to add a few more. Here we go:

• Eyes (making them larger)
• Eyes (whitening the eyes)
• Eyes (Enhancing eyes, and changing eye color)
• Eyes (Adding or enhancing makeup)
• Eyes (creating longer lashes)
• Eyes (Making them sparkle)
• Eyes (removing dark circles under, method 1)
• Eyes( removing dark circles under, method 2)
• Replacing closed eyes with open eyes
• Fixing reflections in eye glasses
• Teeth (Brightening)
• Teeth (Removing yellowing)
• Turning a frown into a smile
• Making lips fuller
• Removing Blemishes (Method 1)
• Removing Blemishes (Method 2)
• Reducing acne or freckles
• Removing wrinkles
• Reducing nose size (Method 1)
• Reducing nose size (Method 2)
• Reshaping Nose
• Smoothing Skin (basic)
• Smoothing Skin (advanced)
• Removing Hot Spots
• Sharpening skin
• Sharpening Female skin
• Making your subject look thinner overall
• Removing shirt creases and wrinkles in clothes
• Making arms and legs look thinner
• Reducing Jowels
• Adding highlights to hair
• Changing hair color
• Removing stray hair
• Digital tummy tucks
• Removing love handles
• Complete start to finish retouching Workflow 1
• Complete start to finish retouching Workflow 2

So that’s the current lesson list, but your ideas posted here on the blog can certainly have me adding to it. If I wind up using one of your suggestions in the class, you’ll get a signed copy of my upcoming book, “The Digital Photography Book, Volume 2″ and my sincere thanks for making the class better for everyone who takes it.

Thanks in advance for your input and advice. It’s most appreciated and it really makes a difference. :)

Comment form for this post

Comments received from other Sites

Listed using this TrackBack URL

    155 Visitor Comments

    Subscribe to comments with RSS

    1. #1

      How to remove a double chin

      bruno waes on December 27th, 2007 at 6:29 am
    2. #2

      Just a couple of quick ideas that spring to mind:
      1. Teeth shapening (not sharpening) - ie fixing chipped teeth.
      2. Removing braces from teeth.
      If I think of more I’ll add them later.
      Cheers.

      Daniel Bust on December 27th, 2007 at 6:31 am
    3. #3

      Along the lines of Daniel’s, how about gum cleaning? I’ve seen my fair share of shots post-meal time at holiday or family gatherings where someone inevitably has a piece of broccoli or some other blatant food item they are saving for later stuck in the crevices of their teeth. I try to get people to brush their teeth before a planned shot, but often candids can result in this.

      By the way - got the 7 points book two days ago - cracking it today at work (depending on how slow it is). Looking forward to it! :)

      Jason on December 27th, 2007 at 6:35 am
    4. #4

      How about accenting and corecting cheek bones structure? It is an important subject in portrait retouching that is hardly ever mentioned…

      R2rek on December 27th, 2007 at 6:55 am
    5. #5

      Scott,

      The old 5 o’clock shadow for men! Lessening it.

      Gary K. Meyer on December 27th, 2007 at 7:12 am
    6. #6

      A couple more…

      adding eyelashes

      darkening, adding or subtracting eyebrows

      Gary K. Meyer on December 27th, 2007 at 7:24 am
    7. #7

      This one is for groups of people, rather than a single portrait. In family portraits, due to the variability in lighting, the skin tones are often more exaggerated than is really present. How about a method of reducing the degree of variation?

      Dan Brown on December 27th, 2007 at 7:32 am
    8. #8

      Scott,

      what about neck, making it slimmer or making person look younger, removing some wrinkles and stuff like that.

      Regards.

      PS. If I think of something else I’ll post later

      Marko on December 27th, 2007 at 7:35 am
    9. #9

      Scott,
      Can’t wait to see the new class. How about some tips on changing, enhancing, or improving the background/setting of the portrait, e.g. moving a studio shot into a beach background.

      Martin on December 27th, 2007 at 7:40 am
    10. #10

      if shot on location, higher iso might come into play. therefore noise reduction (and sharpening of higher iso images) might be a very interesting topic, especially for wedding & event photographers.

      Stephan on December 27th, 2007 at 7:59 am
    11. #11

      Hi Scott, howz about some “Digital Makeup”, like eye shadow, eyeliner, mascara, rosy cheeks, etc.

      Pete Nicholls on December 27th, 2007 at 8:05 am
    12. #12

      On the lines of replacing closed eyes with open ones, How about replacing Frowns with Smiles?

      Chris B on December 27th, 2007 at 8:07 am
    13. #13

      Hi Scott,
      How about including a bit on how to cut one person from a group to make a single person portrait? 7 Point book is your best, so far.

      Larry Williams on December 27th, 2007 at 8:15 am
    14. #14

      Minimizing gaps in teeth, Character portraits: maximizing wrinkles and clothing imperfections etc., what type of paper to print on for impact, how much to change depending on age / gender / client preference, what / when not to do: scars - tattoos, skin tone depending on nationality / customer preference, Working man / athletic portraits - facial sweat, what to do with Rx tinted dark glasses when it is part of the character (grandpa with rose colored glasses).

      Bill Chinn on December 27th, 2007 at 8:15 am
    15. #15

      What about removing eyeglasses? sometimes it is necessary for a number of reasons. I suppose you will include skin shine in the skin chapters. Also, what about removing mustache or its shadow in ladies? a big one! and then, what about re-shaping protruding teeth? (like people who should have had braces) to make the mouth smaller or less salient in a face (this one may link with re-shaping bone structure, etc)?

      Antonio on December 27th, 2007 at 8:17 am
    16. #16

      Yeah, baby!!!!! This is EXACTLY the type of input I was hoping to get. Looks I’ll be adding some more lessons!!!

      This is great stuff!!! Keep ‘em coming!!! :-)

      -Scott

      Scott on December 27th, 2007 at 8:19 am
    17. #17

      noise reduction

      I have not finished reading the 7 point system book yet but there doesn’t seem to be any mention on where noise reduction fits in. Is it better to do it first or last? How does noiseware or noise ninja fit into the workflow after camera raw or lightroom?

      Stephen on December 27th, 2007 at 8:34 am
    18. #18

      Eyebrows…..

