Editing my editorial images

Front:

Camera Raw:

• Lowered temperature - the original images looked a little too warm to fit with 'penumbra'
• Cropped image
• Sharpened image

Photoshop:

• Clone stamp;
• removed hairs from forehead or background/blemishes/uneven skin/fallen glitter
• removed strays from eyebrows and added hairs to fill sparse/uneven parts
• added shadow of twigs to fill blank patch on cheek
• evened and rounded shaped of chin
• neatened lipstick
• added hair to bunches to make the size match
• removed glimpse of bottom teeth
• added glow on nose
• lessened dark line under lips
• lightened facial lines/creases around mouth and under eyes
• Sharpen tool; 
• sharpened hair to avoid it all blending together
• sharpen > darker > darkened shadow lines on hair to avoid them blending in
• Quick select tool;
• selected yellowy teeth > raised brightness and lowered saturation to whiten teeth
• Liquify;
• reshaped brows
• enlarged lips
• raised right side of model's head to make it even

Before:

After: 

Profile:

Camera Raw:

• Cropped image
• Set the white balance, temperature and tint to the same as the front-facing image
• Sharpened image

Photoshop:

• Clone stamp;
• added shadows of twigs to fill blank space of wall on right
• removed hairs on face/blemishes
• added hairs to eyebrows and eyelashes
• added glitter to eyelids
• added extra hair to reshape bunches and to cover any visible scalp
• removed stray hairs from background
• evened shape of hair on top of head
• Quick-select tool;
• selected cheekbone shadow > refine edge > raised feathering > lowered exposure to shade cheekbones
• selected shadow under lips > raised brightness and lowered contrast to lessen shadow
• Liquify;
• reshaped brows
• enlarged and evened shape of lips

Before:

After:

Back:

Camera Raw:

• Cropped image
• Set the white balance, temperature and tint to the same as the front and side-facing images
• Sharpened image

Photoshop:

• Clone stamp;
• neatened parting
• hid hair elastic
• added hair to top of bunches
• removed ring on finger

Before:

After:

These images were harder to edit than my brand one due to the intricate shadows and messy hairs. As I edited, I struggled to make them look realistic at times, and had to go over the same parts more than once to perfect them. However, I enjoyed working on them and am happy with the results. After speaking with my course leader, I understand the importance of things like reducing/enhancing shadows, filling blank spaces, making the hair even and symmetrical, and so on. After putting these tips into use, I think I have created a series of images that are much cleaner and more visually pleasing.

Editing my brand image

Camera Raw:

• Cropped image
• Colour picker tool > correct white balance > warmed temperature
• Sharpen slightly

Photoshop:

• Clone stamp;
• removed hair on ear and on background
• removed strays on eyebrows and filled in sparse parts
• added extra lashes
• removed blemishes, dry skin, fine lines on eye and mouth, scar on chin, lipstick on teeth, faint hairs on cheek, veins on eyeball
• added shadow to cheekbone
• filled in the bum in the shadow of her chin
• smoothed skin on neck
• evened out shadow on chest and chin
• neatened lipstick outline
• removed redness on collarbone
• Liquify;
• pushed in square jaw slightly
• plumped/enlarged lips
• Quick select tool;
• selected iris > image > adjustments > changed brightness, hue/saturation, vibrance to change and brighten eye colour
• selected lower half of iris > raised exposure to make eye 'sparkle'
• selected teeth > raised brightness to 10 to whiten slightly

Before: 

After: 

I really enjoyed editing this photo, and am really pleased with the finished edit. I have removed all imperfections and made sure to emphasise the lips, as that is the part I want the viewer to focus on. I have also made the eyes much brighter; I think the green hue compliments the bright red lips. Next, I will insert the brand name and any images or designs I wish to include to promote the lipstick. 

MAC shoot - favourite images

I really enjoyed this photoshoot. Working with a pose I had already decided on - the tilted head and parted lips - meant there were limited compositions as I could not play around with my model's poses. However, I used a spotlight and had an assistant to help create shadows, in theme with my key word 'penumbra', and also emphasising the bright lipstick, thus promoting my chosen product. Originally I wanted to capture my model's shoulders, however, on reflection, shooting at a closer distance would have been better, as I have decided I want the face to fill more of the frame, so I will have to crop my images - to avoid seeing the reflector disc as well! In post-production, I will be careful to remove any lipstick on the teeth and any wispy hairs, and also soften some of the shadows under my model's chin slightly. My preferred images are the ones where my model is not looking at the camera - I find that avoiding eye contact with the viewer draws more attention to other features rather than the eyes, i.e. the lips and lipstick. I also prefer the shadowy images over the bright ones; however I liked the contrast of the white background in amongst all the shadows. I had considered using a black background, but I really like the monochrome effect. 

