There is a full video on this one in our Learn section but I’ll give you the basic gist here…

*Camera Set-Up:
I want to start out first by making sure your camera is set-up properly. Most of you have the LCD of your camera set to maximum brightness. Read your manual and find out how to change this setting.  You want to change the brightness level of the LCD to the halfway point. Your image wont look as great on the back but you will have a more accurate idea of what your file is really going to look like. This also has the added benefit of forcing you to use your histogram, which is what will truly tell you if you have nailed your exposure.

Reading your camera’s histogram:

The histogram probably pops up often but you just don’t know what it is or how to read it. The basic idea is that the left side is your black point and the right side is your white point. If you pass the bottom corner and your data starts to slide up the side than you are clipping information.  If everything is stacked up to the right than your picture is overexposed (too bright) and you need to adjust your shutter speed until it comes back into range. If everything is stacked up to the left than your picture is underexposed (too dark.) You will need to adjust either the shutter speed or the aperture in order to correct this. While adjusting, beware that your shutter speed stays above a 60th of a second unless you are on a tripod. Also be aware of your aperture if you are going for a specific creative choice.

Turn on your camera and play around with it. Adjusting your LCD Brightness will probably clear up many of your exposure problems. Press the Histogram after your next few shots and see what you are getting.

UnderExposed (Too Dark) Black point has travelled up the left side.

Good Histogram. Left and Right side are contained and nothing is sliding up either side.

OverExposed (Too Bright) The white point has travelled up the right side and information is being lost.

This is where your LCD brightness should be.

This is the same shot with the same exposure. The difference is the LCD brightness. See how easy it is misjudge your exposure based on your LCD brightness?

Any specific questions, leave a comment!

Today we are going to continue the retouch on our model. The last two tutorials were on cleaning up dark circles under the eyes and enhancing the eyes. Next I usually move onto skin and other distractions. I have included a redmarked image at the bottom so you can see what was done. I only used one tool to accomplish all this. The patch tool. There are many ways to achieve these results such as the clone tool, the healing brush and the spot healing brush but I prefer to use the patch tool. It takes a bit more time but I like the results better. Remember, I use a Wacom tablet and if you are just using a mouse it might be a bit harder.

The patch tool lets you select an “good area” next to what you want to remove and use that as the “patch.” Make sure your patch tool is set to source in the upper left. Next carefully select the bad area and then drag it to the good area to patch it. Keep it as close as possible and if there are any hard lines make sure you match them. You will get a preview of the source area as you are patching so just line it up and let go when you are ready.

I use the patch tool for moles, veins, dark spots, pimples, stray hairs, or any shadow that is distracting. It can also be used to remove items such as the necklace. If you look carefully at the redmarked image there is a lot of patch work and I used the tool to remove any “distractions.” However, the overall effect is subtle and just lets you concentrate on the message your client intended.

Redmarked:

Pre Adjust:

Post Adjust:

Close Ups:

Redmarked:

Pre Adjust:

Post Adjust:

This is a continuation of the Photoshop retouching tutorial I began last week. This one will be much harder to see on my blog so try it out on your own photos to see how well it works. *Note: I rarely retouch a portrait subject unless asked. I almost always retouch if it’s commercial work. I use a very light hand so the subject remains as natural as possible.

Last week we removed the dark circles under the eyes. To finish off the eyes I did a few different adjustments. As always, start with a new layer so you can see the effects. If the effects are too much you can lower the opacity to make it look more natural:

Define Iris: As you get older the dark line around your iris tends to get more dull. To enhance this set your brush to a size that matches the thin iris line. (about 3) Set the brush’s blend mode to multiply. I like to start around 15% opacity and layer it on from there. Zoom in past 100% so you can really concentrate on the line. You need to be really steady with your hand so you don’t drift out towards the whites of the eyes. Slowly drag your brush around the entire iris to darken the outside line. You may need 2 passes.

Brighten/Whiten Eyes: I use this to pop the catch light and whiten the eyes a bit. Set your brush to a size that matches the colored part of the eye. Set your blend mode to screen. Again, start with 15% and build from there. Lightly brush over the catch light (light source that is reflected in the eye.) Some people like to hit a spot right across from the catch light since the eye naturally refracts light. Others like to hit the entire rim all the way around since it really makes the eyes pop. I prefer the second option. Next (with caution) hit the whites of the eyes but don’t hit everything the same. Vary the opacity or the passes so you create some shading.

Enhance Eye Color: Set your brush to a size that matches the colored part of the eye. Set your brush’s blend mode to color and pick a color in the color picker. (you can double click the foreground color box to bring that up) Set the opacity to 10%. Slowly paint to taste.

Darken Lashes: Many retouchers have fake lash brushes that they can paint on. I find it a bit much for me and I don’t really shoot Beauty or Fashion any more so I stay away from that. I prefer to just darken and the lashes and eye rim a bit. Set your brush to 3 or smaller. Set your brush’s blend mode to multiply and your opacity to 30%. Now, slowly paint out each lash individually (at 100% zoom) Then hit the rim all the way around the eyelids. Lower or raise the brush opacity as you need to keep it natural.

Need to swap an eye or lighten a dark eye? I learned this tip from Scott Kelby. Drag a loose selection around the eye with the lasso tool. Right click the selection and choose – New layer via copy. Press Command T (Cntrl T on a PC) to bring up the free transform box. Right click and choose – Flip horizontal – lower the opacity about 20% and drag the layer to the other side – slide it into place and then raise the opacity. Lastly add a layer mask and paint out the areas that you don’t need. The best reason to do this is if one eye is smaller than the other. You can also use this if you have an eye that is much darker than the other one but make sure you clean up the face to match.

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Some additional steps if you need them would be too remove any veins from the eyes and remove the second catch light. There are multiple ways to get these results, I use these because I find them to be the most natural. They take a little more time but the results are worth it.

We will continue this retouch in few days with some skin retouching, blemish removal, hair clean-up and a few other tricks.