      My daughter is never happy with hers, and I’ve just never been able to do a good job of retouching them in PS. She wants them thinner and longer, etc… I could possibly even send you a shot to use in the lesson.

      BTW…really enjoyed your CS3 tour here in DC earlier this month.

      Chris Anthony on December 27th, 2007 at 8:37 am
    19. #19

      How about enhancing/reducing breast size, and bottom size?

      Joe Stone on December 27th, 2007 at 8:43 am
    20. #20

      How about fixing “elephant ears”….protruding ears?

      Really sorry to hear about the no-nudity thing! :-)

      Joe Stone on December 27th, 2007 at 8:48 am
    21. #21

      1.) Sometimes you have quite harsh shadows in portraits.
      You could offer a lesson, how do you correct this.

      2.) Another point is how to mix two similar portraits of the same person where
      one foto has a nice natural smile but the eyes are closed. The other has perfect eyes but the person is looking angry. …

      3.) remove bright highlights from spiddle from mouth or teeth

      4.) my dauther has very fine long blond hair, I have many fotos where just one single hair is over her eye. One lesson could explain how to remove single hair over eyes/cheeks ….

      Scott you are doing a real great job ! Many thanks and I wish all the best for the coming year 2008

      Grettings Thomas

      Thomas on December 27th, 2007 at 8:52 am
    22. #22

      What about removing a shadow, either from on the person or behind the person?

      Vicki Holdwick on December 27th, 2007 at 8:53 am
    23. #23

      1. How to add fx an artificial white foggy look to a portrait to make it more “mystical”.

      2. How to optimize jewlery so that it doesn’t go flat when printet on paper.

      Daniel Laflor on December 27th, 2007 at 9:17 am
    24. #24

      I agree with the last comment about the glamour blur - I would also add that you need to explain when to blur and when not to.

      2 suggestions for portraits of men:

      1) Something about how to get facial hair to be more uniform - that’s for those of us with a lot of white hair but still a fair amount of black. Sort of a Grecian formula to photographers.

      2) Covering up bald spots - again this is for men who still have a good amount of hair on their heads but don’t want the bald spots to detract.

      Most portrait effects are focussed on women but men want to look in portraits as well.

      JPO

      Joe O'C on December 27th, 2007 at 9:35 am
    25. #25

      Ear size changes…
      Removing eyeglass reflection…

      Wes Bigger on December 27th, 2007 at 9:37 am
    26. #26

      Hi Scott,
      If any of your portrait includes a bride, how about removing background color from veil? That is when extracting the bride from one background to another.
      That would be a great help your including it.
      Happy New Year! Keep on rocking! By the way I love reading the QA’s of your books. Can’t stop giggling and going back to those pages. Thanks.

      Houry on December 27th, 2007 at 9:45 am
    27. #27

      What about blown out highlights on a persons face? Can you replace it with natural looking skin texture?

      Vicki Holdwick on December 27th, 2007 at 9:49 am
    28. #28

      Are you going to cover making selections to separate people from one background and put in another or is that a totally different book? Also how about pointers about shooting people with different skin colors (different ethnicities)? It seems like the tone curves are really used differently depending on their color. Thanks.

      Kathleen Difato

      Kathleen Difato on December 27th, 2007 at 9:54 am
    29. #29

      I don’t know if this topic falls under color correction. This past summer I took some portraits outside and it was a very hot day so in a lot of the photos the subject had a flush appearance. Is there a way to get rid of the redness without affecting the color in the whole photograph? Some people do have a natural red, ruddy skin tone in their face even without it being hot.

      John T. on December 27th, 2007 at 9:57 am
    30. #30

      We once pitched this idea for a security software company.

      The visual of the ad was a person who was beaten up. The baseline said: “There are other ways to secure your data”. So, the client loved it, and we had to photoshop all the bruises and scratches. Not the bloody type horror kinda feel, but the “wow this looks very realistic feel”.

      I found it really hard to do that job. Could have used some tutorials back than :)

      Cheers,
      Reginald.

      Reginald on December 27th, 2007 at 10:04 am
    31. #31

      Hi Scott,
      I’d sure love to be able to change someone looking slightly away from the camera to looking AT the camera. Thanks

      Joanie on December 27th, 2007 at 10:05 am
    32. #32

      I’d really like to know how to make the lips look shiny and wet as I’ve seen so often in ad’s. Also how to reduce raccoon eyes caused by low light shadows.

      Steve on December 27th, 2007 at 10:11 am
    33. #33

      Hi Scott, I seen this on one other post, so I’d second how to remove shadows behind a person.

      Joe on December 27th, 2007 at 10:12 am
    34. #34

      Scott,

      I really like your course outline, and I think it will be a very valuable class. Your list looks very comprehensive, but you might consider adding the use of a quick dodge/burn technique to accent the highlights & shadows in a subjects hair and make it appear more 3-D. I would also suggest a quick overview of removing too much shine on a subjects lips with the clone stamp (Darken) setting. I hope these suggestions help.

      Best,
      Kevin

      Kevin on December 27th, 2007 at 10:15 am
    35. #35

      Hi Scott!

      Alot of same requests i think… (all good). How about adding a photoshot, I mean without a good, great picture there will never be a great result.

      But if it`s Photoshop lessons you what to add, I go for adding how to fix nails on women.

      best regards/ T

      Thorbjörn Ekholm on December 27th, 2007 at 10:15 am
    36. #36

      Scott,

      This is a little off topic, but not too far. I was an early subscriber to the online training, and think it a spot on concept.

      My only wish is that there was a way for subscriber to download the lessons and watch them offline. Planes, trains and automobiles, that’s where I can set aside uninterrupted time for learning (don’t ask about the automobiles) that’s the only thing that prevents the online training from being a “10″.

      So get those gurus working on a method that protects your intellectual property and also record your loyal subscribers.

      Keep up the good work,

      Bob

      Robert Minkus on December 27th, 2007 at 10:16 am
    37. #37

      Here’s another one: Reconstructing The Missing Parts.

      This has happened quite a few times. You search for an image (Getty, iStock, …), you find it, but it’s not 100% what you need. The hair of the person is being cropped of, someone is standing in front of him, he’s calling (but you don’t want that person to be calling). You definitely want to use that guy, so you have to rework that image.
      Adding the missing parts. Rework a portion of the face that was covered by a cellphone, hand, arm, … Reconstructing a missing ear, …

      Have done it a dozen times.

