Demo: How to Digitally Retouch Photographs Using Photoshop

I have been working for a professional photography studio since I was a junior in high school, and among many of my various jobs and tasks, one that I have had to learn that has actually been extremely beneficial is digitally retouching photographs. What people may not really notice is that there are so many little things you can do to a photograph to make it look a million times better! And whether you are just posting pictures on flickr, facebook, what have you or printing up a nice photograph to frame or send to some family, you want to be able to look your best!

Here is a few tips on how to make some fairly basic, but effective changes in Photoshop:

1. RED EYE

This is one of the most commmon problems with pictures. There are two ways to fix that. There is the quick and painless way, however you need the latest version of Photoshop (CS4) in order to use it. What you do is go to your toolbar on the right side of the screen and find the spot healing brush. If you click on that button and hold it down, other menu options under that tool will appear, one being called the "Red Eye" tool. Once you select that tool, all you need to do is click onto the area with red eye and done! If you are unhappy with the way it looks, you can undo your work (ctrl+Z) and adjust the settings at the top toolbar to meet your needs.

Here is the picture before and after using the red eye tool:


Now, if you aren't able to use the Red Eye tool, don't fret, we can still fix the problem, just with a little more work.

The way I choose to fix red eye manually is with the brush tool, because I feel like I have an easier time controlling my results. Zoom in really close to the eyes with the magnifying tool and then select the paintbrush tool. From there I select black as my color, however I make sure to turn down the opacity and flow options in the top toolbar to something maybe more like 40% each, so that we can gradually fill in the red with black to make it resemble how pupils should look. Make sure to preserve the glint in your pupil or else it will look extremely fake and this can be done simply by adjusting the size of your brush as necessary to maneuver around it and this is done by simply pressing the left and right brackets on your keyboard.

Here are the results I ended up with (pretty good right?!)




2. GREASE SPOTS

This is a problem I frequently deal with considering I have oily skin/I wear makeup. Into the night I notice that I become increasingly unsatisfied with pictures because of this problem. Pictures need not be held back only by this problem any longer.

In this picture, I have been sweating as you can tell, so it is a pretty good example to use. I find that in the right toolbar, the clone stamp tool (the one that looks like a rubber stamp) works the best and once again, we are wanting to make sure the opacity and flow are turned down in the top toolbar, this time to 30%. Using the alt key, define a source of a section of non-greasy skin to gradually cover up the grease spot, preferably something that is identical or as close as you can to the color of the original spot, we don't want to create a funky darker or lighter spot on your face. Don't be afraid to define multiple spots as you move around your face, you have shadows and highlights on your face, so piece of your face does NOT work for the whole thing! Also, don't forget about adjusting the size of the brush with the left and right bracket! Another thing- Try to avoid making your face completely matte, there are supposed to be natural highlights on your face, usually on your nose and cheeks, so on those spots, tone down, but don't completely remove.

Here are my results:





3. ZITS

After red eye, I feel like this is the second most common problem that keeps a picture from being great! Everyone has a break out every now and then, and most unfortunately for me, I either do a really good job covering them up with makeup or I have already edited them, so for this example I am using my friend's face, which is covered with fake freckles for a themed party. This is one of the few times you will experience through these examples the opportunity to completely cover it up and make it look like it was never there. However in the process you don't want to leave a weird colored mark, making people wonder what was/is on your face.

The tool we will mostly be using is the healing brush tool in the right toolbar. Select it and then using the alt key, define a source that the tool will use to cover up over the blemish. Make sure to pick a source that is close in color and shading to the spot you are trying to cover for the best results. Make sure to make use of the left and right brackets on your keyboard to adjust brush size so you can get the whole thing. Now you may choose to use the clone stamp tool after the healing brush tool to give it that extra blending subtlety that it may require, especially if you find yourself working on large areas of acne where it can begin to alter the look of your face. I have chosen to employ both just to finish it off. Just make sure to keep the clone stamp tool at a low opacity and flow, something like 30%, which can be adjusted in the top toolbar when you have the tool selected.

