PS anti-ageing magic recipe anyone?

RobertP

RobertP

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Robert
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Took plenty of pictures over the break. Lots of them are nice and sharp. Problem is they seem to be too sharp for the female subjects. I see a happy smiling face - they see lines and wrinkles.

So question is - how do I make the pictures more flattering. It needs to be a simple method or it won't happen. I am a reluctant editor at the best of times.

Choosing the blur tool with a largish brush size and just clicking on the 'problems' does seem to improve the acceptability but it is crude and I'm sure there is a better way?

Thanks in advance :)
 
I love the free filters from Optikverve, they have lots in there which are just one click. Sometimes they can be a bit harsh though so its a good idea to duplicate the original layer and then lower its opacity to lessen the effect a little.
 
Get yourself a soft focus filter if you're going to do a lot of this - it could save your marriage. :D

Another option is a diffuser. Unlike a soft focus filter it only acts on the highlights and slightly blurs them into darker areas. Very flattering for the skin and for the hair.
 
If you want it in one step, then some of the noise reduction S/W can reduce wrinkles/lines etc without losing overall sharpness. Have a play with neat image or equivalent.
 
go on try Optikverve....its brill and so easy to use! lol...are filters in PS a no-no ?
 
Think I've used most filters in Optikverve by now :) ...... be warned though Robert....the B&W filters are best ;) reminiscing filter should do the job
 
That looks like a useful tool Marianne, I've downloaded it and will play with it at some point :)
 
filters in PS are fine! Virtual photographer is a particular fav of one of the quieter members here, Pete, he turns in some stunning stuff with it
 
scary stuff dod!
 
Thanks for the suggestions. I'll take a look this evening when I will have a beer handy :)
 
blimey Dod some of those shots are like putting on my beer googles!!
 
Marianne said:
go on try Optikverve....its brill and so easy to use! lol...are filters in PS a no-no ?
Click to expand...

Just had a little play and as you said they can be a bit severe. Most of them seem to give a bit of a 'high key' (?) and general blur look to the image.

Suppose it was asking a bit much looking for a one click solution ;)

If anyone is bored enough to want to have a go I think my sister in law would not object to her likeness being edited :)

T.jpg


And if she did she is not likely to visit here :)

Challenge is to keep the operations simple then tell me how for other photos :)
The picture was shot as jpg and has in camera sharpening only. cropped and resized to about a 1/3rd of the original. No further sharpening.
I don't think she has anything to worry about.. but what do i know :confused:
 
Here you go Robert....

RobertT.jpg


No one-touch filter is going to sort out that much life experience and character. I've done more than I should have done, and a lot less than I could, just to show what you can do.

All the work has been done with a retouching tool in PSP which is simply a smear type tool which pushes pixels around. By setting the opacity and size, you can gently smooth away those wrinkles and choose how much you need to do. I often get the impression that people think applying a filter is OK while getting down and working by hand isn't, but it really is the best way to deal with problem areas in your shots. Doing as much as I've done to this shot is really outside the scope of photography and more into photo restoration and retouching, which is what I do, but used sensibly this technique can solve a lot of problems for you in your shots.

This technique will produce areas in the shot looking smooth compared to the noise in the rest of the shot so just roughly draw a mask around the area, feather the mask, and use the 'Add Noise' filter to add noise which blends in with the original by experimenting with the size parameter.

It only took me about 15 minutes and I've had a lot of practice, but I really do urge you to have a go, it's not as difficult as you might think.
 
Wow! what a difference that makes, Ced. Do you know if there is a similar retouching tool in Photoshop?

Also could someone tell me where to get Virtual photographer?
Cheers! :)
 
Bachsy... Good effort! :thumb:

Ian..... http://www.optikvervelabs.com/

As it happens PSP has by far the best smear type tool I've ever come across, it's really well behaved and a favourite with restorers, but PS will certainly have something similar.
 
I predominantly used the new CS2 spot healing brush tool.
Also used the cloning tool, some gaussian blur, whitened the eyes (a little too much) increased saturation in the lips and used the liquify filter around the neck/chin area to push the outline in.
Used the colour replacement brush to sample the lighter hair and paint in the darker areas on the hair.

A little overcooked I know but gives you an idea how far you can take it.
I suppose subtle is the correct approach.

About 30 mins work on this one.
 
Well she looks a bit like Resuscie Annie Steve, but if that's what you're into...:D

It matters not, you've demonstrated a good grasp of some powerful tools there which aren't easy to get into, and every minute you've spent on that pic is money in the bank for your Photoshop skills.

The real danger with this stuff is overdoing it - less is more usually. :)
 
CT said:
The real danger with this stuff is overdoing it - less is more usually. :)
Click to expand...