      Reginald on December 27th, 2007 at 10:17 am
    38. #38

      You know, I always keep the golden rule up first, and that is, Don’t Lose the Reality! I would definitely include that. We all can get in there and use the tools, but it takes a smart eye to Keep the Reality! It is the point where you go TOO far but for some reason, YOU, the artist THINKS it looks GREAT. It’s a fine line, but I would include Don’t Lose the Reality! (when retouching) unless it is intended, of course.

      Chris Joyce on December 27th, 2007 at 10:18 am
    39. #39

      I could use a tip on correcting diffraction on the outside edge of eyeglasses, i.e. when the subject has high-index or thick corrective lenses.

      Also, how to reposition people when they weren’t spaced properly and you have one person in front of another — how do you recreate the clothing or the background for the person in back.

      I second the comment above about correcting for rosacea, this one has thrown me at least 3 times. It’s especially difficult when it’s a group shot, you don’t want to affect all faces, but also make the fix subtly.

      Hair thinning for women.

      Here’s another tip needed but with an editorial bent: how far do you go in retouching a person before they no longer look like themselves? Should you remove an obvious mole that makes a person look like who they are? This could be the first or the last chapter. Provide a link to websites that show this kind of before and after as a reference so we can study further on our own.

      I recommend your books to everyone, and wish I got a commission on all I’ve sold! Keep up the fine work, Scott!

      Jeff Grandon on December 27th, 2007 at 10:20 am
    40. #40

      Hi Scott,

      How about tips on how to pose the subject. I really lack in this area.

      mike

      Mike on December 27th, 2007 at 10:20 am
    41. #41

      Scott,
      How about overall skin tone changes on just one person when there’s two in the photo? I have two daughters, one with somewhat fair skin, and the other with extremely fair skin (the poor girl looks ghostly at times). I would love to know how to darken and give a good skin tone to both of them, but surely they would require a different amount. One overall adjustment would give one of them too much or the other not enough.

      BTW, got the Seven Point System for Christmas and got through 6 lessons yesterday. I LOVE IT!!!

      Bob on December 27th, 2007 at 10:22 am
    42. #42

      You mentioned nose size … how about some tips on de-emphasizing large and/or hairy nostrils?

      And maybe something about evening out oily skin?

      Gerry O'Brien on December 27th, 2007 at 10:30 am
    43. #43

      Hi Scott, great idea for some lessons.
      I would like to know a better way for removing shininess from noses and foreheads. Especially teenagers in their prime! :o)

      Also, I think it would be great to know how to increase masculinity and gritiness in a male face close-up, similar to the latest ad campaign you see for the US Navy.
      I find we ofen focus on women’s portraits to make them softer and more feminine, Why not something for the masulinity of men? I think the navy ad campaign really gets this right.

      Also, I’ve always wanted to know how to create “Pantene” hair in photos. Nobody has hair better than the Pantene advertisements, where the hairs are all discernable, healthy, full, and just all around awesome.
      Can you show us how to give Pantene hair to our portraits?
      Thanks, and I wish you the best of luck!
      -Mark

      Mark on December 27th, 2007 at 10:33 am
    44. #44

      Happy New Year Scott! I do a lot of work for rodeo queens and they want volumes of hair. I’ve tried cloniing and used many brushes, but it never really looks like their own hair.

      Have any magic wand? Bad joke!
      Thanks
      Your friend.
      Dr J

      Dr. David Jones on December 27th, 2007 at 10:43 am
    45. #45

      Changing eye direction.

      Matt on December 27th, 2007 at 10:44 am
    46. #46

      While I think that someone mentioned changing backgrounds, I would like to see something about greenscreen shooting and creating the kind of backgrounds used for grade school/ high school pictures.

      As a second part of this and the whole “change backgrounds” is a focus on trying to make it blend in and look real. Too many times when people do this it is out of proportion and looks sliced.

      T.

      T. Michael Testi on December 27th, 2007 at 10:48 am
    47. #47

      So I don’t know if this is technically retouching, but it’s definitely something that would be helpful for group portraits, especially for those of us who shoot children…Replacing a funny face or eyes looking the wrong direction, etc. ;) It’s something that I offer my clients with kids who aren’t exactly cooperative. I include it in as part of my finishing services.

      Robyn on December 27th, 2007 at 10:53 am
    48. #48

      Looking at the list and comparing it to what I would do on a portrait of myself, I think you hit 99.9% of the changes (less the female stuff) that are needed to make me look better :)

      How about Black and White rendering and fixes that need to be done prior to making a B&W conversion for the best net result.

      It may have been mentioned - dealing with group photos and lighting challenges and how to make multiple people appear “leaner” without being obvious.

      Maybe a mention of PS Blending options for merging group portraits to combine the best parts of each image into one seamlessly.

      Regards,

      Peter

      Peter Marcaurelle on December 27th, 2007 at 11:01 am
    49. #49

      Scott,

      How about a way to bulk up — add what appears to be a little muscle — to a subject?

      -Kris

      Kris on December 27th, 2007 at 11:06 am
    50. #50

      How about removing hot spots from faces of sun tanned or dark skin subjects?

      Gene on December 27th, 2007 at 11:09 am
    51. #51

      I would like to see a tutorial or class on changing clothing color. Also how about a “hair cut,” i.e. how to take out one hairstyle and put in a different hairstyle. Those would be helpful. I also think a basic understanding of typical retouching “tools” in photoshop, i.e. clone stamp, healing brush, etc.

      James Conlin on December 27th, 2007 at 11:09 am
    52. #52

      Applying your “Hollywood” effect appropriately for portraits of men, women and children would be very useful and appealing!

      Balliolman on December 27th, 2007 at 11:15 am
    53. #53

      Scott:

      Things I’d be interested in:

      1. Giving someone an oiverall nice tan look, or removing tan lines

      2. Women’s hands - can never quite nail down, well, nails! I know it usually involves using the pen tool, but it never looks real

      3. If you’re looking at leg shaping, how about lengthening them to get that supermodel enhancement?

      4. I don’t know what you call this, but you know when you have two or more photos taken at different times, and you try to merge people from the pictures into one picture? It never looks real, because people had different lighting at those different times. I’d like the photo to be retouched so everyone appears to have been in the same photo at the time it was taken - matching lighting, shadows, skin, etc.

