Suggestions for removing skin hightlights

THE TOUCH · June 10, 2006

Not sure if I'm in the right forum for this one...

I shot a birthday party tonight and they had all of the lights off except for the dance floor. I used a Omni-Bounce Diffuser which from what I've read, not too many people recommend it. :wxwax So, I have two questions...

1. Most of the portraits have bad highlights on the skin from the flash. Could I get some recommendations on removing them in PSE4.0? Example is below.

2. I need something better than the Omni-Bounce. I'm having a very difficult time getting the correct lighting/exposure with it and when I do, the results aren't that great. I find myself constantly taking it on and off, and adjusting the flash output. I'm not too excited about the Lightsphere due to the weight, size, and appearance. Any suggestions would be great!

Also, has anyone tried the LumiQuest ProMax SoftBox? INFO

THANK YOU!

adrian_k · June 10, 2006

one of the mods may move the thread if he thinks it's in the wrong place...

Can't help with the hardware but is literally 30secs work in PS7. I don't know PSE but it'll probably translate.
Pick the clone stamp tool, set the mode to darken and opacity to 30-50% depending on how bad the highlights are.

Select the area very close to the highlighted area and paint away.

THE TOUCH wrote:

Not sure if I'm in the right forum for this one...

1. Most of the portraits have bad highlights on the skin from the flash. Could I get some recommendations on removing them in PSE4.0? Example is below.

THANK YOU!

Antonio Correia · June 10, 2006

I suggest you read
http://www.dgrin.com/showthread.php?t=33703
and their links specially the
http://www.planetneil.com/faq/flash-techniques.html
which I found very usefull and instructive.
Meanwhile have a look at my pictures with flash:
http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/gallery/938400/1/73426810
http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/gallery/938400/2/71794119
and specially this one which I like very much:
http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/gallery/938400/2/71808225
All the photos have been shot with bounced flash in the upright position.

I'm sure you do not mind - and I hope you like - what I have done to your photo of these 2 beautifull and young american women ...:):
Regards.

DavidTO · June 10, 2006

I moved this to Photoshop Shenanigans.

You could take a look at Rutt's post on The Impossible Retouch, which might help.

Also, check out Edgework's most excellent retouching tutorials here and here.

THE TOUCH · June 10, 2006

adrian_k wrote:

one of the mods may move the thread if he thinks it's in the wrong place...

Can't help with the hardware but is literally 30secs work in PS7. I don't know PSE but it'll probably translate.
Pick the clone stamp tool, set the mode to darken and opacity to 30-50% depending on how bad the highlights are.

Select the area very close to the highlighted area and paint away.

Adrian - thanks for the tip! For some stupid reason, I always use the cloning tool to remove spots but never even thought to adjust the opacity! That will make things a little easier!:D

Thanks!

THE TOUCH · June 10, 2006

Antonio Correia wrote:

I suggest you read
http://www.dgrin.com/showthread.php?t=33703
and their links specially the
http://www.planetneil.com/faq/flash-techniques.html
which I found very usefull and instructive.
Meanwhile have a look at my pictures with flash:
http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/gallery/938400/1/73426810
http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/gallery/938400/2/71794119
and specially this one which I like very much:
http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/gallery/938400/2/71808225
All the photos have been shot with bounced flash in the upright position.

I'm sure you do not mind - and I hope you like - what I have done to your photo of these 2 beautifull and young american women ...:):
Regards.

WOW. Nice work Antonio! So how did you do it!? I'll have to take some time to go through all the treads. Looks like some great stuff though.

I'm with you on the bounce flash...you can't beat it! Unfortunately, I was shooting with a very high ceiling.

Thanks for the info!

THE TOUCH · June 10, 2006

DavidTO wrote:

I moved this to Photoshop Shenanigans.

You could take a look at Rutt's post on The Impossible Retouch, which might help.

Also, check out Edgework's most excellent retouching tutorials here and here.

Thanks DavidTO. Sorry for the wrong thread.

Great links! Looks like I have some studying to do!!!

Scott_Quier · June 11, 2006

THE TOUCH wrote:

WOW. Nice work Antonio! So how did you do it!? I'll have to take some time to go through all the treads. Looks like some great stuff though.