In that case, as I didn't touch it, do I win? :D

I really need some new material...lol
 
CT - thats exactly what I was looking for. I have PSP 8. Assuming that has the same tools I will be back later for some hand holding once I'm a bit more alert :)

Bachs - She might like that but as you said, it looks a bit OTT to me ;) I was trying to work out why yours looked so different - you have removed the left cheek! Fascinating what can be done though.
 
I started to comment on this photo last night but couldn't quite put into words how I felt about the editing. Anyway, been thinking about it and for me, I feel she might be offended at the amount of editing gone on in the shot. She knows she's got wrinkles, if she sees this photo that is so smooth and perfect she will think that you, the photographers feels she needs a face lift or something. Maybe its the angle that is unflattering? I think that it just needs softening and glowing up a bit and perhaps the neck wrinkles lessening slightly, from a woman of a certain age that knows how a woman might think ;) I will have a go at editing it myself.....BRB
 
Marianne said:
I started to comment on this photo last night but couldn't quite put into words how I felt about the editing. Anyway, been thinking about it and for me, I feel she might be offended at the amount of editing gone on in the shot. She knows she's got wrinkles, if she sees this photo that is so smooth and perfect she will think that you, the photographers feels she needs a face lift or something. Maybe its the angle that is unflattering? I think that it just needs softening and glowing up a bit and perhaps the neck wrinkles lessening slightly, from a woman of a certain age that knows how a woman might think ;) I will have a go at editing it myself.....BRB
Click to expand...

It was just one I chose because it had small lines near the eyes and neck detail that was purely down to the 'pose' - and yes it is not flattering. In my crude way I had blurred the eye lines almost out and taken the edge off the neck ones but not lost them completely (but I did it badly)... so I think we may be on the same wavelength :)
 
ok, my quick attempt, I used a programme called Photobrush for my editing that has a wonderful filter called 'studio soft light' which is very flattering for us ladies lol...I softened the neck wrinkles a little after the crop. She might now say, 'Oh My!! Look at those wrinkles!' but you will know that they looked a lot worse than that really so you will both be happy-ish lol
robert.jpg
 
I was happy with the original ;)

I thought the crop was too big but I left it to see if anyone would change it.

This is like my effort (but better) - fading the bits she dislikes but not eliminating. Have to say my preference is to not have the soft glow look, but that is probably just me and my quest for sharpness :)

I guess the ideal (to me) would be CT's version but with your level of retouching to the areas she might dislike.
 
Marianne said:
I started to comment on this photo last night but couldn't quite put into words how I felt about the editing. Anyway, been thinking about it and for me, I feel she might be offended at the amount of editing gone on in the shot. She knows she's got wrinkles, if she sees this photo that is so smooth and perfect she will think that you, the photographers feels she needs a face lift or something. Maybe its the angle that is unflattering? I think that it just needs softening and glowing up a bit and perhaps the neck wrinkles lessening slightly, from a woman of a certain age that knows how a woman might think ;) I will have a go at editing it myself.....BRB
Click to expand...

Marianne I'm 62 and I know exactly how she might feel. ;) I did say I'd done far more to it than I really should have, and it was on the basis of Robert stating she wouldn't be visiting the forum anyway. Having said that you might be surprised how few qualms some paying lady customers have about their image being manipulated. :D

If Robert follows the method I showed, he has absolute contol of how much or how little work he chooses to do. The biggest problem of course is the neck and that could have been largely avoided with a different pose and the lady's head more raised but you learn those lessons the hard way. :D

Your edit job is just as valid and an alternative approach. The real value of the method I'm trying to get Robert to use is it will be invaluable for dealing with small problem areas in his pics generally, rather than relying on one shot filters and this pic was just an opportunity to show what can be done. Whether it should be done is a whole different matter.
 
Marianne said:
it was only my opinion...not getting at anyone.....I have wrinkles too!
Click to expand...

No probs, and the points you raised are very valid. :)
 
My effort:

T.jpg


A bit of jiggery-pokery here and there all in CS2 (but learned in PS6, so do-able if you have an older version)
Duplicate the original as a new layer,
select 'overlay' as the layer type,
apply gaussian blur (tweak the amount to suit)
apply about 80% opacity
merge the layers,
de-saturate just a tadge.
 
Not one click - but fairly easy :)
T.jpg
 
Is'nt the other quick fix to duplicate layer. Light gaussian blur to taste then history brush or erase to background over the eyes, lips and any detail you want sharp
 
A great tip I just picked up...

If you use the spot healing tool in CS2 (don't know how many versions it goes back) instead of applying it directly on the layer as it can be a little tempramental sometimes,
create a blank layer, click on the spot healing tool icon and at the menu at the top of photoshop, tick 'sample all layers'

You can then apply the tool to the blank layer which will obviously allow you to keep all the healing in its own layer, allow you to selectively erase, or even reduce the opacity on the layer to make the healing more subtle.
 
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