I like the images where the shadows fall upon my model's eyes rather than her lips, as the focus of the pictures needs to be on the lower half of her face, so illuminating this part draws attention to it. My favourite images are the last five - particularly the last one. I think the shadows sit exactly where I want them, outlining the face and especially the lower half, and the pose is how I wanted it to be. However, in post-production, I will need to soften the edges of the shadows slightly as they are a little harsh. I think I prefer the images without the reflector disc being used - I like how the dark shadow surrounds the face, separating it from the body more and making the face the focus of attention. It also reminds me of MAC's Mineralize campaign:

MAC photo shoot call sheet

My brand image model - Fiona

For my MAC shoot I wanted a model with large lips, to really emphasise the lip product I am promoting. I wanted someone who looked a little different to make it unique and interesting - be it freckles, beauty marks, their teeth, etc. And finally they needed to look good with the hair in a ponytail. 

I asked my friend Fiona to model for me - she has great lips, a lovely smile, freckles, great skin and looks good with her hair up. I am really excited to see how the shoot comes out as I have not used her as a model before!

Post-production lessons

1:
Our first lesson of post-production included revisiting programmes from last semester such as InDesign, Bridge (and Camera Raw) and Photoshop. We were given an example image to work with.

• Camera Raw:
• White balance: select the colour picker tool, click on a neutral colour (white/black), the colour balance will automatically set to what it should be. Sliders for hue/saturation, vibrance, etc. can be set to your preferences
• Sharpening: alt. key + 'masking' shows area of sharpening
• Select brush tool to add shadow to cheekbones or alter/brighten eye colours 
• Shift key > open object (in Photoshop)

• Photoshop:
• Image > image size > unlink width and height > set width to 97%(ish) to thin face slightly
• Liquify: (filter > liquify) use Bloat tool to enlarge eyes, use Move tool to make features even - use large circle brush sizes!
• Window > actions > [menu icon] > load actions > FMS404 > frequency separation > [play button at bottom] > continue, etc > Low frequency + high frequency layers > feather = 20px > filter > blur > gaussian blur
• Clone stamp tool

This lesson was a lot to take in after a few months without I.T. lessons! However I was really pleased with how the example image looked once I had applied all the filters and changes that we were showed. I definitely need to play around with the programmes again using my own photos, as there is a lot to remember and apply to my own work. Despite this, I am excited to see how my own images look once I work on them. 



2: 
The second lesson of post production was focusing on InDesign a little more. We got shown the templates for our brand images, so I downloaded the MAC one. 

• InDesign:
• By going to templates > links > layers, the visible layers were shown, and could be selected or deselected to display the layers that were wanted. For example, various pictures of make-up products, or placement and colour of the brand name. 
• To insert my own image instead of the example one, file > place > image
• Set frame to fit content
• Pages > insert 4 new. This creates the five page document needed for the hand-in. To create landscape pages, right click on 'A-master' > create new master > landscape > drag 'B-master' to where landscape pages are wanted
• To change the colour of the product to suit the product I am promoting: Select image > edit > edit with Photoshop > adjustments > hue/saturation > change 'master' to 'reds' > slide hue bar
• To save all: InDesign > links > relink button > select edited image

3:

In our third lesson we learnt about typography in InDesign, preparing us for the evaluation page. We learn how to insert columns to make the writing more readable, how to change the font and writing size, how to use 'paragraph styles' to create different bodies of text, how to make sure no text is lost off the page, how to remove hyphens, how to move a title to the centre of the page, and how to widen line spacing. We touched on SWOT analyses, and also inserted a box at the bottom of our page for a hyperlink to our blogs, which we were shown how to create.  

Making back shots interesting

I researched some portraits taken from behind, and analysed what makes them interesting to look at when the face is not visible. Usually, the hair would be eye-catching, of the model would be wearing a bright or interesting outfit. Also, the choice of background colour could contrast with the model or lead the viewer to consider the mood and story behind the image. Alternatively, there would be a more sensual vibe, where the model is not fully clothed, bringing focus to the curves of his/her body. Lighting would be used to accentuate this, as well as softening their skin. 

My concern with needing to submit a front, side and back shot was that without the face and make-up being visible, the back image might be a little boring, especially when the hairstyle I wanted to use was not an intricate one. Therefore, I thought about my composition and my model's poses - I wanted to keep the childlike concept, so I thought initially of my model playing with her hair with her fingers. I liked the simplicity of the first image. I then wanted to incorporate shadows, in theme with my word 'penumbra.' So I directed my model to create a heart shape with her hands, and made sure the image was taken at the right angle so that both her hands and the shadow created on the wall behind could be seen. This shadow helps to fill what would otherwise be a large blank space. I loved this second image - it maintains the youthful vibe, while also incorporating 'penumbra.' I am pleased with how my back images came out, and think I have avoided them looking too plain. 

Penumbra shoot - favourite images

In terms of post-production, I will focus on parts of the images that look a little blank - e.g. any wall space where there is no shadow. I will crop the images so that the face and hair fills more of the frame and there is less negative space such as my model's body or the dark area of the wall around the top. I will lower the warmth slightly as I feel a cooler tone will tie in with the darker theme and lighting set-up, and I will subtly lighten any facial lines such as on the chin, cheeks or under the eyes, just to make them less harsh. I will darken any shadow on the hair to avoid them blending and becoming almost unnoticeable, and I will add volume to any parts of the hair that look flat or uneven. I may need to fill in any sections where the scalp shows, as well. The focus of this project is on beauty, and so I want my images to look as 'perfect' as possible.