My Results:




4. PUFFY UNDEREYE/DARK CIRCLES

This problem is also another biggie for a lot of other people. Not too brag by any means but I have been lucky enough to not really have any dark circles (at least not just yet anyway) but I do sometimes experience undereye puffiness, which can be easily remedied with the clone stamp tool. This process goes the same for dark circles, however, more gradual work and be honest with yourself, if you have really dark undereye circles, don't pretend like they don't exist, just make them not as noticeable, or else you look weird and not like yourself.

Keeping the clone stamp tool set at an opacity and flow of 30%, define a clone source near your undereye, probably something slightly bit lighter. After you do, gradually and slowly move back and forth under your eye, sweeping the darkness or puffiness away. However, as previously mentioned about heavy dark circles, do not completely rid yourself of your under eyelid; it will make you look like an alien if you do. (a.k.a its not natural!)

Results:



You may need to zoom in/ click on the pictures to see the difference, just because it IS subtle.


5. WRINKLES/DEEP LINES

Wrinkles and deep face lines will be dealt with in the same manner as undereye/dark circle problems. Subtlety is key, removing lines from your face completely is once again, unnatural (notice a pattern?), so softening is really what we are focusing on. I, once again, do not have a problem with wrinkles (man, I hope not at this age) but sometimes I smile really hard which produces funky lines on the side of my face sometimes in pictures. Just use the same steps as described in the undereye section until you are satisfied with the end result.

Mine:




Important things to remember! :

-stay natural, meaning don't overdo it on the retouching or it becomes super obvious
-gradual changes are the best. it may take longer, but it produces a more real effect
-the retouching is always worth it! have fun!

Project 2 Wrap Up

I think this project went a lot better than my previous project in a few different ways. For one, it was easier to focus on one project as opposed to trying to complete a few of them. Also, with this project I had a clearer idea of what I wanted to do from the get-go and I stuck with the project idea I had from the beginning and saw it through despite others changing their minds about screenprinting as their project. I feel like taking some time in the beginning to watch Illustrator tutorials on Lynda.com. I took the first week of project 2 to watch the "Beyond the Basics" tutorials about Illustrator, which I think was awesome because I had no idea about the different capabilities of Illustrator. For instance, I had no idea Illustrator, a 2-D program, could produce 3-D images. I had such a narrow view of Illustrator and now, I want to incorporate it as much as I can.


However there were also some struggles along the way. For one, like I just mentioned, other people in my group had agreed that they wanted to learn how to screenprint together, but then later changed their minds about their project, which I was not aware of. I had been waiting to do it with them/obtain our materials, that I learned later on that since no one was doing it anymore except me that no one had ordered any screenprinting supplies. No one's fault by any means, but the miscommunication lead to some draining of my worktime inadvertently.

Also, the vinyl led to some difficulties as well. Although it provides the benefit of allowing a super novice like me to learn how screenprint easier, while also giving the added bonus of allowing your screen to be re-usable if you peel off the vinyl, it can be fickle. I learned that vinyl definitely works better for a more simple stencil, that is also smaller and can be centered for more accuracy, because the more complex the shape, the more opportunity for the vinyl to get stuck to itself and create unsmooth bumps, which therefore lead to chances of the ink getting under the intended areas creating smudges. However, I don't regret using the vinyl, just because I was trying to learn how to do the whole process through an Instructable, but if I were to do this project again, I would probably seriously consider just going for the photoemulsion just to attempt to get a more clean product. Either that, or I learned from Keith if I put the vinyl on the back side and still put the ink through the front side, I would probably have a cleaner look, just backwards and with less issues of the bumps.