      That’s my two cents worth.

      Richard on December 27th, 2007 at 11:18 am
    54. #54

      Scott,

      I am told by some in the medical field as a man grows older ears “tend” to expand, resulting in “big ears”.
      My suggestion is to add a feature of “reducing ear size’s”, and of course as my wife says, “you sill don’t hear, that is do this, do that”, lol, but at least us guys can look better.

      Ken

      Ken Lawson on December 27th, 2007 at 11:20 am
    55. #55

      How about this as a topic: Have “I gone too far? Knowing when enough is enough.” With all the retouching technique here it is easy to go overboard especially if you are a beginner. It would be nice to see something in the beginning or end of the class that dealt with this as a issue. Maybe even have some examples to show some over-retouching.

      If people are confusing your retouched Scott Kelby portrait with Brad Pitt… maybe you went a wee bit too far in the retouching department. j/k

      - Pete

      Pete on December 27th, 2007 at 11:25 am
    56. #56

      Hi Scott,

      Someone mentioned removing a flushed look but one of the most important things to cover would be how to color correct skin in general. Caucasian, Asian, Black, Latin all have different balances not to mention correcting them when you have to shoot in less than ideal lighting conditions.

      Jim

      Jim Goshorn on December 27th, 2007 at 11:26 am
    57. #57

      Hey Scott,

      I would recommend a section on removing sun burns/tan lines. I have seen numerous photos taken before weddings where the bride has gotten a little too much “sun”, especially from tanning beds. A section on evening out the skin tones to remove sun burns would be nice as would a section on removing tan lines. Just a thought.

      Brandon on December 27th, 2007 at 11:40 am
    58. #58

      Hey Scott,

      Really looking forward to viewing your next installment - I never miss an opportunity to learn more about retouching. Here are some thoughts I had for your online class:

      1) Consider a segment on retouching with a tablet vs. a mouse.

      2) I would like to see your technique on enhancing/creating a gloss look on a womans lips.

      3) Also, could you discuss changing makeup color and even painting in additional makeup.

      4) Lastly (I don’t know how much body retouching you intend to cover) consider painting in shadows and highlights to accentuate muscle toning and improve the perception of the body shape.

      Thanks and keep em coming. You are certainly amassing an amazing body of work!

      Eric

      Eric Edwins on December 27th, 2007 at 11:47 am
    59. #59

      Scott,
      I didn’t scan all the previous comments so I hope this isn’t redundant. Maybe a few lessons on touching up kids and babies in particular. I worked in an all digital children’s portrait studio in Lexington, KY and we had some unusual retouches due to the nature of our line of photography. I had one child that was just gorgeous, but had drool hanging from here bottom lip. A little retouching and it was perfect. We also brightened eyes which you already have a lesson on. Maybe converting portraiture to B & W would be a nice lesson to. Better to shoot it B & W, but with all the advances with Raw and LR a lesson on conversion might be a welcome addition. Looks great so far and itseems you have a great number of lesson ideas already. Hope you had a great Christmas and a great new year.
      Blessings,
      Doug

      Doug Zeliff on December 27th, 2007 at 11:55 am
    60. #60

      Scott,
      I am thinking you might want to have two lesson’s added in to follow the intro…

      The first would be to talk about the ethics of retouching or lack thereof.

      Also I would do a lesson upfront talking about the best environment to work in within photoshop (degree of capture sharpening, colorspace, bit depth, resolution, smart filters/objects or not, and the tools of the trade such as tablets).

      Thanks,
      Tom

      Tom Moore on December 27th, 2007 at 11:59 am
    61. #61

      Scott,
      Kevin mentioned it above, and I’ll reiterate. It starts with a good shot from the camera. Probably not worth going crazy with reflectors, diffusers, and multi-flash setups, but a lot of problems are solved by a bouncing a flash off a white ceiling.
      Just some quick tips on getting it good in the camera, so you can make it great with Photoshop.

      Jim on December 27th, 2007 at 12:03 pm
    62. #62

      Scott,
      I’d suggest..
      1. Fixing poor lighting ….. fixing shadows and highlights
      2. Vignetting (spelling?!) … subtle or otherwise
      3. Changing the color of items of clothing (especially in groups)
      4. How about subtle hair restoration for the less fortunate males
      5. Improving backgrounds (eg blur to isolate subjects better), swapping out for more desired shots eg spring shot turned into beautiful fall color etc
      6. How to make those high contrast portraits from regular shots
      7. How about a few words about effective cropping and/or composition
      cheers
      Muir

      Muir Robertson on December 27th, 2007 at 12:42 pm
    63. #63

      How to straighten crooked or chipped tooth?
      And how to make the face glow (pop out)?
      How to add a taller bridge on the nose for Asian subjects (I am Asian so no PC here :).

      Edwardson on December 27th, 2007 at 12:58 pm
    64. #64

      Yea and you can use the tips from your digital photography book…think you cover about everything you mentioned on your list - in your book. That info combined with actual “do this…do that…” hands on training would be great for students.

      In fact, I just offered a 3 session workshop myself using many of the tips & tricks that you cover in your book. And the best part of the class was when students brought in their own pictures to work on. Having them work on their own photos makes for a more personal touch & they’ll be even more eager to hone their retouching skills, and remember the info.

      Was really fun to watch them bring their old photos back to life using a variety of cosmetic & restoration retouching techniques + some quick color & exposure corrections.

      Think a huge plus for whatever retouching we do is to keep it practical & natural looking.

      keith on December 27th, 2007 at 1:09 pm
    65. #65

      I’m looking for the same thing Bruno mentioned in the first comment—double chin reduction. Could you include a lesson on how to remove that marsupial-like droop between the neck and chin on half-portly folks? Oh, and a brief discussion on the ethics of retouching would be shweet too. Thanks!

      Issac on December 27th, 2007 at 1:12 pm
    66. #66

      Hey Scott old man. You’ve got a nice list for your Class, too darn that i’m to far away to attend… it sounds marvelous!

      For my taste you should take one o f the following things into class:

      - Fixing Makeup Misstakes
      - Removing Brands from Clothes (always nice to see)
      - Removing visible hairgrips
      - Removing Care Instruction Flags from Clothes (There is _nothing_ more painfully than seeeing those white flags on a picture … after the shooting is done)

      Take Care.