I'm with you on the bounce flash...you can't beat it! Unfortunately, I was shooting with a very high ceiling.

Thanks for the info!

Still looking for the hardware solution? Check out this thread....

http://www.dgrin.com/showthread.php?t=32563

Antonio Correia · June 11, 2006

Scott_Quier wrote:

Still looking for the hardware solution? Check out this thread....

http://www.dgrin.com/showthread.php?t=32563

Is the Lighsphere really necessary ?
Can I doubt ?

:

THE TOUCH · June 11, 2006

Scott_Quier wrote:

Still looking for the hardware solution? Check out this thread....

http://www.dgrin.com/showthread.php?t=32563

Thanks Scott. I was hoping to find a better looking, light, and smaller alternative

!

I think I'll just have to suck it up and get it!

Thanks - Kevin

THE TOUCH · June 11, 2006

Antonio Correia wrote:

Is the Lighsphere really necessary ?
Can I doubt ? :

Antonio - What do you use when you can't bounce?

Antonio Correia · June 11, 2006

THE TOUCH wrote:

Antonio - What do you use when you can't bounce?

First of all do not consider me as an expert.
When I can't bounce I use the flash in the upright position with the "condom" and a white card I made myself in the back.
In a moment I'll be able to send you a pic I'm gone shoot now...
Just soem minutes please.

Antonio Correia · June 11, 2006

Herewith a lousy picture but good enoght for the purpose.
I want to change the white card for a grey card. Like the ones for white balance correction.
I want to use this set all the time. Inside and outside.
To try. To shoot and see the results...
Precisely now my today's files are beeing moved to my ipod.
It is dam slow and I do not have acess to them.
In there I have at least one which is a good example of flash outdoors unbounced.
Tell me about your experiences...

:
I almost forgot:
Watch carefully: I use the card on the back of the head. The head is reversed !
Never E-TTL II.
Never direct flash.
This solution allow me to bounce the flash to the top if I go inside.
Here: http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/keyword/republic of ireland/1/72660733
it was bounced to the ceiling but no card yet!

But one thing I would like to state: I learn everyday and tomorrow I may have a different opinion but with this basis ...
This
http://fotosna.smugmug.com/gallery/1526862
was today with the card.

THE TOUCH · June 11, 2006

Antonio Correia wrote:

Herewith a lousy picture but good enoght for the purpose.
I want to change the white card for a grey card. Like the ones for white balance correction.
I want to use this set all the time. Inside and outside.
To try. To shoot and see the results...
Precisely now my today's files are beeing moved to my ipod.
It is dam slow and I do not have acess to them.
In there I have at least one which is a good example of flash outdoors unbounced.
Tell me about your experiences... :
I almost forgot:
Watch carefully: I use the card on the back of the head. The head is reversed !
Never E-TTL II.
Never direct flash.
This solution allow me to bounce the flash to the top if I go inside.

it was bounced to the ceiling but no card yet!

But one thing I would like to state: I learn everyday and tomorrow I may have a different opinion but with this basis ...
This
http://fotosna.smugmug.com/gallery/1526862
was today with the card.

[/COLOR]

No opinion here. Even though I've been shooting for a long time, I never REALLY focused on light. It's been a huge learning process for me over the last year or so. Now that I'm starting to "see" the shadows, highlights, etc., I'm having to change a lot of habits, ideas, concepts, etc.!

Unfortunately, I'm not very good at trial and error. I'll read 10 books on flash photography before I even try a technique! This is something I need to get away from.

So...How did you edit the photo of the two beautiful American girls?

I've been playing in Photoshop. First time really using layers. I cloned out some of the highlights at 30% opacity, added 10 pixels of Gaussian Blur, then erased the blur around the mouth, eyes, eyebrows, and hair.

So how did I do? Note: FIRST time using layers!

DavidTO · June 11, 2006

THE TOUCH wrote:

So how did I do? Note: FIRST time using layers!

Congrats on taking the leap! You're bound to learn a lot, there is so much to Photoshop...