Overall though, I feel pretty proud of myself for figuring out the screenprinting pretty much without any experienced people's help. Considering that I am in the Comfort Zone/Something New, I definitely did something that was totally out of om comfort zone that is completely new to me. And that I feel like is an accomplishment in itself. That, and something came out of it that is completely usable and works. Furthermore, I think it was cool that the Illustrator tutorials proved to be very beneficial immediately, considering I needed to use one of the main tutorials on Live Trace to prep my file for vinyl cutting.

ARTD410 Project 2

So here is how my project went:

1. I needed to go out and find a chair to use to screenprint on, the two qualifications that were required: needs to be cheap and needs to be able to have fabric top and bottom that can easily be removed/replaced. I went to goodwill and instantly found what I was looking for. The chair was only five dollars and the cushions on the bottom and back could easily be removed with a screwdriver.



2. After I got the chair, I needed to get my supplies for the actual screenprinting, so I managed to pick up a yard of red canvas fabric from Walmart and the screenprinting materials from The Duck Store, which included the 8x10 screen, black screenprinting ink and the rubber squeegee.




3. Next, I needed to prepare my image for the vinyl cutter to be used as my "stencil" for screenprinting. I decided that the pattern on my unique sneakers would make for an interesting print on my chair. I took a few pictures of my shoe such as this:


I took the few pictures and them into photoshop and took pieces from them to make one custom pattern. I made selections of them so that the final product technically had no background. Then I took the file into Illustrator and used one of the things I learned from watching Illustrator tutorials on Lynda.com during the first week, called Live Trace. With this, I was able to create the outlines in anchor points necessary for the vinyl cutter while trying to make the objects I had within in smoother so the shape is simpler. I then took the file to the vinyl cutter, which I had a little more trouble with than usual, but managed to make everything come out okay. To be safe, I made two sets of the cut-outs, which later proved to be a very smart idea. :)

4. Next, I was advised by the woman at Walmart to wash my fabric before printing it, and because its a bright red color I figured that was a good idea especially if I plan on sitting on the chair without it bleeding onto my clothes.




5. Next, I prepped the screen. I unpeeled all of the spots that I wanted to the ink to go through like such:


Then I trimmed down around the piece of vinyl so that it was the right size for the screen.



However, much to my dismay, after adhering the vinyl to the screen and spending a half hour or so smoothing out any bumps with my squeegee, because the directions for vinyl screenprinting on Instructables are not the clearest, I soon realized that I had put the vinyl on the wrong side of the screen and had to remove and repeat the process over again. Unfortunately, I think that this definitely didn't help with the adhesion, because it was less sticky after completely removing it, therefore I feel like i had more bumps and more trouble trying to smooth out.



6. Then I took my cushions and placed them on the fabric and measured out the space I need to be able to wrap them around to the bottom, as well as the area I need to focus my screenprinting in.




7. Now I was ready to try to screenprint. I laid some paper underneath the canvas and placed the screen over it. I poured in some ink and because spreading it around with the squeegee. The Instructable said to go back and forth a few times so that's what I did.



However, after doing that I lifted the screen carefully and realized that not very much of the ink had gone through. So i tried to replace the screen in the same spot and go over it again. I pressed a lot harder the second time and kind of traced over where the screen was visible. This produced more visible results, however it may have been too hard because not only did the ink go through the shapes, but it also managed to push its way underneath some of the shapes creating huge smudges. I tried to do it again and the same thing happened.

8. So then I decided to clean the screen and remove the vinyl and put on the second piece.



I hoped that with putting the vinyl on the second time I could be more careful and precise about avoiding bumps, and therefore hopefully avoid smudges this time around. Funny enough however, I actually had even more trouble with the vinyl getting stuck on itself!

9. Either way, the second time around went a lot better. I tried to combine my techniques from the previous times, making sure to add pressure without pushing too hard and also lightly tracing with the tip of the squeegee over the exposed screen outlines. I wasn't able to avoid smudges, but I did manage to minimize them somewhat and allow more of the objects to be visible.




