Glamorizing Photographs



Glamorizing a photograph sounds like a single technique you can apply to your friends and families portraits, doesn't it? The truth is that glamorizing includes many different Photoshop techniques applied to a photograph.

Sometimes you will use all of the tools at your disposal and at other times only a few of them.

The tools and techniques used most often include the clone tool, patch tool, healing brush, regular brush, sharpening, levels and curves, layers, adjustment layers, selections - pretty much everything you have available in Photoshop.

The question is this, then - what do you do when you glamorize a picture?

Generally you are looking to do one or all of the following:

  • eliminating any imperfections and/or blotches on the skin

  • smoothing out the skin

  • getting rid of annoying skin shine

  • keeping the important part of the face nice and sharp

  • whitening teeth

  • changing eye color - perhaps

It can be a challenge and it is also a lot of fun and the person who you are "glamorizing" always appreciates your efforts.

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NOTE:
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Because there are so many different techniques for retouching a photograph, the techniques will be linked from this page.

You can choose whichever one suites your needs or combine them to come up with your own neat, new technique.

Technique One

This technique could be called retouching or skin smoothing or glamorizing or blemish removal - each name applies.

This is the technique I use when showing someone how to tune up a photograph. It is quick and easy, using tools that are included in every version of Photoshop Elements and the full version of Photoshop.

To learn how to use this technique click on the thumbnail.

Red Head Thumbnail


The Next Step ...

These steps take the first technique to the next level with a couple of layers and an adjustment layer.

Click on the thumbnail to learn how to use layers to improve your portrait.

Red Head Thumb



Dave's Work Flow

I have a buddy in Detroit who is a professional photographer. The last time we were together I picked his brain.

I wanted to know how to improve my photography and how he works his pictures in Photoshop. Being a real nice guy, Dave gave me some great advice.

His photography advice was to "get close, get closer and then get even closer". It works and my pictures have improved.

His Photoshop work flow also makes sense. This is what Dave told me:

  1. Eliminate blemishes with the Patch Tool.

  2. Select the eyes and move them to a new level. Adjust Levels if needed and Sharpen.

  3. Adjust the background with Shadows and Highlights.

  4. Reduce any skin sheen with the Clone Tool.

  5. Clean up the teeth if necessary.

Dave's two pieces of advice make a big difference in the original image out of your camera and in the final result with Photoshop.




Return to Photoshop Tutorials from Glamorizing Page.

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