As to your image, it's way overdone, IMO. The skin looks so blurred as to be unrealistic, and the sharpened eyes and teeth pop unnaturally.

Keep at it.

Cason · June 11, 2006

Well well well looky here. The girl on the right has green eyes.
Hope you don't mind. I'll pull it off if you want me to.

Took about 2 minutes. Simple heal brush, level adjustment, saturation adjustment, and curve adjustments.

THE TOUCH · June 11, 2006

DavidTO wrote:

Congrats on taking the leap! You're bound to learn a lot, there is so much to Photoshop...

As to your image, it's way overdone, IMO. The skin looks so blurred as to be unrealistic, and the sharpened eyes and teeth pop unnaturally.

Keep at it.

I'll give it another shot. I was trying to get it close to Antonio's and figure out what he did!

I've been using PS for a several years now but always stuck with levels, contrast, etc...simple stuff!

I've always struggled with serious amounts of editing. I've always tried to stick with - "if I can't do it in a lab...". This in turn has kept me hiding from layers!

DavidTO · June 11, 2006

THE TOUCH wrote:

I've been using PS for a several years now but always stuck with levels, contrast, etc...simple stuff!

I've always struggled with serious amounts of editing. I've always tried to stick with - "if I can't do it in a lab...". This in turn has kept me hiding from layers!

Practice, practice, practice!

THE TOUCH · June 11, 2006

DavidTO wrote:

Practice, practice, practice!

10-4!

Cason · June 11, 2006

RTP wrote:

Well well well looky here. The girl on the right has green eyes.
Hope you don't mind. I'll pull it off if you want me to.

Took about 2 minutes. Simple heal brush, level adjustment, saturation adjustment, and curve adjustments.

Oh yeah...I think I used 6 layers.

Antonio Correia · June 12, 2006

The Touch
The difference in the timetable made me go to bead yesterday night, when you were going to dinner or so.
I give you a tip of what I did to the photo.
As David said - and I was aware of it - the photoshoped work on your photo is overdone. So, the result was not the best.
Look here.

This photo is the best I've ever done with this methode:
http://www.lunacore.com/photoshop/tutorials/tut020.htm
I found this to be very simple to understand and pragmatic.
The steps are very simple to follow. Sometimes I make some divertions on it ... and experiment.
Another important matter and I think here you can improve greatly your pictures: ( drag the shutter ) increase the ISO, use manual with slow speed at situations like this http://the-touch.smugmug.com/gallery/1545648/1/74511939
Quoting from http://www.planetneil.com/faq/flash-techniques.html

"By bringing the shutter speed low enough that available light registers on the image, you can retain most of the mood of a setting by not over-powering it with flash.
This is called dragging the shutter.
Have a look at these two photos. Not particularly wonderful, but they clearly illustrate a point.
Both were taken seconds apart with two D100 cameras, each with exactly the same custom tone curve. Aside from resizing for the webpage, there was NO manipulation in Photoshop .. these images are straight out of the camera. And yet they look completely different.

1/15th @ F4.5 (400iso)
Exposure mode: Manual w/ Auto flash
28-70mm f2.8 AF-S

1/60th @ F5.6 (400iso)
Exposure mode: Program w/ TTL flash
24-85mmm f2.8 - f4 D

" end of quotation
I'm sure I can do better than http://the-touch.smugmug.com/gallery/1545648/1/74511464
You used flash here
http://the-touch.smugmug.com/gallery/1469542/3/70159843
and it's OK ! ...

Let me see the results of your "new" work please.

Antonio Correia · June 12, 2006

Soon I'll be posting photos using different bounced positions.
Meanwhile...

I shot this morning for this forum.
Have to go now. Sorry ...

THE TOUCH · June 12, 2006

Antonio Correia wrote:

The Touch
This photo is the best I've ever done with this methode:
http://www.lunacore.com/photoshop/tutorials/tut020.htm
I found this to be very simple to understand and pragmatic.
The steps are very simple to follow. Sometimes I make some divertions on it ... and experiment.

Well, I was doing pretty good until I got to the "Add Layer Mask" part. I could not find this in Photoshop Elements 4.0.