10. After letting them sit and dry for a couple hours, I took a blow dryer to them just to kind of make sure they were set in and then began attaching the canvas over the cushions. In order to really hold it down, I nailed in a nail a little ways to make a hole through the wood and then nailed a thumbtack into it. The nails were too long so that's what I opted for the shorter thumbtacks.



11. After the fabric was nailed back and fitted, I began screwing the cushions back onto the metal frame of the chair.



And then it was done! yay!

Illustrator Check-In

So it has been a few days of me watching Illustrator tutorials, and already, I have learned soooo much cool things about Illustrator I wasn't even aware of I could do, and I feel like I have only scratched the surface so far. I have learned about things such as LivePaint and LiveTrace, the important aspects within them, such as grouping and expanding and releasing and objects vs. paths and fills vs. strokes and how those effect the look of your vector work. I have also started to learn how to incorporate other programs such as Adobe Bridge and Photoshop to better enhance your Illustrator experience (Photoshop makes tweaking livetrace so much easier and precise). Right now I am almost done with learning about the 3-D effect in Illustrator. It has been a bit confusing understanding how to think about 3-D work within a 2-D based program but it has been making a little more sense with each following tutorial.

I cannot wait to see what else I can learn about Illustrator! I am completely fascinated just because I had such a narrow view of what I thought Illustrator could be used for and now I am realizing the application of it has many limitless possibilities!

Project 2

So, today was the day to really try and hammer out what we wanted to do for our project 2 and surprisingly enough, I may have just accomplished that. I plan to do a few things over the next few weeks, but my main objective will be learning how to screen print and come out with a finished project from that I can benefit from and be purposeful.

The main objectives:

1. For one hour every day for a week, before getting into screenprinting, I am going to spend time exploring/studying/learning tutorials to get really familiar with Illustrator. This is a program I am just not as a familiar as I would like to be and because it is a precursor to my screenprinting, I figured it would be vital to know more about it. I may start doing this on Sunday just because I have a very busy weekend ahead of me and I don't want to start out behind!

2.After that week, I will work on trying to make my screenprint. I haven't exactly been inspired yet on what I want that to look like yet, but I think I want to attempt to make something two-color. What will be nice is that Andy, Kelcey, Russell and I will be working on screenprinting too, so we will be able to help each other out.

3. After making a successful screenprint, I want to put that onto some fabric and use it to re-upholster a chair that I can use as a computer chair since I currently lack one. I want to find one I can redo from some place like Bring or Goodwill and just re-staple the new fabric over. However, if I find this to be a struggle, alternatively I want to create some sort of storage drawers/unit for under my desk potentially screenprinting on acrylic.

4. As a side project (because it is always something I have always wanted to learn) Kelcey is going to teach me how to knit/crochet. I am really excited about this upon Kelcey showing me that the first thing she wants to show me how to make is a knit headband! I think this will be a great skill to acquire and I look forward to her teaching me within the next week and a half!

Project 2 Ideas

Project 2 Ideas/Timelines


Making myself comfortable with Illustrator/Learning to Screenprint

-This would consist of spending a few weeks playing around/studying tutorials on Illustrator so that I can really grasp all the tools and opportunities Illustrator has to offer. I just figure this would be valuable information due to the fact that it is an important to program to be familiar and comfortable with in the Digital Arts program and it is one of my weakest programs. Then, I want to apply what I have learned to a completely unfamiliar skill, screenprinting. I have always wanted to learn how to do that and I think it would be a really cool skill to have. I would probably want to spend 2 weeks with Illustrator and 2 weeks with screenprinting. I am not sure what I would screenprint on yet, just because I haven’t researched yet what can be screenprinted, but if glass is possible, I think that would be cool, or on acrylic.