      Greetings Bastian

      P.S. How about having a Class in Switzerland? ;-)

      Bastian Widmer on December 27th, 2007 at 1:22 pm
    67. #67

      i always like using the apply image command to blend some detail from the green channel into the red channel. I realize that you cover this in your channels book but it woulden’t hurt to have a small piece on it here too.
      It really gives the face a 3 dimensional quality.

      rob blanchard on December 27th, 2007 at 1:27 pm
    68. #68

      A few things with skin:

      - adding warmth/color (for those who are pastey white, or who got too much flash)
      - smoothing/removing tan lines
      - removing clothes (ok, not that far!!! I’m thinking more along the lines of a sleeve that needs to be pushed up the arm a bit, or a stray collar covering part of the neck, or a kid’s diaper sticking out)

      David on December 27th, 2007 at 1:32 pm
    69. #69

      Both my parents wear glasses and I get these awful reflections from the flash – almost to the point where they obscure their eyes. Would you consider a tip on how to minimize the reflection?

      Barbara Laughon on December 27th, 2007 at 1:49 pm
    70. #70

      -Minimizing receding hairlines / thin hair / balding
      -Adding sparkle to jewelry
      -Hair:
      -Changing the location of the part (mostly for women)
      -Softening hair texture / making it less frizzy
      -Dimples - adding/removing/enhancing
      -Sideburns - adding/removing/enhancing

      Thanks, Scott, for all the great tips!
      Katie

      Katie Heupel on December 27th, 2007 at 1:50 pm
    71. #71

      How about lessons on achieving the look of famous portrait artists like Annie Leibovitz? I know it’s hard to teach the artistic side of portraiture, but covering some basics like Rembrandt-lighting will inspire style.

      Prashant S. on December 27th, 2007 at 1:58 pm
    72. #72

      Hi Scott,

      How about “Be observant, and take a good photograph in the first place.”

      Thanks, I enjoy your blogs.
      Swami

      Swami Gurupremananda on December 27th, 2007 at 2:03 pm
    73. #73

      Scott, The class sounds great and one that I would enjoy taking. How about fixing problem ears; i.e., large and protruding “dumbo ears”.

      Warren Kneis on December 27th, 2007 at 2:24 pm
    74. #74

      Looks like a nice class I hope the advanced part will really be advanced and give some tips to do the top notch stuff.

      Ideas:
      I often have to put in a new background a good way to cut out especeally hair would be nice. The faster and easier the better.

      In general a high fashion shot needs a lot of work would be nice to have a look at stuff like that and not just the normal family portrait.

      Correction of skin color and a nice way to remove tan lines or normal skin color changes would be nice.

      Theis on December 27th, 2007 at 2:26 pm
    75. #75

      Fixing double catchlights in the eyes.

      Dave Coley on December 27th, 2007 at 2:26 pm
    76. #76

      Hello Scott,
      How about touching up hair roots?(They are quite often a different colour than the rest of the hair.

      P.S.Have a terrific New Year!!!!

      Martin E. Morris on December 27th, 2007 at 2:32 pm
    77. #77

      a series of actions for a quick fix of minor corrections

      Grahame on December 27th, 2007 at 2:59 pm
    78. #78

      Removing sun tan lines. How to even out skin tone. I once took a picture of someone in a low cut top, but it was clear they had ealier gotten a lot of sun while wearing a shorter v-neck.

      Jonathan Haber on December 27th, 2007 at 3:02 pm
    79. #79

      Scott - you might want to consider how to keep the background less distracting and what makes a good background for portrait and/or people shots. Class looks great.

      Syd Johnson on December 27th, 2007 at 3:09 pm
    80. #80

      Hi Scott,

      How about how to remove unwanted color (like redness) from skin?

      Take care,

      Stephen

      Stephen J. Zeller on December 27th, 2007 at 3:13 pm
    81. #81

      A suggestion:

      Fixing shiny/oily skin, making it look natural.

      Todd Nordquist on December 27th, 2007 at 3:16 pm
    82. #82

      All Scott has to do is offer a free copy of one of his books and comments come out of the woodwork.

      So, how about showing how to create the effect of ichthyosis?

      Dan Brown on December 27th, 2007 at 3:24 pm
    83. #83

      Scott,

      A problem I have run into often ( and my inability to correct it ) is to match skin color on the same person. Often it is due to bad or “Street” make up.The face looks one color and the neck looks much different - because they don’t put make up on their neck. I work with people who are on TV and mostly do their own make up, the make up is for TV and not Stills or print. So the make up will show up quite blue under strobe - because of the whitening agent - and very orange in normal light.

      thanks for your help

      tom

      Tom Vollick on December 27th, 2007 at 3:35 pm
    84. #84

      Scott,

      How about changing hair color, or removing unwanted grey hairs?

      Thanks for everything you do!!

      Liz

      Liz Kaye on December 27th, 2007 at 4:16 pm
    85. #85

      Hi Scott, seems that people are reacting faster than me :(
      Well, how about giving an idea on how to give a photo a gritty effect? - A high contrast black and white effect. Such photos have great impact on the viewer and are pleasing to see or even hang on a wall.

      Take care,
      Fakhra (from UAE) :)

      Fakhra on December 27th, 2007 at 4:29 pm
    86. #86

      Scott,

      Smoothing and diminishing skin blemishes is wonderful.

      But, how do you keep the skin color looking “natural” and “real”?

      Once the blemishes have been diminished, and the skin is smoother, how

      do keep the skin that we or someone else is in looking “natural”?

      Thanks.

      Jim

      Jim Helwig on December 27th, 2007 at 4:35 pm
    87. #87

      Hey Scott!

      Looks like a winner of a course!

      What about adding a chapter on Glamour - adding a glam-glow, sparkle the jewelry, etc.

      Gene McCullagh on December 27th, 2007 at 4:56 pm
    88. #88

      I think people have had great ideas. Here are a couple things that I don’t think I saw previously mentioned.

