Under Exposed No More

[Midwest Sunset]

I don't have any studio lights so I have to make do with the on board flash. I have tried several different diffusers that I have been unhappy with. So, now I under expose when I have to use it & then boost things slowly in RAW. Here is an example, I would love to hear if the process is working, I don't want flat color or blown areas - those are my main concerens.

Before/After


Process includes:
1. Work in Camera RAW - boosting exposure & adjusting levels - just slightly boosting saturation.
2. Healing brush to remove sparkles from around her eyes & bottom of nose - she had a sparkly make-up on that really grabbed the flash.
3. Add warming layer @ 25% opacity - to add back some of the color lost in levels boosting.
3. Making eyes pop via doge & burn of the iris & pupils
5. Adding a gaussian blur @ 30% opacity & erasing the blur from the eyes & mouth.

I really like the glamour kind of feel that the added gaussian blur adds to a photo & the smoothing of the skin. I really like the sharpness of others' photos but am never quite happy with it in mine.

If anyone has any other tricks to saving or improving portraits I would love to hear them!

[t blanchard]

You definitely did a great job bringing up the brightness in the image.

For the healing brush work - I guess it depends on the look you were going for - but I actually like her freckles and natural face and think the processed look is a bit high on the glamour scale for a young girl. But that is really just my opinion as I think that is a matter of preference and what you are looking for.

For the eyes - I'm not sure what you did, but I like to work on the eyes in a new layer and then decrease the opacity of that layer. Then it's not quite as dramatic. I think it's a fine line between making the eyes pop and making them look unnatural. I really might be in the minority on this.

I do love the expression, image size, and capture! It's a great photo – I’m just not crazy about the healing brush and eyes.

[ReflectingGrace]

I really like it - Im very impressed! this may be something I try eventually since im stuck with my onboard flash right now too. great job! (and i personally like the eyes and skin but I do tend towards a more processed look)

[kencaleno]

Hi, your colors are still rather flat- I just gave a color boost using match color,and a little local contrast enhancement to give a more three-dimensional look,also I added catchlights to the eyes to look as though studio softboxes were used. Regards, Ken

[t blanchard]

Originally Posted by kencaleno

Hi, your colors are still rather flat- I just gave a color boost using match color,and a little local contrast enhancement to give a more three-dimensional look,also I added catchlights to the eyes to look as though studio softboxes were used. Regards, Ken

I really like Ken's edits - I think he strikes a good balance here so it's not overly processed looking. The color and contrast edits help!

[SandeeWig]

She is such a doll and a ham at the same time!! Nice work. I've subscribed to this thread just so I can easily refer back to your steps. I tried it out on one of my self-portraits and it worked really well.

Thanks so much!!

[Midwest Sunset]

Thanks everyone for your comments & added tips! I love this section, it's a great place to learn eachother's techniques & tricks of the trade.