Spend 4 weeks getting into depth with Illustrator and use the vinyl cutter to print out some of my new vector drawings

This is where I would just dedicate the rest of my time familiarizing myself with the Illustrator program, to the point where I could give a demo or something. I would use the vinyl cutter to demonstrate what I have learned from the past 3 1/2 weeks. I could also make a tutorial or an overview of some of the important “Need to Know”s of Illustrator. I would just really enjoy creating some new in-depth, detailed vector images and having them for the vinyl cutter, since I only got to try it out once.

Learn to knit and make something that is actually wearable

-Kelsey said she would teach me how to knit, which is always something I have wanted to learn how to do. My great grandmother used to crochet blankets and now that she has passed away, no one in my family knows how to knit anymore. I just thought it would be cool to learn and carry on something that had been very prevalent when my great grandmother was alive; everyone in the family has one of her blankets. Even if I don’t decide to do this project, I still think it would be something I would like to learn as a side project on a weekend or if she does an in-class demo. I would even commit to buying the supplies to continue doing it on my own.

ARTD410 write up/final thoughts turn in

John-

Here is my final project write up, as well as a picture of the poster I used in conjunction with my presentation today, as well as bringing in the physical items to pass around. Also, I am including picture sets from each project so that you can see the process of me making them.

-Jenna

Final Project Reflections artd410

Soooo, its the day before our projects are due and I realized that I have been neglecting my blog a bit (midterms are catching up with me) so i figured what better time to write in it than to discuss the final results/wrap up of my project. Overall, my projects went very well, out of my 4 intended projects, only one of them was a failure and even with that failure, I have certainly analyzed how I could make it a success/different approaches.



Wall Corkboard Jewelry Hanger



What I enjoyed most about this project was that it was something I had wanted to try to make for a long time but I hadn't had anything pushing me to do it. Another thing I like about it (besides the fact that I really wanted/needed one) was that I got the main pieces, the corkboard, at Bring Recycling Center, not only giving me a chance to check it out but also to take something that had been discarded by someone else and repurpose it to something that suited my needs (not to mention it was more unique because they were circles AND it was cheap!)


Vinyl Circle Art



This project I think I was the most excited about. I am now officially obsessed with the vinyl cutter and the idea of it since I created this project and even though I made some simple circles, I really like the extra zazz it gives to my room above my bed and I still have this immense proudness of what I created. i just know too many friends who have gone out and bought their own vinyl stickers and were either settling for a design and/or found that they actually were terrible at sticking and I'm so glad that I can say that I made the exact design that I wanted for myself and they stick amazingly.

Lace Glass Candleholders





This project was one that I was also excited about trying, but ended up pretty much being a failure for me. My best guess is that the lace I picked out didn't have holes big enough for the spray paint to get through, or there wasn't enough separation between the holes to make a definite pattern. I tried stretching the lace but it didn't help so I need new lace or an even more fun idea is that someone suggested to me that I should make a lace pattern with the vinyl cutter (which WOULD give me another excuse to play with it some more) however I just ran out of time to create a new pattern, and I also wanted to give the lace I already bought another shot. (Gotta make the most out what this poor college student spends)

Iron-On Canvas Art



This was the last project I found that I wanted to try, but it has been a really cool project to stumble upon. Honestly the hardest part has been deciding what i wanted to make. I wanted it to be something actually meaningful and unique to me, so I printed out a few lines of one of my favorite poems by e.e cummings. The second hardest part was ironing on the words to the canvas (took forever!) For awhile I thought this project was also going to turn out to be a bust but actually everything worked out alright. Took some quick thinking on my part pre-ironing to realize that when working with text and iron-ons, the text needs to be backwards:)


All in all, I am happy with the projects I chose, and just the simple fact that I got to dabble with several different things. However, for my next project in the second half of class, I really would like to focus my efforts on just one project and see how that develops over time. I almost feel like it would be easier, however I also run the risk of running into a dead end if it doesn't work for whatever reason. Overall, the hardest part of this whole entire project has been determining how to present it to others that makes it interesting and relevant to others, as well as keeping a consistency with problem and solution. Hopefully others like it :)