      1. Start out, probably after the Introduction, by laying about your workspace. I know, at least for me, I am always interested in how a teacher/instructor has PS setup. I’d love to know if you have a “special” portrait workspace (if you don’t, maybe you’d have an idea of what one would be).
      2. Very much in line with #1, having a list of “actions” that you use. I guess these first two points would really be for setup and time saving.
      3. I saw in your lesson list that you have the complete start to finish workflows. I would just like to kind of clarify that it would be great if this started at importing to Lightroom, or using Camera RAW, involved all of the adjustments to the RAW image in one of those programs and then progressed to PS. My real suggestion on this topic is for you to do more than 2 examples. I am in the middle of going through your 7-Point System book and I think the repetition is invaluable. I just think that going along with that idea of repetition would drive home the points more fully.

      Mike P on December 27th, 2007 at 5:06 pm
    89. #89

      1) Minimizing beards, rashes and pores on men’s faces and neck.

      2) Straightening a tie.

      3) Minimizing ‘peach fuzz’ both on the sides of a face and at the face edge.

      4) Removing mottling patterns from newborn skin.

      Linda on December 27th, 2007 at 5:13 pm
    90. #90

      Hi Scott,

      Some of your books are also translated into Dutch. I hope more will follow, although English is not such a big problem.

      One tip, which I missed in the already large amount of subjects:
      Many of my old photographs have missing corner(s). How to repair this.

      regards and have blessed New Year

      Ton

      Ton Nolles on December 27th, 2007 at 5:14 pm
    91. #91

      There are so many thing you can change with retouching a portrait but what NOT to change is sometimes a big issue, the person will need to be recognizable as John or Mary or whoever it is. (Unless you want them to look like Scott) So the question is what not to change or do a moderate change on.

      Happy New Year.

      Blips on December 27th, 2007 at 5:30 pm
    92. #92

      Scott,

      An excellent course outline and about 100 very good suggestions so far. Would really like to see you emphasize the art of NOT over sharpening and brightening eyes. This goes along with the suggestion earlier by “Reginald” about maintaining a sense of realism in your portraits. Thanks Scott, keep up the great work!

      Doug May on December 27th, 2007 at 6:09 pm
    93. #93

      Hi Scott,

      I definitely second/third removing/smoothing tan lines, touching up roots for hair color, reducing shine on skin. How about removing sweat stains? I’ve found that clone/healing doesn’t always work as you’ve got wrinkles on fabric, different lighting conditions.

      I regularly refer to your books and am looking forward to the tutorial.

      Eden Hensley on December 27th, 2007 at 6:26 pm
    94. #94

      Hi,

      Definitely reflections on glasses and the shadow of the glasses on the face.
      Sharpening skin is my favourite from your list.
      best regards,

      jos van sonderen on December 27th, 2007 at 6:38 pm
    95. #95

      Scott,
      Outstanding training. Can’t wait. I know you said color correction would not be in the training. Doe this also mean you won’t cover skin tone color correction? Would you pretty, PRETTY please consider instruction on how to color correct skin tones during the workflow? If the skin looks a little too white, yellow, red, gray, or blue, what’s the best method to fix it and where (RAW, Photoshop). If there’s a color cast because of surroundings, what’s the best way to get it out. That kind of stuff. This would be so helpful. Thanks. :-)

      Penny on December 27th, 2007 at 6:50 pm
    96. #96

      Hi Scott,

      I would like to see a chapter on how to deal with hair — especially thinning hair on women of a certain age. How to handle subjects with wind-blown stray hairs or just plain “bad hair day” hair would be helpful, too.

      I have an example of what I encountered recently, along with my humble solution. If you would like to see them just email me.

      Scott, you, your teaching methods and books ROCK!

      Wishing you and your family a Peaceful and Happy New Year.

      Dan

      Dan DeRyckere on December 27th, 2007 at 7:05 pm
    97. #97

      Hi Scott,

      I attended a few of your training and learned lots, however I have yet to see a section focused on portrait issues with people of color. I know a great deal of the lessons in the apply to anybody but I would like to see some of the lessons include corrections on portraits of people of color.

      Thanks

      Thaddeus Miles on December 27th, 2007 at 7:06 pm
    98. #98

      Scott,
      A few ideas
      -Removing/tightening loose skin i.e. sagging neck
      -Removing Spider veins
      -Removing birthmarks
      -Removing Tattoos
      -Changing eye color (for fun)/enhancing eye color
      -Removing jewelry
      -Removing bags under eyes
      -Removing Glare from eye/sunglasses

      Good luck

      Jason D on December 27th, 2007 at 7:38 pm
    99. #99

      Scott -

      How about a spinoff from the “7-Point” system (which is great, by the way, and I’m mostly not just saying that to sway your opinion)? Make it the “7-Dwarves” system to make people taller, look less grumpy, look less sleepy, appear more gregarious, and remove red noses (oh wait, that was one of the reindeer). Well, you get the idea. Do I get the book?

      DougP on December 27th, 2007 at 7:49 pm
    100. #100

      Hi Scott,

      Sounds like a great class. You have everything covered in your list along with a few in the posts but the most important lesson of all (learned it from you at one of your seminars) - after you do any retouching and the subject of the portrait says “I didn’t know I look that good” - don;t say “well you don’t really - I made some significant adjustments in Photoshop to remove the wrinkles, brighten your teeth,get,rid of that nasty looking pimple, etc.” Your message was that we as ultimately are trying to capture and convey through images how the persom looked to us that day (whether it’s a wedding, some other event, or just an ordinary shoot)..

      I recently did a photoshoot of a couple of adolescent musicians and using your portrait retouching techniques produced images that looked exactly the way they did to me that day! I recall as one of them looked at one of her photos she said to her Mom (who remarked how beautiful the photos were) “I don’t look that good”. I just smiled and said “that’s exactly how you looked to me through the lens of the camera that day!”

      Good luck with the lessons!

      Ron

      Ron O'Connor on December 27th, 2007 at 8:09 pm
    101. #101

      HI Scott,

      I saw from your last suggestion post that you read all of them and from reading all of these posts, it’s apparent that not everyone does, due to the crazy repetition of some of the suggestions.

      I think that people need to know about how much to retouch and what to / or not to change and to what extent. Maybe a checklist for your client or a proof that you can “mark up” The art is knowing when to stop. I believe that good retouching is retouching that you “can’t see”.

      We always see examples of good art, but not the bad. I see more bad retouching…over sharpened eyes with blurry skin is my pet peave. Bad retouching is usually too heavy handed on anything.