I'm also having trouble getting rid of all the spots/freckles. There's so many, it's hard to "clone" from other areas without it taking forever.

I'm trying to use some other methods instead. Still working on it!

Thank you for all the tips and samples!

Antonio Correia · June 12, 2006

Not now because I have something to do to my daughter, but may be tomorrow I'll be able to take pictures with the flash bounced and then, will be able to see the results ...:):
Maybe saturday or sunday... It's more calm ...
Keep posting and update to CS2 .:):

Cason · June 12, 2006

THE TOUCH wrote:

Well, I was doing pretty good until I got to the "Add Layer Mask" part. I could not find this in Photoshop Elements 4.0.

I'm also having trouble getting rid of all the spots/freckles. There's so many, it's hard to "clone" from other areas without it taking forever.

I'm trying to use some other methods instead. Still working on it!

Thank you for all the tips and samples!

Why are removing all the spots and freckles? That is part of the persons face. I see removing a huge zit would be the thing to do. However, not all the freckles on a persn's face.

What look are trying to go for? Did you see my sample? I figured you going for color corrections and brightning up the photo.

Antonio Correia · June 14, 2006

Look here what I did this afternoon at lunch.
I shot P (!!) because there was differences in lights, on the table and on people.
This one is with flash but with 200 ISO

but increasing the ISO to 800 the same place, the same scenario changed into this

What a difference !
All photos have came straight from RAW.
No treatment whatsoever .

Flash ON or OFF ?
The anwser is ON.
Bounced of course...
Reflection card: light gray.
Position: number 3 on my photo of the other day, above this post.
Tell me about it please.
Ah. One more:
Against the light - what's the english for that ? - with bounced flash obviously...:):

I feel happy with these results

THE TOUCH · June 14, 2006

RTP wrote:

Why are removing all the spots and freckles? That is part of the persons face. I see removing a huge zit would be the thing to do. However, not all the freckles on a persn's face.

What look are trying to go for? Did you see my sample? I figured you going for color corrections and brightning up the photo.

RTP - Just practicing...that's all.

My original post was for removing highlights on the skin, not color correction or brightening. I appreciate your sample, but it really didn't help my out.:D

Blurmore · June 15, 2006

Antonio Correia wrote:

I suggest you read
http://www.dgrin.com/showthread.php?t=33703
and their links specially the
http://www.planetneil.com/faq/flash-techniques.html
which I found very usefull and instructive.
Meanwhile have a look at my pictures with flash:
http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/gallery/938400/1/73426810
http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/gallery/938400/2/71794119
and specially this one which I like very much:
http://antoniocorreia.smugmug.com/gallery/938400/2/71808225
All the photos have been shot with bounced flash in the upright position.

I'm sure you do not mind - and I hope you like - what I have done to your photo of these 2 beautifull and young american women ...:):
Regards.

While this photoshop treatment is interesting and does remove all the highlights, I'm not sure the end result qualifies as a photograph. More of a photo illustration.

THE TOUCH · June 15, 2006

Blurmore wrote:

While this photoshop treatment is interesting and does remove all the highlights, I'm not sure the end result qualifies as a photograph. More of a photo illustration.

agreed. I could see it as an "option" in a package, but I wouldn't put this out as a final image.

Any other recommendations for removing highlights? So far, cloning at ~30% opacity seems to do the trick.

Blurmore · June 15, 2006

THE TOUCH wrote:

agreed. I could see it as an "option" in a package, but I wouldn't put this out as a final image.

Any other recommendations for removing highlights? So far, cloning at ~30% opacity seems to do the trick.

I like to use healing brush on a seperate layer then adjust the layer's opacity and blending (usually to soft light).

This young lady's T-zone, chin and nose were tamed using that technique, but the before highlights were not nearly so evident.

THE TOUCH · June 15, 2006

Blurmore wrote:

I like to use healing brush on a seperate layer then adjust the layer's opacity and blending (usually to soft light).

This young lady's T-zone, chin and nose were tamed using that technique, but the before highlights were not nearly so evident.

Thanks for the tip! I'll give it a try.

Suggestions for removing skin hightlights

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