This Weekend (10/24 and 25th)

So today is where i have finally gained access to a car and am going to do the bulk of my supply shopping for my projects. Here is the projects I have decided on. Depending on how much time it takes me to complete them all I may add another if I find one that I am interested in:

1. Corkboard Wall Jewelry Hanger

2. Vinyl Wall Art (This will probably be last)

3. Spray Painted Lace Glass Candle Holders

4. Canvas Wall Art


I was going to have Russell help show me how to build a wood platform bed, but I determined this project was too big to be finished with the small amount of time we have left. Also, I haven't figured out where I would build it and/or how it would get into my house. However if it is relevant to my next idea I want to tackle in the next half of class, I would really like to think this out and try it out because it would be greatly beneficial to me (considering my bed currently resides on the floor) and I would be really going out of my comfort zone to construct something. In the meantime, I may set my sights on something smaller, like a bedside table or organizer to fit underneath my desk.

Bring Recycling Center 10/20

On Tuesday, Andy, Russell and I took a little trip to Bring Recycling Center or as they like to call it a "Planet Improvement Center" to check it out/find pieces for our respective projects.



Although all of us did not end up buying items, we definitely got to check out a really awesome new place as well as start visualizing some really cool ideas. The place was super cluttered and full, but still organized at the same time.



They had almost everything you could imagine, including some really awesome furniture that wasn't actually in a bad condition at all, just incredibly dirty. In fact, I was drooling over this amazing vintage vanity that my friend has almost the same exact thing that I had been drooling over with her. It was in awesome condition, however I have no need for one anymore (no space :( boo) but also lack the funds (because it was in such pristine condition it was also a bit spendy for being at a recycling center)



Overall, I came out of there with some circular corkboards, with the intention of making wall jewelry hangers. I'm pretty excited about it, but that will be for another blog posting :)

Design Proposals

Problem: I want to repurpose things but while learning basic building skills. Side problem: I feel like my room looks a bit barren.

Design Proposal #1

Solution: I want to incorporate new techniques such as woodworking, with my love of second hand shopping. I would love to do several little projects that all work towards a common goal: making my room look more put together. However the difference is that I will have the satisfaction of saying I made it. I would like to use the vinyl cutter, as well as learn more about woodwork. I also want to utilize my love of crafts to do something I have never done before. I do want to spend as little money as possible else I feel like it will take away from the idea of repurposing.

-An important aspect of this solution is that I really want to make something unique and intricate with the vinyl cutter. I want to make a graphic designed all on my own that could be stuck onto my wall to make it less bare, more interesting, and something to be proud of.

Design Proposal #2

Solution: I could go thrift shopping at places like goodwill and find some items that could be repurposed such as an old dresser, desk, any other type of furniture, etc. or even some other object like a speaker or something and revamp it for a completely different purpose. One of my main goals is use building skills I have never used before (construction, knitting, soldering, etc, what is necessary.) I also want to make sure that I don’t need to buy many supplies to do the repurposing or else I feel like it is defeating the purpose. I basically want to try to see if I can use my creative eye and see if I can find an object that no longer serves its primary purpose and give it a new, unintentional one.

Design Proposal #3

Solution: To really get into the concept of repurposing, I could take some of the items that I already own that could use some modification and/or that I am not satisfied with how they currently work and/or look and want to make improvements. Then I will be able to save money and also have the opportunity to be truly satisfied with my purchases. I will learn and employ basic building/craft skills to accomplish these mods and will hopefully find ways to use them for future use and/or after I learn these skills, I could access whether or not I would like to use them to build something completely new from scratch.

DIY Project- Paper Wallet

For my DIY project, I decided to make a paper wallet. I wanted to make something that I didn't have to buy anything extra and I figured that this would be an awesome homemade gift to give!