      Also, good retouching is an art of patience, so there should be time saving set up, but know to take your time doing the work, watch out for the “quick fix”.

      Know the end need of your retouching, is it family portrait, commercial, acting (where they need to look like their photo), pageants (where it’s ok to be a little more ‘plastic’ and have a boo-foo doo!), glamour, or a default pic on myspace?

      That’s my piece about retouching!

      Thanks for all you do…

      Zac on December 27th, 2007 at 8:22 pm
    102. #102

      Achieving accurate skin tones is one of the seems the one of the most challenging tasks in digital photography - one I just never can get right. A simple way to achieve this would be a great late Christmas gift from you to me!

      Paul M on December 27th, 2007 at 8:48 pm
    103. #103

      I just reread my post and sorry for the whipping! I looked at your list and these are the biggest beatings of retouching that I experience. Some of the items are repeated from earlier posts, they are here for reiteration:

      Fixing hair lines around the forehead area, filling in or pushing back. Or the evil separation of some hair in a bang…

      Fixing roots or lightening the hair to make it more blonde, (when enough light has not been made available to the top of the head).

      Trimming and shaping eyebrows to take away the “Groucho” look or to fill over zealous pluckers.

      Blotchy skin: red, yellow or blue casts. Or weirdly when hand color doesn’t match!

      Digital dentistry, mainly teeth shapes, lengths and straightening. Oh and helping correct “gumminess”.

      Hair “smoothing”.

      Lastly, a quick tutorial on fixing bad makeup, blending eyeshadows, making the foundation and neck match (no severed heads), reshaping lips and fixing lipstick that has run amuck, digital powder, clumpy eyelashes and fixing eyelashes that look like a dead bug (separated, individual lashes), overblushing and no blush and adding gloss to flat lips (or taking away a little shine, if they look like they just finished eating fried chicken).

      Thanks for all the help Scott, you have such a gift for teaching….

      Zac

      Zac on December 27th, 2007 at 8:52 pm
    104. #104

      Hi,

      I would be interested in:

      - how to move eyeballs so they appear to be looking at the camera

      -tips on NOT overdoing it with the liquify tool

      -how to get the best natural looking skin tones

      Thanks!

      Adalia on December 27th, 2007 at 9:27 pm
    105. #105

      Silly question Scott.

      On the new training site once you join can you watch the same training more than once? Like your 7 point system book I tend to have to watch somehting a couple times to retain it etc..

      Steve Beck on December 27th, 2007 at 9:28 pm
    106. #106

      Scott

      Consider adding a section on removing body piercings.

      Al Sandberg on December 27th, 2007 at 10:57 pm
    107. #107

      How to professionally colorize old / black and white photos . Every one goes from color to black & white

      S. FISHER on December 27th, 2007 at 11:07 pm
    108. #108

      Hi Scott,
      This relates to tooth shape. You also might want to address how to fix the “gummy smile”. Teeth have an individual ideal crown length and width that are porportional to each other. Sometimes referred to as the Golden Porportion or Devine Porportion. This is the basis for the esthetically successful dental make-over. If you would like more info please contact me. I’m halfway through your 7 point system. Love it!

      J on December 27th, 2007 at 11:08 pm
    109. #109

      In your outline you spelled jowl incorrectly…maybe just a typo, but thought I’d mention it…just the old editor in me coming out.

      Jim W on December 27th, 2007 at 11:24 pm
    110. #110

      I would like to see some techniques on evening out skin tones where there is sunburn or one area (face) is darker that the another (neck).

      Charles Smith on December 27th, 2007 at 11:29 pm
    111. #111

      Hi Scott.

      I read your blog this morning and thought,”Wow.. he seems to have it covered”

      But then I had a family member ask me to retouch a portrait, and the hardest part was to select around the person and reduce the impact of the background.

      So thats my suggestion…

      Have a great New Years.

      Alan Hess on December 28th, 2007 at 12:10 am
    112. #112

      How about evening out freckles…. another area that one can go too far..

      I also agree with the first post… removing that double chin…

      Can’t wait to see this class… I’m signing up as soon as I finish this project at work!!

      Denise on December 28th, 2007 at 12:10 am
    113. #113

      Hi Scott,

      “Backgrounds”… you must include some technique to change or improve the background to a portrait shoot. I personally would love to see some techniques on hair selection so you can change the background of a portrait.

      Cesar Rosales on December 28th, 2007 at 12:11 am
    114. #114

      Scott
      Head and body swaps

      Stephen Lacko on December 28th, 2007 at 12:27 am
    115. #115

      How to decrease a double chin - and good skin tone automation… creamy, nice skin with actions??

      Kim Porter on December 28th, 2007 at 12:52 am
    116. #116

      Scott -
      114 comments at the point of posting this, so I doubt this has not been mentioned yet, but I’ll give it a go anyway without reading all of these comments.

      In your books, which I am a big fan of, I am surprised not to see any material on skin tones correction. Whenever I’m retouching a portrait, this is always the first step I do. If skin looks orange, or has green or blue cast to it, or whatever, when it should look normal/natural, does it make any difference how the rest of the portrait looks like? I use simple RGB color curves adjustment that Lee Varis describes in his Skin book to make skin look natural, but I’m surprised this subject does not get more attention from you and the rest of Photoshop guys. That adjustment makes a huge difference.

      When you view images on calibrated monitors, it’s really distracting when human skin doesn’t look human.

      Ivan Makarov on December 28th, 2007 at 12:57 am
    117. #117

      PS - If you do decide to include something on skin tones, you should break it up by age, gender and race. Female skin tones are different from male, infant skin tones/color shouldn’t look the same as an aged grandma, etc.

      Ivan Makarov on December 28th, 2007 at 1:02 am
    118. #118

      Hi Scott,

      I did not see anyone mention the 2-5 minute retouch. I would love to see a quick workflow included for touching up the photos for a presentation to your client. You obviously would not want to waste time on images that they may not want. Other than that the list looks good.

      Steve

      Steve I on December 28th, 2007 at 1:22 am
    119. #119

      Hey Scott
      Great line up of topics:
      Here are a few issues in addition to your list, that I have run into when doing retouches
      Face Shine
      Men’s beard issues, especially those having both black and white hair stubbles.
      Fixing crooked necklace or jewelry, or removing work ID tags.
      Fixing blotchy skin, or red vein/blue vein in older folks
      Fixing crooked or chipped teeth
      Proportion head (adjust top to bottom)
      Adjust width of head
      Moving/ adjusting face components, such as brows, eyes to scale, move or rotate “parts”
      Raise / lower the brow, raise lip, raise cheeks, narrow/widen eyes. Even the eyes for symmetry
      If freedom to change mood: Alter face features to set a mood style, such as confidence, happiness, kindness, Proportioned,
      Hope you use some of these ideas, really looking forward to being able to contribute.
      Best wishes and Happy New Year
      Greg

      Gregory Argentieri on December 28th, 2007 at 1:46 am
    120. #120

      How about some old timey photo resortation— pre-60’s with rips, wrinkles, fading, just a bad ole photo, grain and disclolorization probs?

      John on December 28th, 2007 at 1:47 am
    121. #121

      Dear Scott:
      Could I add one more suggestion/request: I believe your plans are to have this part of your online Kelby Training and thats GREAT news. Also I think this is one training session that would also benefit via DVD distribution as well. I know I would keep this one as a handy reference. Just a thought

      Hey while Im on thoughts. Regarding the new Kelby Online 24/7 training subscription would it also be of interest to offer at additional subscription rate a way to obtain hard copies of training or a way to download the online training sessions.

      Greg

      Gregory Argentieri on December 28th, 2007 at 10:54 am
    122. #122

      This may be a variation of some other requests, but I would like some help on correcting skin tones when one person in the picture has an olive toned skin and the other a fair tone. I run into this with my family (fair, Irish) and my in-laws (olive, Italian)!

      I have been enjoying all the wealth of information on the NAPP site and am looking forward to the coming year and using my subscription to Kelby Online Training!

      Keep up the great work. God bless you and yours.

      Constance

      Constance on December 28th, 2007 at 6:10 pm
    123. #123

      Hi Scott,

      It looks like Constance’s post on the 28th is similar to my request. I am an African American and think it would be nice to see some examples with people of color, especially in mixed groups where the color is off. One particular challenge I had earlier this year occurred when I took a picture that included a darker skinned person and a European American with pale white skin. Also included in the same photo were picture of various skin tones. My biggest problem was trying to adjust the darker skinned person because the color seemed to be way out of line. I don’t know if this would fit in the book but any tips you have would certainly be helpful. Keep up the great work!

      Nancy on December 31st, 2007 at 3:11 am
    124. #124

      Scott,
      Someone mentioned the veil in wedding photography…Correcting the lighting through the veil is hard.
      Also, correcting harsh lighting on flesh tones from the flash.
      Thanks.
      Lila

      Lila Stafford on January 1st, 2008 at 1:57 pm
    125. #125

      Scott,
      BRACES–they are driving me crazy. Getting those teeth to look natural, especially the back ones, is a huge challenge. I really hate it when the back teeth protrude with metal. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
      Keep up the good work,
      Debbie

      Deborah on January 3rd, 2008 at 12:59 pm
    126. #126

      Scott

      It’s all about the skin color for me – as coming from the UK where not everyone is blessed with a nice tan (and good teeth) giving someone a better skin tone really makes the image

      I know about using CMYK ratios and curves to get a pleasing skin color; however everything that I have read assumes a K value of around 0%. Whilst this can be achieved using different color profiles most of the time, it falls down when the person is in shade.

      Whilst I know that this is a little advanced – it is so amazing it needs to be in the training.

      As someone else said also removing red blotches from the skin is also great.

      Evil9 on January 4th, 2008 at 7:44 am
    127. #127

      How about how to remove someone from a family portrait due to divorce?

      Freddi Fredrickson on January 8th, 2008 at 3:10 pm
    128. #128

      How about, when you’re done, making it into a new book? I was recently retouching family photos taken over Christmas and I was thinking that a book on portrait retouching would have been really useful.

      Kristin on January 9th, 2008 at 10:26 am
    129. #129

      Please consider publishing a book on this subject. Would like to see a comprehensive book instead of a video. I know, more work for you…..but I like to reference a book when I run into issues.

      Dee on January 10th, 2008 at 8:37 am
    130. #130

      Have you seen the “Dove Evolution” video? If not, check it out here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iYhCn0jf46U

      Anyway, how about how to do the techniques shown on the video ~ raising eyebrows, lengthening a neck…etc

      Chris on January 10th, 2008 at 10:52 pm
    131. #131

      I think you should add a piece on necks. As the population ages(especially the female group), necks are becoming more and more of a problem. Sagging skin, wrinkles, puckers etc are driving people crazy.
      j.

      Jody on January 12th, 2008 at 11:42 am
    132. #132

      Just thought of something else. Have been working with a lot of Latinas lately and there are some particular problems with skin tone for them. It has a tendency to ‘flatten out’ - at least for me. A section on skin tones for people of color would be really helpful.
      j.

      Jody on January 12th, 2008 at 11:51 am
    133. #133

      How to remove eyeglass or erase to a picture through Photoshop CS3?

      Sarah on January 14th, 2008 at 6:07 am
    134. #134

      remove port wine area, scars(large blemishes, Add hair (balding) or filling in thin spots, Straighten teeth

      Ron Larsen on January 16th, 2008 at 11:32 pm
    135. #135

      Hi Scott,
      I would love to see information about taking animal/pet portraits:
      - enhancing the texture and colour changes of animal fur
      - changing pupil size (especially when pupils are not round, e.g. cats)
      - fixing animal eye problems…not just animal red eye but also the glaring cataracts that so many older animals have.
      Thanks for considering these ideas.
      Cheers.

      Kelly on January 21st, 2008 at 11:16 pm
    136. #136

      Haven’t seen anyone mention this but…

      How about changing pupil size!!! Either larger or smaller.

      In studio photography the lights can sometimes make a model’s pupils rather small. Increasing their size slightly makes them seem more full, natural and more attractive.

      ~Klaatu

      Klaatu on January 27th, 2008 at 2:24 am
    137. #137

      Head swaps/blending group/individual

      David on January 28th, 2008 at 2:58 pm
    138. #138

      Scott
      I have many request to restore school book halftone photos of folks when they